New Renault Ad Brings The West End To The Car Dealership

‘The Sound of Music’ had the Swiss Alps, ‘West Side Story’ had Manhattan and now Renault’s stab at musical whimsy has its own exotic locale. That’s right, it’s a car dealership but don’t be fooled. Turns out there’s more to an automobile purchase than monthly installments and giveaway air fresheners.

Returning to the raucous cabaret atmosphere the brand created in previous spots, ‘#TwingoFlamingo’ (we’ll get to the title) conjures a technicolour Broadway fantasia within the world of low APR loans. We see our glamorous lead, a sort-of cross between Snow White and a ‘Mad Men’ character, sweeping into the dealership, instantly stealing the heart of nearby car salesmen. Unfortunately for them, her affections have already been won by a charming fellow with four wheels and a retractable roof.

Supporting Renault’s adorably-named Twingo, the ad is appropriately playful from the get-go. As our heroine swirls and leaps her way around the room, she details her vehicular requirements in theatrical style: “She should be speedy, not too needy, fuel consumption not too greedy. And willing to put up with my debris!” Mark our words: you will be humming this song afterwards.

As with any good car advert, there’s attention paid to versatility. However, Renault gives it a more personal spin. Our heroine spreads her arms, demanding space, lots of space, for “couples to embrace, on the roof or either of the inside seats”. Seems reasonable. Also the dashboard magically changes colour at the touch of a finger, although we can’t promise that’s a real feature and not just an editing trick. We’ll have to check the terms and conditions.

As the bopping chorus of ‘Show me a car, show me a car!’ continues, we take a further jump into the fantastical. A backdrop of rolling hills and pristine blue skies appears, accompanied by happy picnickers and prop birds befitting a play at a village fete. In these moments, ‘#TwingoFlamingo’ takes on a lo-fi charm, reminiscent of Max Fischer’s madcap theatrical endeavours from Wes Anderson’s ‘Rushmore’.

Lovingly produced with Scorch London, the ad features of cavalcade of mad attractions, including a rugby team, several painfully-cute dogs and that ever elusive flamingo. And ‘#TwingoFlamingo’ is only one piece of Renault’s marketing puzzle, which includes teaser spots running on Facebook and Twitter, eleven full-length ads and even a mobile game produced with Microsoft. Talk about a blockbuster production.

Of course, it’s not the first time an animal has featured prominently in a Renault ad. Just last year, the brand blew us away with their charming take on ‘Finding Nemo’, and ‘The Great Escape’. However the flamingo’s presence seemed destined to remain a mystery for the moment, a bit like the polar bears on ‘Lost’. At least the spot clarifies that you don’t receive a free tropical bird with your Twingo. Almost got our hopes up there.

Either way, this is absolutely a spot for musical lovers but also those who enjoy the incongruous and surreal. We’ll keep our fingers crossed for the West End transfer.

Disclosure: Unruly is distributing this video on behalf of Renault. This post is not part of the commercial plan and is written by the editorial team at Unruly, whose opinions are always independent, sometimes scurrilous, and never knowingly under-researched.

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