Because of that weird ad, Instagram now has a filter that turns your head into an RC Cola bottle
A week after it launched on Nov. 26, RC Cola’s weird ad has racked up 7.6 million views on RC’s Facebook page alone. Not bad for an ad considered creepy and disturbing by many.
Sure it’s bizarre, but it’s also become so popular there’s now an Instagram filter that makes you a member of this weirdo family.
Teejay Jamlang, a 23-year-old VR/AR and game developer, created the filter. Like many of us, his reaction when he first saw the ad was a loud WTF!
Teejay has done between 50 and 100 IG and Facebook filters—more so now since he became a freelancer after he lost his full-time job due to the pandemic.
I can’t confirm that exact increase in sales as it’s confidential. Suffice it to say that the ad resulted in a significant increase.
Some filters he finishes in a matter of hours, others from three to four days, or even months. He’s had a few commissioned by ad agencies handling brands like Oishi, Samsung and Spotify PH. For Oishi, his filter turns your head into a giant prawn.
The RC filter, on the other hand, he did on his own because he thought the ad—by Gigil agency and directed by Marius Talampas—was hilarious and weird, and he liked it, just as he does weird Japanese ads he stumbles upon online.
“The RC Cola filter went online on Wednesday night, Dec. 2. By Thursday, it had reached 30,000 people and was shared on IG Stories at least 1,000 times,” Teejay tells PhilSTAR L!fe.
“When I posted the filter, within an hour it reached the Gigil team because of people reacting to it and sharing it. Most of the reactions were ‘At last someone made it!’ and people were just laughing at it. I’ve also seen them using the filter and reenacting the ad.”
The Gigil team reached out to Teejay and invited him to a Zoom call. He says, “Magkaka-vibes naman kami and same kami ng mga ka-weirduhan.”
What can we say, weird begets weird, creative begets creative.
“We just introduced ourselves and nag-kwentuhan lang,” he says when asked if Gigil has offered him a job.
Does he actually drink RC Cola? “I drink all brands of soft drinks but most of the time local brands like RC yung iniinom ko since it’s accessible at sari-sari stores near me.”
RC Cola’s sales have spiked since the ad came out
James Loverio, marketing head of ARC Refreshments Corporation, answers the question on everyone’s mind: was the ad actually effective in driving up consumption of RC Cola?
A source tells us sales rose by 10%, but James simply says, “Unfortunately I can’t confirm that exact increase in sales as it’s confidential. Suffice it to say that the ad resulted in a significant increase.”
He says that RC Cola anticipated the ad would create buzz for the brand but “the positive response from the general public were overwhelming! The engagements and shares on social media were all organic.”
James adds, “We liked how diverse the reactions were—from trying to dissect every aspect of the ad to find a deeper meaning to realizing the simplicity of the message ‘Basta RC Cola, masarap!’ We love the eagerness of how social media jumped in and quickly created memes. We're also flattered that some brands have made their own versions of the mom with the RC head.”
In an interview with the Gigil creative team last week, they described how RC executives approved the big idea of “Basta!” at first pitch.
James says, “The ‘Family’ ad was one of three ideas that Gigil originally presented to us and we instantly gravitated towards this ad. We loved how it encapsulated the big idea of ‘Basta RC’ and how it clearly spoke to Gen Z/ millennials.
“It was a fresh take on the message that we wanted to deliver—how the young live in the moment and how they don't need a host of reasons before doing something. The ad also showed an analogy to everyday life—self-doubt, unconditional acceptance, truth, family, togetherness, and having fun with the people we love! These things were communicated in a unique and creative way.
“Given the uniqueness of the concept and Gigil's history of successful advertising campaigns, we knew that we were in good hands.”
We liked how diverse the reactions were—from trying to dissect every aspect of the ad to find a deeper meaning to realizing the simplicity of the message ‘Basta RC Cola, masarap!’
In a chat with Gigil co-founder Herbert Hernandez, he reveals that Gigil has another ad coming out soon. If this is the second part of the RC Cola ad, what do you think will happen to the family?
My money is on the dad and sister having bottle heads too!
Gigil wins top awards at Campaign AOY 2020
Gigil recently won two awards from Campaign Agency of the Year, which recognizes achievements in advertising and brand communications.
Gigil won not only the Philippines Independent Agency of the Year, but also the Philippines Creative Agency of the Year for 2020.
Gigil tells us that this is the first time in the show’s history that a Philippine indie agency also conquered the country’s creative agency of the year category, “a battleground traditionally lorded over by multinationals.”
Gigil with its client 7-Eleven CLiQQ also snatched a gold, winning Southeast Asia Agency Marketer Partnership of the Year. The agency’s work with Orocan brought home a bronze in the same category.
Gigil won a second bronze for Southeast Asia Talent Development Program of the Year. In total, Gigil brought home five metals—the most for any Philippine agency in this year’s show.
Gigil also won a gold in the APAC Effies this year, making it the Philippines’ most effective creative agency, and the third most effective independent agency in Asia-Pacific.
RC Cola Instagram filter videos courtesy of (from top) Gigil’s Zsa Sunga, JR Bumanglag and Herbert Hernandez.