Conjuring the Creative Identity of Project Rock’s Rallying Cry
Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is known the world over for his hard work and tenacity. He represents the zenith of physical fitness, the principles of which are embedded in the tough and durable products of the Under Armour 'Project Rock' brand.
For the latest collection, Under Armour turned to long-time creative collaborators, DOMO, to distil the key pillars of Project Rock. Heading up the team was executive creative director and director, André Stringer, who knew exactly how to illuminate the campaign's robust brand message and deliver soul-shaking content capable of igniting a cultural movement.
An expert in elevating the intrinsic philosophies of global brands, André began navigating the creative parameters of the Fall/Winter '23 product launch, which brings together Under Armour, Project Rock, Dwayne Johnson, and their communities.
Through in-depth research and thoughtful co-creation, DOMO successfully delivered the brand’s powerful rallying cry: “Step in—the project is calling.” Designed to motivate an audience of athletes, the 41 strategically crafted films bring together 3 product collections with a singular call to action.
André Stringer, and creative lead, Ginger Boyd, chat to LBB’s April Summers about presenting a novel strategic direction for this first-of-its-kind commercial collaboration with Under Armour, Project Rock and Seven Bucks Marketing.
André Stringer> This was an exciting moment for DOMO because despite having done many years of seminal work for the main brand, Under Armour, this was the first time we had the opportunity to touch the Project Rock brand and work with Dwayne Johnson and his team at Seven Bucks.
LBB> DOMO has worked with Under Armour many times before – what were the key distinguishing characteristics of this creative brief?
André Stringer> This was an exciting moment for DOMO because despite having done many years of seminal work for the main brand, Under Armour, this was the first time we had the opportunity to touch the Project Rock brand and work with Dwayne Johnson and his team at Seven Bucks.
LBB> How does this work build on Under Armour’s brand objectives?
André > When we began collaborating with the teams from Under Armour, Project Rock, and Seven Bucks Marketing, there were several objectives we’d need to hit with one powerful, effective campaign. First and foremost, the goal was to foster and excite the community at every touchpoint; we sought to ignite a powerful call into the Project Rock universe by Dwayne Johnson himself. At the same time, we aimed to launch three new product collections throughout the season with grammar that ladders back to our deeper message. Lastly, with Project Rock (an endorsed brand within Under Armour), our work would need to strengthen and deepen consideration and connection with the Project Rock brand name. In short, every one of our 19 films and down-funnel applications would need to fire on all cylinders to motivate and inspire our athlete audience.
LBB> How did your research of previous Project Rock campaigns influence your directing and writing ideas for this campaign?
André > The process began with an in-depth research phase where we teased out the principles of past Project Rock campaigns in order to find and define the common threads. We used this exploration to develop new brand pillars that would drive our campaign as well as orient the work moving forward. We uncovered how Project Rock is deeply connected to Under Armour and how it sharpens core UA brand pillars specific to its consumers. These tenets gave us a strong foundation to story tell from—resilience, hard work, heart, and edge. From this research, we set out to create an intimate and passionate call to our community, engaging a powerhouse cast of athletes to join in alongside Johnson. A comprehensive and cohesive suite of work that is bold, confident, unconventional, agile, adventurous, visionary, and purposeful. Something strong and disruptive.
LBB> The Rock engages directly with the audience in this spot, which is a bold and very effective approach. What was the reaction to this creative direction?
Ginger Boyd> Grounding our campaign in the concept of recognition or turning this existing relationship into a two-way street where your hero calls you indirectly and recognises the work you’ve been putting in, was integral to every element of our campaign. Allowing the man himself to call athletes into the community directly was the missing piece that would dial up the intensity and efficacy of our work and the Project Rock brand as a whole. This bold and brazen invitation was a novel strategic direction for Project Rock, but a disruptive new approach was exactly what was needed to breathe new life into how the brand communicates and connects with the community.
LBB> How did you ensure the duality of production and creativity of all three brands - Under Armour, Project Rock, Dwayne Johnson - were married together harmoniously for this film?
André > Project Rock is the brand of a cultural icon. Dwayne Johnson’s words carry weight; he holds a unique power to bring people together, to set ablaze a cultural movement. This campaign is more than a series of product launches — it’s a generative platform that brings together Under Armour, Project Rock, Dwayne Johnson, and their communities into cohesion, unlocking boldness, creativity, power, and possibility. To bring this to life, DOMO liaised between the internal and external partners involved to allow deep collaboration to drive our work.
LBB> Now that the project is out in the world, what do you hope audiences’ key takeaways are?
André > Our campaign inspires confidence, motivating new consumers to bet on themselves and take that next step on their journey. By being the brand that shakes shit up and opens up a growth mindset for someone, Project Rock becomes integral to their journey toward confidence. They feel connected on a deeper level and are primed to consider Project Rock products as fundamental to their journey.
