Curious Cat Takes on Home Smart Devices in HP+ Smart App Spot

In a world where smart assistants live inside your phone and on your countertop and even your fridge connects to WiFi, why can’t printers be smart, too? With HP+, printing finally got smart, with printers that order their own ink, have automatic self-healing WiFi connection, and offer a plethora of smart features through the Smart App. 

“People expect their technology to intuitively work for them, so we’re proud to bring a smarter way of printing to consumers,” said Deepak Masand, global head of marketing, HP Imaging, Printing and Solutions. “This campaign celebrates the arrival of a new printing frontier.”

And with 2020 HP home printer sales soaring +21% over 2019, this was the perfect time to introduce people to what printing can do.

The Hero is a film created by Goodby Silverstein & Partners and directed by Lance Acord. 

The spot takes place in a magical world where smart devices come to life when humans are asleep, complete with personalities and quirks. Though some of the residents of the home are skeptical of the newcomer, the HP+ Smart Printer, it quickly earns their trust after a heroic showdown— using its genius to protect a cute little vacuum from the terrorising housecat.

"We all had so much fun on this project. For me the idea really clicked once we were able to clearly define the personality of each device.  From the overly enthusiastic high energy vacuum, to the bug eyed paranoid home security camera, to the sarcastic hard to impress home-assistant,  each device had a unique character within the story." Lance Acord, director/DP, Park Pictures

To bring more magic into this story, GS&P looked outside the typical ad world and enlisted the craftsmanship of Hollywood hands including director Lance Acord, editor Kirk Baxter, production designer James Chinlund, sound designer Martín Hernández, and composer Robert Miller.

“We had originally called the idea ‘The Symphony of Smart’ after noticing the secret language that exists between smart objects already in our home. They can talk, respond, have expression. We wanted HP to bring to life a new part of the story we hadn’t yet seen between the objects we live with every day with our printer as the brand new smart kid on the block,” said Laura Petruccelli, ECD, GS&P.