Is Advertising Really as Bad as a Life of Crime?
Zulu Alpha Kilo wants to scare young ad execs straight in their new recruitment video

Award winning Toronto-based agency Zulu Alpha Kilo releases the most terrifying (and hilarious) recruiting video, called 'SCARED STRAIGHT: Out of Advertising'. Geared towards wide-eyed ad students entering the work force, this hilarious video is meant to scare them straight out of a career in the business. Toronto-based independent Zulu Alpha Kilo, winner of Ad Age’s international small agency of the year in 2017 produced it for Canada’s hotly contested Strategy Magazine’s Agency of the Year Competition. As part of the award show ceremony, shortlisted agencies are asked to create a short video for their agency. Creating a self-promo video for the event has become something of an annual tradition and an unofficial competition in itself, with top Canadian agencies all vying to have the best video of the night.
Zulu’s 'SCARED STRAIGHT: Out of Advertising' shows a group of optimistic—if perhaps overly smug—advertising students visiting a real agency for a day. In the place of hardened criminals scaring juvenile offenders out of a life of crime, two hard-boiled Executive Creative Directors go over just about every reason why advertising is a terrible life path.
The video is jam-packed with just about every joke and insight you can make about the ad industry—from everyone wearing all black “uniforms,” to the unrealistic expectations of new grads, to the long hours—not to mention the industry’s obsession with awards. The agency even takes yet another shot at spec creative work—Zulu famously created the '
Say no to Spec' campaign around the same time two years ago.
With the agency looking to fill 14 new positions, it is likely the message of the video is in jest—or at the very least is meant to ensure new grads know exactly what they’re getting into. Earlier this year, Zulu Alpha Kilo launched The “$40k A Year Employeeship”, an initiative that gives any soon to be or recent graduate seeking an internship as an Art Director, Designer, or Copywriter, the chance to forgo an internship all together. Zulu believes this new program will help attract the brightest young talent to the agency without all the ambiguities that come with an
internship.
The video was produced in-house by the agency’s production arm zulubot and directed by agency founder and CCO Zak Mroueh.
view more - CreativePost Production / VFX
Compositor: Marissa Bergougnou
Online Artist: Marissa Bergougnou
Post Production Company: zulubot
Creative Agency
Account Team: Matt Sinuita
Art Director: Brendan McMullen
Copywriter: Jacob Pacey
Creative Agency: Zulu Alpha Kilo
Producer: Revital Grunberg
Social Media: Sean Bell
Digital Production Company
Colourist: Wade Odlum, Alter Ego
Production Company
Casting Director: Shasta Lutz, Jigsaw Casting
Director: Zak Mroueh
DOP: Rob Dutchin
Production Company: zulubot
Second Camera: Stefan MacDonald Labelle
Producer: David “Grover” Cosgrove / Marc Milliard
Music
Audio Post Production: zulubot
Sound Engineer: Stephen Stepanic
Offline
Editor: Jay Baker / Marissa Bergougnou
Genres: Documentary, People, Comedy
Categories: Recruitment, Business Services
Zulu Alpha Kilo, Tue, 14 Nov 2017 10:06:01 GMT