To fully embrace the Holy month of Ramadan, Cadillac Arabia has partnered with trailblazing content creators from across the Middle East region – Sofiane Si Merbat, Hayat Osamah, Amna Al Qubaisi and Maha Alasaker – to produce a weekly docu-series titled “Brightest Nights”. The four-part series was rolled out each week of the Holy month on the brand’s social media pages, with each episode centering around one city: Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, and Kuwait City.
Since 1902, Cadillac has undeniably reserved a unique spot as an icon in the cultural scene. Cadillac and its portfolio of luxury vehicles were regularly featured in the music and films industries throughout the decades, strongly associating the brand to arts and culture. In parallel, Cadillac has established its very own legacy in the region, building on over a century of history and a presence across the Middle East and celebrating together numerous cultural occasions. “Brightest Nights” campaign, combines Cadillac’s positioning as a cultural icon and its unique legacy in the region, to further drive the cultural conversation, in a modern, meaningful and impactful way. The campaign depicts Ramadan’s spirit and significance as a magical and introspective time for observants around the world as well as the wider communities in the Middle East region, in Cadillac’s very own creative way.
Ramadan is period when night becomes day and day becomes night. Schedules tend to change, with days mostly spent indoors, while nights become the time of outings, gatherings, adventures and liveliness – Despite the darkness of the sky at night, the light of Ramadan shines the brightest then.
After scouting for four faces to represent Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, and Kuwait, the brand set out to candidly unveil the beautiful unseen scenes that shine under the moon-lit skies of the season in their purest form, in collaboration with them, with nothing but a mobile phone and a Cadillac.
“The thinking was simple, and our objective two-fold: How can we create content that ties back to our brand purpose as drivers of culture during the Holy month? And how can we break the clutter on social with an exciting format in the process?” explained Akshaya Sikand, Head of Marketing at Cadillac Arabia.
The first episode of the docu-series, “Rihla,” was produced in collaboration with Sofiane Si Merbat, also known as The Confused Arab, a Dubai-based artist and travel blogger. The theme of the episode centers around the city of Dubai, and its historical significance in the region as a melting pot of people and cultures, a city of modern and old, past and future, urban and Bedouin.
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“Tribe,” the second episode, follows Saudi Arabian photographer and director Hayat Osamah and her group of friends, as they navigate a Cadillac through the busy streets of Riyadh at night, and their feelings about Ramadan and how Arab youth culture ties into the themes of the Holy month.
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The series continues with Amna Al Qubaisi, famed as the first Emirati motorsports racing driver, who, for once, decides to slow things down and contemplate. In “Slow Down” Amna talks about Ramadan as a month-long pitstop, not for her racecar but for herself – a pitstop for introspection and recharging before she zooms into the next race.
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And the fourth and final episode, “The Community ” follows Kuwaiti photographer and art director Maha Alasaker as she shines a spotlight on one of Ramadan’s most colourful and lively traditions: Gergaoun, a Ramadan event where young children dress in colourful traditional clothing and go door-to-door asking for sweets from neighbours. She shows the Ramadan through the eyes of the children around her, who see magic in Ramadan that adults have lost sight of.
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The four episodes were paralleled with two videos filmed by renowned automotive journalists Abdulla Jaafari and Mohammed Khalifa, who have shared their own take on Ramadan’s brightest nights and their depiction of the spirit of the month. The first video featuring the CT5-V Blackwing by Abdullah encourages the audience to embrace the last remaining #BrightestNights of Ramadan and can be accessed on his page here. Mohammed’s Video which includes the XT4, focuses on his decade long journey producing content and working with cars, as well as the opportunities the blessed month brings him. It can be accessed on his page here.
In less than a month, the “Brightest Nights” campaign has resulted in over 8,862,234 views, generated more than 146,504 engagements and reached more than 8 million viewers across the region. With these results, the campaign cements another impactful cultural celebration for Cadillac, as a brand that is delivering on its promise of continuing to drive culture forward, as it has for decades.
Credits
Saatchi & Saatchi
MRM
Carat
Weber Shandwick
