A symbol, theme, setting, or character-type that recurs ... - F+W Media

Mexican food restaurant Chipotle’s two-minute 20-second commercial debutedat the 2012 Grammys and practically stole the show. As a commentaryon the modern industrial food chain, the short animated film Back to theStart 1 features Willie Nelson covering Coldplay’s “The Scientist.” The filmdemonstrates the values of the brand and harkens to a time when life andwork seemed more simple and more rewarding. The film is a result of Chipotlefounder Steve Ells’s passionate efforts to source food on a more sustainable andethical basis. Archetype in play: The Citizen (secondary Innocent).These are but seven representatives in a vast sea of examples demonstratingthe power of archetypes applied in design, communications and advertising.Why do they work? Because archetypes create shortcuts to meaning. This hashuge implications for brands: Instant emotional impact and visual depictionof an archetype occurring in the mind of the viewer/user creates instantaffinity. Well-deployed archetypes are easily recognizable in most cultures andpersonify the brand essence to support strategic initiatives without creativeinhibition. Archetypes can therefore become a shorthand for testing brandauthenticity. How would the [insert your brand archetype] talk, behave orbe in relationship?A BRIDGE BETWEEN STRATEGY AND MANIFESTATIONArchetypes cross the divide between the imagination and the cognitiverealm because they are the water we swim in, so to speak. We invite youto jump in and swim. You don’t have to be training for an Olympic 400mfreestyle event to get in the water and feel the ease of tapping into a creativeforce greater than yourself.Please play with the cards. Explore what the image side instinctively communicatesto you without looking at the descriptions on the text side.Become familiar with your own predispositions toward the implied story ofthe card, or its colors or style. An easy litmus test to know if you’re in yourhead is when you are no longer enjoying the process but rather searchingfor the right answer. There are no right or wrong answers with this tool. Getout of your head, say hello to your creativity and imagination and breathesome life into your brand/business.CHAPTERFOUR17An Invitation to Play