«The New Normal»: Medmen's first commercial directed by Spike Jonze

Published

8 years ago

February 26, 2019

Dispensary chain MedMen entrusted the production of its very first commercial, «The New Normal», to Spike Jonze, a world-renowned American director, screenwriter, producer and actor. The investment was well worth it, as the resulting short film is a small work of art that fits in perfectly with the company's communications strategy.

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The short film

Spike Jonze has produced numerous music videos as well as films. In particular, he has produced In the skin of John Malkovich,his first feature film, but also Jackass, and directed the futuristic film Her. Under his leadership The New Normal takes us through the history of cannabis in the United States, through frozen scenes accompanied by a voice-over.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g74sc4O8vqg

This pictorial chronicle of cannabis begins in the days of the Fouding Fathers when cannabis was a crop like any other. The first vignette features President George Washington on his hemp farm, cannabis leaf in hand, inspecting the quality of his crop. The voice-over jokes: «And yes, the president was growing his own. That was normal.

An immediate change of scenery and atmosphere, the following scenes depict the «80 years of unjust prohibition that haven't made us any safer». A reference to the propaganda films of the 1930s, Reefer Madness, It's a whole industry built on the foundations of the re-normalization of cannabis.

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The film closes in an American-style suburban setting as a middle-class couple return home. Among their shopping bags is the significant Medmen brand, a red opaque bag with the Medmen logo in white. The voiceover concludes: «The symbol of counterculture is, after all, simply culture. It's normal again. It's the new normal.

Medmen's marketing strategy

Medmen's communications strategy is aimed above all at combating the controversial and marginalized nature of cannabis consumption. We recall in particular its advertising campaign Forget Stoner who wanted to do away with the stereotypes of stoner. In its marketing strategy, the company always emphasizes the normal of cannabis. This is particularly true of this new commercial, which shows the process of normalizing cannabis use.

This normalization is a reality, particularly in the United States, where more and more «good people» are starting to use cannabis. The last vignette in the clip, for example, echoes the phenomenon of stoned moms, These are stay-at-home moms, generally middle-class, living in residential suburbs, who claim their cannabis consumption as their own. All the ingredients are there for this burgeoning consumer segment to identify itself. The dispensary chain also has another tool for reaching this kind of consumer: her lifestyle blog, Ember, where you can find product descriptions, recipes for edibles and more.

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The dispensary chain already has strong communication tools, including a signature bag that's instantly recognizable and a physical presence in several states. With a market capitalization of over $544 million, it has the means to broadcast its ads all over the U.S. (and to pay Spike Jonze). The commercial will be broadcast on «cannabis-friendly» platforms, according to the brand. Indeed, cannabis ads have on mainstream channels proving that the subject is still controversial. Print ads will also appear in magazines, and the clip is scheduled to play in cinemas in California, Nevada, Arizona and Michigan.