Creative New Zealand highlights Aotearoa’s unique creativity in new campaign via Curative
Creative agency Curative has joined forces with national arts development agency Creative New Zealand to launch a new national campaign that encourages all New Zealanders to celebrate and embrace our creativity.
Creative New Zealand advocates for the value of art, culture and creativity in Aotearoa.
“We’re building support for a future where art, culture, and creativity thrive, so all New Zealanders flourish,” says Tracey Monastra, Advocacy Manager at Creative New Zealand. “The time has come to unify the ideas behind our advocacy work under one central, recognisable message for now and into the future, and we’re excited to grow it from here.”
Creativity Makes Us – Auahatia! is a campaign that reconnects its audience with the energy and joy behind creative experiences. It encourages us to enjoy all the different colours of creativity in Aotearoa, and reawakens us to its power, reminding New Zealanders that we can embrace creativity in any way we want – as maker, supporter and audience member.
“The campaign celebrates that New Zealand is already proudly creative through our shared experience of the wide span of the arts” says Kate Prior, Copywriter at Curative. “It aims to inspire an emotive change, which over time will help contribute to more New Zealanders actively seeking more creativity in their life.”
The campaign messaging focuses on the power of creativity to move us, mirror us and ultimately, make us. “When creativity moves us, we never forget how good it feels,” says Kate. “When creativity mirrors us and our humanity, we know it’s vital for our wellbeing. And when we draw on creativity to identify ourselves, both as individuals and as a nation, it makes us who we are.”
The campaign line draws from both reo Pākehā and reo Māori, and forms a powerful call-and-response. “It was important to both Creative New Zealand and ourselves that our message was bilingual, yet not necessarily a direct translation” says Kaan Hiini, Design Director at Curative. “In te reo Māori, ‘auahatia’ is a command meaning make! Create! There’s a boldness about it that felt right. It implies a speaker and an audience. It implies an invitation.”
The creative approach to the campaign is one that highlights the depth and breadth of creativity in Aotearoa. Across video and OOH, the creative presents a multilayered vision of Aotearoa through the power and collective momentum of our creativity.
Campaign imagery intentionally layers everyday creative acts with the mastery of our artists, showing how the creative force runs through each and every one of us – even those who may not self-describe as ‘creative’.
“It’s a saturated deluge of creativity,” says Kate. “Archive footage mixes with the everyday which mixes with art directed moments. Visual styles are collaged together giving material effect to the creative layers we are all made of as individuals and as New Zealanders. Our creativity is abundant. Our creativity makes us.”
The campaign website is now live and the campaign rolls out on street posters and major platforms like Stuff, New Zealand Herald and TVNZ On Demand.
From now into the future, Creativity Makes Us – Auahatia! will be used to ensure a broad and growing audience recognises the indelible part creativity plays in their own lives, and how our artists and creative industries bring immense value to Aotearoa and help make us who we are.
To find out more, visit www.creativitymakesus.nz
Creative New Zealand
Tracey Monastra, Edward Watson and Kerryanne Nelson for Creative New Zealand.
Curative
Eddy Royal, Managing Director
Logan Bradley, Creative Director
Kaan Hiini, Design Director
Kate Prior, Copywriter
Billie Fee, Designer
Georgia Hoffman, Senior Producer
Melanie Harries, Project Manager