When the Buffs line up for kickoff tonight in Denver, new players and strategies will make their debut. Also making its national premiere? The new, homegrown commercial for the University of Colorado Boulder.
Students, faculty and staff were instrumental in the creation of the newest spot promoting the university, shown nationally during all CU Boulder football games. In past years, this spot highlighted the CU system; this time, it’s just CU Boulder.
If you look at most other college's commercials, you can replace that college's name with any other school," said Jacob Glazier, a member of the original pitch team. "What they don't really touch on is what makes them unique. We were striving to make something that couldn't be plugged and played."
Fitting, then, that this year’s production tapped into the expertise and passions of our Buffs community.
CU Boulder’s Strategic Relations and Communications team took the ad to students in the College of Media, Communication and Information for a pitch session. Supported by Dean Lori Bergen and advertising Chair Harsha Gangadhabartla, advertising students helped to develop the original concept.
"If you look at most other college's commercials, you can replace that college's name with any other school," said Jacob Glazier, a member of the original pitch team. "What they don't really touch on is what makes them unique. We were striving to make something that couldn't be plugged and played."
Continuing the interdisciplinary collaboration, Dean Robert Shay of the College of Music then connected the production team with 2017 graduate Andryi Sovetov, who composed the score for the piece.
When filming began, campus community members from theater and dance, film studies and physics portrayed roles close to home – those of students and faculty. And a familiar voice ties it all together, as narrator Dean Emeritus of Libraries Jim Williams invites viewers to engage in “the moment.”
Of course, the star of the show is Ralphie, the number one live mascot in college football, who is celebrating the 50th anniversary of her tradition and showing off her good side in high definition.
The ad is developed as part of CU’s participation in the Pac-12 television package, and will run throughout the football season.
