As gambling in the UK becomes increasingly regulated, Ladbrokes (one of the UK’s best known gambling firms) is evolving its business to become an entertainment brand, appealing to a broader more recreational audience.

The strength of an entrainment brand comes from mass appeal so we had to create a campaign that would connect with both our current customers and the wider public, who haven’t previously considered the brand and category.

We needed to keep current consumers engaged, excited, and with us on our journey of transformation, whilst also re-introducing Ladbrokes to non-consumers to help shift their perceptions of the brand and category.

To engage both audiences, we turned away from classic gambling ad tropes and looked to the home of entertainment: Hollywood. We re-imagined an iconic moment these audiences knew and loved – Rocky’s run through the streets of Philadelphia.

Pre-production was key to the success of the VFX. We mapped everything in CGI before the shoot to work out each camera move. From this we provided direction for the motion control wire cam that dictated the speed, height, rotation of the camera, and focal length.

As the original was shot using a zoom lens on a Steadicam, the moves were very complex. Many of the moves were too precise or fast for the physical rig to handle, so we digitally removed 20% of the movement and re-applied it in post using custom tools.

After the shoot we digitally removed all the original background cast and painstakingly added in multiple plates of live action, CGI action like stunt bikes, F1 cars and parachutes. Matching the film grain and subtle variations in depth of field.

Finally, we balanced everything out with a colour grade faithful to the original 1979 film.

This film has been transformational for Ladbrokes.

Rocky improved brand image KPIs such as ‘fun’, ‘entertaining’ and ‘innovative’ leading to a dramatic increase in consideration from their current customers.

Rocky delivered the highest engagement (positivity & persuasiveness) among Ladbrokes prospective audience (the wider public). Ladbrokes has now become the most well-known brand amongst growth audience in the UK. Following the campaign, Ladbrokes has also become the brand they are most likely to be open to using.

Beyond its external impact, the work has also inspired the wider Ladbrokes team to push forward faster with the transformation of their business from gambling first to entertainment first. This film showed them what was possible for their brand and has helped speed up this transition towards a more secure future with a more sustainable, recreational player base.