• by Larissa Faw , May 20, 2016

Mobile tech brand Qualcomm and its agency Ogilvy have launched a star-studded branded entertainment campaign to promote Qualcomm's Snapdragon 820 mobile processor to a global audience. 

Instead of using traditional commercials, the two companies created a half-hour psychological thriller called “Lifeline” starring X-Men's Olivia Munn, Joan Chen and Chinese pop sensation Leehom Wang. It takes place in Shanghai and subtly highlights the capabilities of Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon mobile products.

The campaign includes a series of “inside look” episodes that provide a behind-the-scenes (and science) look into the making of the film while further demonstrating the capabilities of the Snapdragon technologies featured within the film. 

Check out the trailer, full short and other video content, here. 

The majority of the film is shot in Mandarin with English subtitles as a way to appeal to and drive awareness of the technology within the Chinese market, as well as within a larger global audience. 

The film is posted on Hulu and YouTube as well as the LifeLineFilm.com landing page and will be promoted in the U.S., Brazil, India, the UK and other regions.  

The brand is also raising awareness by targeting viewers across Facebook, Twitter, Weibo and other social channels using paid media. There is also testing across YouTube to compare the platform's traditional ads, TrueView, and Remind Me prompts.  

A select group of influencers -- picked for their social presence -- posted trailers and the film on Twitter, Facebook, Weibo, and WeChat. The agency then "white-listed" those posts to promote them via paid media.