• by Tanya Gazdik , March 2, 2018

After last year’s overtly political ad, Cadillac is taking a light-hearted approach to this year’s Academy Awards spots, showing off its hottest vehicles and features.

Three spots will break Sunday during the Oscars, the fifth year the luxury brand has bought into what is essentially the Super Bowl of entertainment. Cadillac is “the official automotive partner and vehicle provider of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences for the 90th Oscars.”

The spots, which include some high-profile and likely expensive music, include the first glimpse of the brand's new SUV, the XT4, which will be revealed March 27 at a press event connected to the New York International Auto Show. 

“Future Is Here” is a 60-second anthem spot showing Cadillac’s endless pursuit of innovation and its ever-growing portfolio. An evolution of Cadillac’s “Dare Greatly” platform first revealed during the Oscars in 2015, the spot brings to life the brand’s bold and pioneering spirit, as evidenced in Super Cruise, XT4, BOOK by Cadillac and other offerings.

“Future Cars” is a 30-second spot featuring iconic “futuristic” car footage from notable films and TV series like “The Jetsons.” It shows off the Super Cruise hands-free driving technology for the freeway that debuted in the Cadillac CT6 at the end of last year. It is set to the catchy "Feel It Still" by Portugal. The Man.

“2019 Cadillac XT4," a 30-second upbeat ad set to Bruno Mars’s “Uptown Funk,” gives a sneak peek of the highly-anticipated Cadillac XT4, the brand’s first entrant into the premium compact SUV segment, to be revealed in NYC.

Cadillac will support the creative and Oscars campaign via social, including Facebook Ads. It will also be among the first brands to use Instagram Stories's new carousel format.

"Of all the work Rokkan has brought to the Oscars with Cadillac, 'Future is Here' is by far the most intense and fast-paced," John Noe, Rokkan CEO, said in a release. 

Autotrader Executive Analyst Michelle Krebs is not completely sold on the effort.

“I’m rather mixed about the ‘Future is Here’ ad,” Krebs tells Marketing Daily. “I understand what Cadillac is trying to do, but there’s a lot going on there.” 

The “Future Cars” spot for the CT6 Super Cruise does a good job of capturing the nearly self-driving capability of the technology, she says. “It certainly should intrigue tech-forward consumers,” Krebs says. “And, having driven the vehicle, the technology is quite remarkable. It provides a peek into what is in store for the future.”

The ad for the Cadillac XT4 is clearly just a teaser, she says. “It does a fine job of teasing with Bruno Mars giving it a contemporary feel as this new, smaller utility vehicle will be aimed at a younger affluent buyer,” Krebs says.

Notably, the three spots are from fellow Publicis Groupe agency Rokkan, to which the brand is shifting more of its work in lieu of agency of record Publicis Worldwide. A Cadillac spokesperson says “Publicis is still considered our AOR,” but the agency has not created many spots for the brand since the aforementioned politically-tinged spot for last year’s Oscars, “Carry.” Rokkan created three additional spots for last year’s show. 

“The Oscars is a natural fit for the brand and the perfect stage to reveal our exhilarating new creative, including a preview of the first-ever Cadillac XT4 and a look at our industry-leading Super Cruise technology,” said Cadillac Director of Marketing Renée Rauchut, in a release.

The brand has been without a CMO since Uwe Ellinghaus left at the end of last year.  A spokesperson says that there's no update on the search for his replacement. 

The brand hosted its third annual Oscars week soiree on March 1 at Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood, Calif. Additionally, throughout the week, a fleet of Cadillac Escalade and CT6 plug-in electric vehicles will chauffeur guests to the awards show and other Oscars events.