Harry Potter bandwagon set to roll with W&K campaign

The marketing campaign to back the release of the 'Harry Potter & The Order of the Phoenix' game, which will be available on the Nintendo and PlayStation platforms, launches tomorrow.

It comes ahead of the launch of the sixth movie in the Harry Potter film franchise on July 12 and the publication of the last book by JK Rowling on July 21.

Two 30-second TV spots will launch in Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Brazil and South Africa.

The ads show children imagining what it would be like if their school had the same magical powers as the fictional Hogwarts school in the Rowling books. They end with the strapline: "If only school was more like Hogwarts".

Giles Montgomery, copywriter at Wieden & Kennedy Amsterdam, said: "These spots are about kids who are so into the world of Harry Potter that they try to use magic in school, but fail dismally.

"This campaign is running across a lot of markets so we needed a simple message that would appeal to people everywhere."

Eric Quennoy, creative director at Wieden & Kennedy Amsterdam, said: "We're treading a fine line with the humour. We want Harry Potter fans to recognise themselves and have a good laugh but not feel like they're being ridiculed."

This article was first published on brandrepublic.com