campaign video: https://youtu.be/GzoxIb2Fa74
In 2018, the well-known famous fashion brand Dolce & Gabbana released its new campaign as a launch of their grand entrance of the Chinese market. The 3-episodes-long advertisement series spread ways faster than anyone ever would have imagined. It gained huge attention worldwide, and was one of the leading news ways after it had been published, but not in a way usually marketing teams dream about it.
It’s racist, homophobic, stereotype-based and Western-overpowered approach made it famous and notorious. It was meant to be the beginning of a huge campaign with an enormous fashion show, but due the highly offensive content of the video (which was withdrawn), everything had to be cancelled and instead of bathing in the glory of fame and success at a Chinese runway, the owners of D&G ended up in a dark room, shooting an almost-convincing apology video which in they expressed their deepest sorrow for publishing an advertisement filled with misrepresentation.
The name of the campaign was ‘Eating with chopsticks’, and was meant to teach Chinese people how to use chopsticks (or as it is mentioned in the advertisement “small stick shaped cutlery”) properly, when it comes to eating the great food of Italy. If it would not be offensive enough, the videos just start here. The music in the background is supposed to be Chinese, just like the main colour of the advertisement (red and gold) and the background, which is maybe the most arguably ‘original’. It makes the impression of the watcher that the directors and the stylists maybe just looked for some simple ‘Chinese looking’ thing in their surrounding, and placed them a bit behind the main scene, to reach a setting what represents a Chinese restaurant. It not only contains Korean elements, but makes an impression that the Chinese culture is not worthy enough to reserve some time, effort and research from the creative team to make a truly representative traditional Chinese background. Still not offensive enough? In this video series, not only a nation, but the women are misrepresented to. The lady who sits in front of the camera, and is predicted to be the main character is only a pretty shell who does what the male from the background tells her, smiles and giggles as an immature and näive little girl, and so over the moon every time when the man voice praises her. She wears a pretty dress and some expensive jewelry, and it seems to fulfill her needs. Her identity is almost equal with prettiness, while no good and valuable characteristics are able to show up in her. The male voice at the same time is powerful, have a say in what happens next and empowers the situation ( even though the viewer can/t even connect a figure to the sound). The instructions made by him are coming from off-scene, as if a god would direct and power its subjects.