Equinox Commit to Something

Equinox advertising campaign, “Commit to Something”, won a Graphite Pencil for Outdoor Advertising/Poster Advertising Campaigns in the 2016 D&AD Awards. With the rise of convenience culture, it’s too easy to avoid commitment. Everything is forgotten by the next tweet, Uber driver you call, or job you grab in six-month’s time. Equinox wanted to rise above this rather lazy approach toward living. As a gym, they know commitment is everything. To encourage people’s commitment in provocative, interesting ways, they went beyond the usual gym/working out photography and instead focussed on commitments in life. The result was a campaign (Print, Out-of-home, Digital, Social, In Club) that created conversation, divided opinion, and made international news.

The striking campaign celebrates various forms of commitment, addressing socially relevant issues including activism, sexuality, lifestyle choices and women’s rights. Steven Klein effectively captures the brand’s masterful and bold personality through his skillful lens. Each of the seven images tells a different story about commitment. From a young mother unapologetically breastfeeding in public (portrayed by Lydia Hearst), to an activist who is seen fearlessly taking a stand for her cause (featuring Bianca Van Damme, daughter of Jean-Claude Van Damme), to a male-cheerleading champion who wasn’t threatened by a stereotype and dedicated himself to winning in his own way (featuring MMA fighter Alan Jouban). All vignettes are a virtuous expression of taking deliberate action and going “all in.”

Credits

The Equinox Commit to Something campaign was developed at Wieden+Kennedy New York by executive creative director Colleen DeCourcy, creative directors Sean McLaughlin and John Parker, art director Mathieu Zarbatany, copywriter Rajeev Basu, art buyer Deb Rosen, design director Serifcan Ozcan, designer Brian Metcalf, digital art director Alison Joseph, , executive producer Jordanna Vogel, line producer Kellie Tissear, photographer Steven Klein, set designer David White, stylist Mel Ottenberg, account director Casey Jennings, account executive Jasmine Cogdell, account manager Kristen Herrington, content strategists Matt Simpson and James Williams, media director David Stopforth, media manager Ryan Haskins, media supervisors Courtney Bernstein and Yoni Freedman, and project manager Danielle Rounds.

Photography by Steven Klein via Art Partner with stylist Mel Ottenberg, set designer David White. Production was by North Six by producer Jordanna Vogel, and line producer Kellie Tissear.