Sony is rolling out its first own-branded, after the transition with Ericsson, Xperia smartphones this week. The recently introduced Xperia U and Xperia P along with the flagship Xperia S of the NXT series will be promoted globally. 

Photo: the Sony Xperia range, from www.sonymobile.comfrom

The integrated ad campaign entitled ‘Made of Imagination’ will include TV, print, digital, out-of-home and retail activities. A 60-second TV spot directed by Academy Award nominee, Wes Anderson starts airing across the Europe this Saturday, on March 24. The campaign will roll out globally within a half of the year.

Developed together with McCann Worldgroup, PHD and LBi, the Made of Imagination aims to show off the Xperia’s range design and entertainment features.

Steve Walker, chief marketing officer at Sony Mobile Communications said, «Xperia smartphones are a cornerstone of Sony’s entertainment experience and we wanted to create a campaign that is true to Sony, one that is unique, memorable and sparks consumers’ curiosity and imagination. The Made of Imagination campaign demonstrates that Xperia smartphones are made of more than microprocessors and memory chips — they are designed to let consumers use their creativity and imagination to drive connected experiences that interest and excite them.»

The TV spot features children and the script is based on the thoughts of an 8 year old boy. The same stop motion animation techniques as in animated films such as ‘Coraline’ and ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ were used to create the video. The music is written by Jonsi from Icelandic group, Sigur Ros. There is a sneak peek of the commercial on You Tube.

The print campaign leverages the ideas put in verbs: Play, Watch, Listen, and Create. The ideas are reflected with help of imagery and real life models that were hand built to demonstrate what is inside the smartphone, says the official press release. The ‘Listen’ concept, for instance, a guitar was shaped like an Xperia smartphone. The images were captured by photographer Carl Kleiner.