Logorama and the Reimagined Brand

The 2009 Oscar-winning French short film, Logorama, can be read as a case study of Celia Lurie’s argument in Brands: the Logos of the Global Economy. Namely, that brands are mediated, multi-layered objects that exist somewhere between the product and the consumer. (Lurie 14, 6, 7)

In this film, the world is composed of corporate logos, and what’s more (indeed, what makes the film worth watching past the first minute or two), the logos take on lives of their own. The multiple layers of brand identity are interpreted humorously by subverting the audience’s expectations of the logos’ characteristics (what features define their corporate identity). The Michelin man is a cop – thus driving a car for a living – but unlike the smiling, helpful persona he exudes in commercials, this man is grumpy, rude, and downright violent. Similarly, Mr. Clean is not a reticent, tough fixer-upper, but an effusive, effeminate children’s tour guide. We are amused not just because they present a world made of logos, but that we understand them: i.e., that it reflects our own logo-filled brains.

Clearly the film is intended as a critique of our corporate-saturated world: it ends with the logos causing the destruction of civilization, only to reveal further logos enmeshed in the land and water, and even floating around in space.

Yet a consumer may not interpret the film in such a negative manner. The creators have found within these graphics and their attendant meanings space for creativity, allowing them to engage the brands and enrich them into a work of art. This brings to mind Klein’s idea of what corporations want to happen with their brand: "The goal is not merely to have child actors drinking Coke in a TV commercial, but for students to brainstorm concepts for Coke's next ad campaign in English class." (Klein 29)

It is possible, therefore, that despite the critical intentions of the creators, the spectator-consumer is not left pondering on late capitalism, but left thinking happily of Esso Girl as a waitress and the Green Giant as a Zookeeper, exactly what a brand manager would desire.

 

My apologies for the subtitles; for a better quality version without them, go here.