ONLINE FEATURE STORY | Oscar-winner Chloe Zhao (Nomadland, The Rider) Directs New Ad for Ford Motor Company
The new ad, Built for America: Make It Revolutionary, underscores the company’s push toward a more sustainable America
This summer, Ford is launching the latest iteration of the Built For America advertising campaign, focusing on our massive commitments to technology and sustainability through electrification. The campaign signals a shift in our marketing and brand positioning, from the types of narratives we tell, to the ways we craft them.
The new commercials underscore our company’s push toward a more sustainable America, highlighting the updates we’re making to a number of our classic, fan-favorite models.
To tell this story, Ford worked with two-time Oscar-winner Chloe Zhao (Nomadland, The Rider), a director known for her unique ability to capture the heart and soul of modern America. In the film “Make it Revolutionary,” Zhao brings the human side of the transition to electric vehicles to the fore, showing how this revolutionary technology can still feel incredibly familiar.
Zhao’s human-centric approach to storytelling enabled her to draw out extraordinary performances from a cast of primarily non-actors.
Zhao also has a personal connection with the Ford brand. She built a camper van out of a Ford Transit and often travels and works from it. The protagonists in her films are often seen driving a Ford vehicle.
Ford continues our longstanding commitment to the country in leading the charge behind affordable and accessible electric vehicles for all. In 2021 alone, Ford has electrified three of our iconic nameplates, with the introduction of the 2022 F-150 Lightning (available starting Spring 2022), the 2021 Mustang Mach-E, and the 2022 E-Transit van (available late 2021), vehicles that are fun to drive and have unique features only possible because of electrification like the mega power frunk in the F-150 Lightning.
The new integrated Built For America campaign created in partnership with agency Wieden+Kennedy New York debuts during the opening ceremonies of the 2021 Summer Games.
