Barbie pays homage to dads who go the extra mile in touching Father's Day film

Global toy company Mattel’s Barbie has released a short film in celebration of Father’s Day this year that aims to pay homage to fathers who go the extra mile to make their little girls’ dreams come true.

The film was done in partnership with IPG's Mediabrands Content Studio (MBCS) Malaysia and was released on Barbie’s Facebook page, as part of its #BarbieFather'sDay campaign. 

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“The film’s inspiration came from observations around Asian dads, as they are not known to be particularly expressive,” said Mandar Wairkar, creative director of MBCS in a statement. “However, we’re now living in an age of expression, with children seeking more outward showing of love and affection from their parents.”

He continued by saying, “This Father’s Day, we wanted to recognise Asian dads who are breaking the mould of fatherly roles, and sending messages of positivity to their kids each day to give them strength and self-belief that they can do anything they set their minds to.”

The short film begins with a father putting on makeup and a bejewelled hairband before tapping the shoulder of his daughter who was busy playing with her Barbie dolls. His daughter turns around with a puzzled look which quickly turns into bright-eyed excitement as she dances around the living room with her father.

Before the film ends, the message “To the man who believes they can be anything, Happy Father’s Day” flashes on the screen. 

“Barbie’s tagline ‘You can be anything’ looks to inspire confidence and courage to all children out there to go out and live their dreams,” said Murat Ariksoy, general manager, Mattel South Asia.

“This inspiring film and movement by MBCS portray fathers as positive role models and celebrates all those fathers who go the extra mile to bring a smile to their child’s face,” Ariksoy continued.

The campaign also spans social media engagement with the hashtag #BarbieFathersDay, for parents and their children to share how they celebrate Father’s Day and to encourage more Asian dads to break the traditional fatherly mould.

A+M has reached out for more information. 

Barbie has been in the news extensively this year with the upcoming release of its new Barbie movie by Greta Gerwig. Earlier this year, it employed the use of the user generated content when it released a selfie generator that gives fans the opportunity to insert pictures of themselves straight into Barbie Land. An AI generator will automatically remove your photo's background for you and then you can adjust the placement of the photo, the colour of your sparkly background and the tagline that is shown above the photo. 

User generated content (UGC) is a marketing tool that has consistently remained front and centre when it comes to connecting with consumers. It refers to content created by a brand’s customers in the form of photos, videos, testimonials, product reviews, and blog posts shared spontaneously.

The generator went viral quickly with fans taking to social media to share their own personalised Barbie posters.

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