Walmart, one of the world’s largest retailer will advertise for the second consecutive year in ABC’s Oscars broadcast this year. It is harping on refining the word-of-mouth publicity it received in 2017. This year Walmart has roped in three Hollywood women directors to direct a series of 60-second ads that will play during the Oscars on March 4, 2018. Melissa McCarthy, Dee Rees, and Nancy Meyers have been roped in and each will devise an ad that will depict the journey of a shipping box from Walmart. You can watch a preview of the blue shipping box from Walmart here. Dee Rees has also become the first Black woman to be nominated in the adapted screenplay category for her writing on the Netflix series “Mudbound”. Each advertisement starts with Walmart’s blue shipping box and then the director’s perspective follows it about where it goes, how it arrives and what eventually is inside the mystery box.
Walmart is not trying to cash in on the ‘#MeToo’ movement going by roping in female directors but just wants to give a novel experience to the audience watching the show. As reported by Variety, Kirsten Evans, senior vice president of marketing for the company, said, “We are aware of the conversation going on, but we are looking to be integrated authentically into the show. Being a part of a really entertaining night is the sole purpose of what we were trying to accomplish.” IPL 2018: Juhi Chawla’s Daughter Jhanvi Mehta Impresses Preity Zinta With Her Intelligence, Becomes Youngest Person at Auction Table
Walmart is collaborating with the advocacy organization Women in Film Los Angeles and will give three aspiring directors the opportunity to follow the female filmmakers as they choose to interpret the blue shipping box from Walmart. Walmart employed the similar tactic of the 30-second ad last year as well but received criticism for not including any female directors behind its Oscar spots. The ads were centered around the theme “The Receipt” and were directed by all male filmmakers namely, Marc Forster, Antoine Fuqua, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg.