Adidas is a major brand with a host of international agencies. But the advertisement below went viral on YouTube; and it wasn’t created by any of Adidas’ agencies. Eugen Merher, a student at Germany’s Film Academy of Baden-Württemberg, has made an incredibly moving advertising short. 

The commercial, which runs 1m:40s, is about an elderly sportsman who shows what strength of will really means. He’s spending a monotonous existence in a rather dreary retirement home, until one day he finds his old battered Adidas trainers and decides to relive his younger years by taking them for a run. The retirement home repeatedly tries to quash his quests for freedom, but by end you’ll want to stand up and cheer. Or cry. Or both.

Eugen was inspired to make the video by his relative who, like the hero in the clip, is called Karl. He was an elderly man with a young spirit who used to walk two kilometres every day and bring his wife flowers. Eugen sent his work to Adidas, but the company declined to use it, stating that they prefer to work with verified agencies.

“We tried sending it to [Adidas’] communications department but they didn’t really react,” said Eugen.

Nevertheless, after the video was released, several employees of the compay contacted Eugen and suggested that they work together. And it’s not hard to see why. Truth be told, Adidas isn’t missing out on publicity for passing up on Eugen’s creation. In fact, they might even be getting rewarded for their silence.

Anyway, I think Adidas made a mistake in by passing on this commercial. What are your thoughts? Share them on social media or the comments section below.

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2017/01/05/fake-adidas-ad_n_13979464.html