KesselsKramer & Sanja Marušić | Miffy the Musical

Whether it was your first book or your first cuddly toy, everyone knows the iconic image of miffy. Now, miffy is coming to the stage with miffy the Musical, and for the launch Amsterdam-based design agency KesselsKramer have taken this recognisable icon to the real world.

miffy resonates with many, evoking a sense of nostalgia. This became KesselsKramer’s heartfelt and childlike drive to tackle the campaign. Memories and ideas rose to bring the iconic Dick Bruna imagery to life: bright colours and uncomplicated situations.

As Dick Bruna, the spiritual father of miffy, always knew how to simplify everything, miffy appears everywhere in this campaign through one extremely recognisable feature: her ears. At every performance of miffy the musical, hats of miffy’s ears are given to every child, which children continue to wear long after their visit. In the campaign we see these children, photographed with their miffy ears in everyday environments that are surprisingly very similar to the atmosphere in miffy’s books.

Maartje Slijpen, Associate Creative Director at KesselsKramer says; “miffy the musical is your one chance to see miffy in real life. For that reason we immediately knew we had to make a campaign consisting of real images, not the familiar illustrations. The results are realistic images that are enormously reminiscent of the illustrations.”

KesselsKramer have distilled their campaign to focus on the simplicity of Dick Bruna’s original works which reflect a very distinct style: thick lines, a simplified visualisation of reality, and a specific use of primary colour (“which isn’t as primary as we thought it was – the yellow was a more sandy yellow, the blue is a darker blue”). The incredible specific representation, recognisable as ever, is why they also used the situations that are reflected in the children’s books: being on the beach, in the garden, or drawing inside the house.

In order to make the film and photography feel like a miffy drawing, KesselsKramer wanted to work with a photographer who has a similar style. This led them to Sanja Marušić, a Dutch-Croatian photographer and director known for her characteristic use of colour and illustrative approach. With her colourful adaptations, Marušić brings ‘miffy’ and ‘the real world’ together in the perfect way.

miffy the musical will travel throughout the Netherlands in the coming months. Dates available here.

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