Carnival Corp. for the first time will air a commercial
during the Super Bowl, the most watched television event annually.
Carnival Corp. said the final commercial will be a 60-second
spot selected from four full-scale production ads. Carnival has included six
story-board concepts on the World’s Leading Cruise Lines site, in what it has
dubbed the “World’s Leading Cruise Lines Marketing Challenge.”
Each segment is introduced by comedian Cedric the
Entertainer. The four concepts that have
been selected for further review are entitled “Getaway,” “Cruise Virgin,”
“Message in a Bottle,” and “Mystery Spot.”
The ads were produced by BBDO Atlanta, part of the BBDO
Worldwide ad agency. Carnival said cinematographer and Hollywood director Wally
Pfister — best known for his work on “Transcendence,” “Inception” and “The Dark
Knight” trilogy — helped to develop the ads.
Super Bowl XLIX will take place on Feb. 1, during the heart
of the cruise industry’s high-traffic Wave season.
“There’s no bigger stage than the Super Bowl for telling our
story,” said Carnival Corp. CEO Arnold Donald.
Last year, Norwegian Cruise Line chartered the new Norwegian
Getaway for use during the Super Bowl in New York as that year’s “Bud Light
Hotel” even before it took its first revenue cruise. Royal Caribbean
International has advertised during the Super Bowl, including a 30-second spot
in 2011 that aired in select cold-weather markets.