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Some brands—but not many—can get away with “unhinged” as a thematic cornerstone of their advertising. Totino’s, best known for its pizza rolls, counts itself among that wacky niche, with the latest evidence being an absurdist campaign steeped in ‘90s nostalgia and sight gags.
And if you don’t get the joke, well, you’re not the demo.
The brand, working with agency partner Dentsu Creative, is introducing its first offering in the breakfast category with ads that feature a food-centric momstache, a freakish sun puppet, and a disembodied zombie arm in a freezer.
There’s also the return of a humanoid character from a previous campaign, dubbed Toti, who appears to be made entirely of Totino’s puffed-and-stuffed products.
Purposely low-fi and overly cheerful, the two new spots resurrect the jingle with original ditties (from music producer Butter) and harken back to classic TV commercials to grab the attention of the target Gen Z audience.
‘Moments of weirdness’
As a concept, the team wanted to focus on “wholesome mornings,” but with a comically surreal twist, according to Alyssa Ollis, group creative director at Dentsu Creative.
Creatives imagined “moments of weirdness breaking into that familiar, traditional breakfast space,” Ollis told Adweek. “Then once we started thinking about the songs, it brought us back to old commercials we grew up with, and we just thought, ‘yes, let’s mess with that.’”
The result is “Wakey Wakey” and “Breakfast Momstache,” which aim to distance Totino’s Breakfast Snack Bites from established players in a crowded grocery segment and, in essence, change young consumers’ behavior.