People commemorating the Day of the Dead (Día de Los Muertos in Spanish) view death as a welcomed part of life, the holiday being a joyful celebration rather than a time to mourn. Dedicated to the deceased loved ones, the Day of the Dead is a time when family members honor their relatives who passed away.

To mark this year’s festivities, Doritos Mexico worked closely with agency Slap Global, production company Final Frontier, and animation company Zombie Studio for a heartwarming animated video, built on the idea that love always finds its way, regardless of the time, place, and the person we choose to share it with. Aside from capturing the spirit of this festivity, Doritos also celebrates the LGBTQ+ community and puts acceptance and inclusion at the heart of its latest initiative.

The short story showcases the family of beloved uncle and brother Alberto going to the cemetery to bring “ofrendas” to him. Upon arriving at his grave, his sister, who carries a bowl of Doritos as a gift, shares her feelings on how much she misses Alberto. The deceased man then comes from the afterlife, taking the shape of a skeleton-like spirit. And he is not alone.

Curious about the new companion, the family asks “Who is he?” “He’s Mario, my partner,” says Alberto, finally coming out. After a short moment of silence in which the family members look surprised by the news, the sister joyfully applauds, happy that her brother doesn’t have to be lonely forever. The video ends with the message that “it’s never too late to be your true self.”

Released as part of the #PrideAllYear campaign, the resulted film has made the team very proud of their work. According to Julieta Zajaczkowski, Executive Producer at Final Frontier, “Working with CGI characters is always demanding, but in this particular case, finding a natural and intimate tone for the storytelling was our first objective. We knew we had to be as warm, empathic, and inviting as possible, but avoid it becoming childish. We couldn’t be happier with the resulting film.”

Gustavo Karam, Executive Producer at Final Frontier, explains that projects with a positive message are of particular interest to him: “So, it’s no surprise that the whole team and I totally embraced this project from the get-go. To execute it so beautifully with our friends is an even bigger pleasure — especially with Zombie having recently joined our Asian roster of directors.”

The sound and music are signed by DaHouse Audio, which developed “an almost binaural audio experience,” says Lucas Mayer, Founder and Music Director, inviting the audience to “watch” the spot through sound. “You can imagine the film very well if you close your eyes because of the sound design and mixing.”

The ad went viral on Twitter and TikTok, being highly noticed on YouTube as well, having over 15 million views as of now.

Credits:

Client: Pepsico

Brand: Doritos Mexico

Agency: Slap Global

Production Co: Final Frontier

Animation Co: Zombie Studio

Music & Sound Design: DaHouse

Director: Paulo Garcia

Executive Producers: Natalia Gouvea (Zombie), Julieta Zajaczkowski (FF), Gus Karam (FF), Juan Manuel Freire (FF) and Thomas Amoedo (Landia)