McDonald's Philippines makes hearts melt with its latest ad. The video features a young skater girl circling the Ride-Thru over and over, ordering all sorts of menu items. Her cheeky smiles at the female Ride-Thru crew member tickle the audience and keep them intrigued.
Apart from the film's cute twist at the end, what was even more pleasantly surprising was how McDonald's broke category conventions by featuring a Girl's Love or GL story.
When asked about the creation of the ad, McDonald's Corporate Relations director Adi Hernandez shares, "Being a brand that welcomes all, inclusivity is ingrained in our brand experience from our customers to our employees. No matter who you are, you are welcome and safe to come back here again and again. That's what we wanted our audience to know and what we wanted to share in the film."
And the story behind the effortless acting that made everyone feel giddy? The brand along with its advertising agency, TBWA\SMP, factored in proper representation in casting and tapped a real member of the LGBTQ+ community.
"We wanted to do it right, and we wanted to make sure they (the actors) felt comfortable," says Hernandez.
Last year, the fast-food brand gained praises for sponsoring the Pride march and now with this feel-good video, the brand is proving that it's not shying away from gender inclusivity.
What's next? Hernandez says, "There's more to come. This is part of a bigger initiative of the company to stay true in our commitment that McDonald's continues to be everyone's happy place."