How VML South Africa Celebrated 30 Years of Vodacom and South Africa’s Democracy

Last week Vodacom and its agency partner VML South Africa revealed a new ad celebrating 30 years of the company, coinciding with South Africa’s 30 years of democracy.

Set to Louis Armstrong’s classic, ‘What a Wonderful World’, the heart-warming narrative takes viewers on a time-travelling journey spanning three decades that starts in 1994 and continues into the future. We see scenes showing the evolution of technology unfolding against the backdrop of South Africa’s growing democracy and celebrating African ingenuity, with Armstrong’s gravelly vocals as the golden thread through the ages.

“We as Vodacom have always been about South Africa – about the people, and about our purpose,” said Thami Majola, Vodacom executive head of brand. “The last 30 years we have had the privilege of connecting South Africans for a better future. So, when we started to craft this brief with our agency partner, we understood that this was a great opportunity to showcase our purpose.”

“South Africa has a story to tell – 30 years of democracy, 30 years of resilience, 30 years of always surprising the world,” added director Tebogo Malope of Star Films, which collaborated with VML and Think Creative Africa on the project. “We are a country that punches way above its weight and since 1994 we have constantly proven the naysayers wrong – those who said we couldn’t transition without bloodshed, we couldn’t transform our sport, we couldn’t manage a global pandemic. South Africa is truly a special country and this commercial details the amazing story of South Africa's past, present and future with Vodacom at the centre of it all.”

Bring the Vision to Life

“It goes without saying that Vodacom’s presence in South African lives has been nothing short of wonderful. So, in celebrating the brand’s 30-year milestone, we needed to communicate just that,” said executive creative director Nhlanhla Ngcobo of VML.

The team found the key in Louis Armstrong’s iconic piece of music. “Anybody can find a song and use it as a backdrop, but the charm and dare I say genius, lies in how the team (Writer Verona Meyer and Creative Director Ross Makepeace) was able to use Louis Armstrong’s words to poetically illustrate how Vodacom’s purposeful actions have contributed to creating a wonderful world for South Africans at large,” said Nhlanhla.

In creating the storyboard, the team purposefully steered clear of what could have been a montage of memorable moments and, instead, adopted a narrative approach to moving through the decades. It was also important that the story should not focus solely on the past. “It nods to our present and ends with a future-focused hope for new possibilities and a feeling of how wonderful things could be if we really use technology to move our people further together,” said Nhlanhla.

Great Ambition, Great Reward

A lot goes into telling a story of this magnitude. “We had three different teams capturing the creatives’ and Tebza's vision, and a very large cast,” noted producer Wendy Machanik of VML.

“We could never do this without the amazing crew we work with,” added Adam Thal of Star Films. “Over 70 people each day working together to make every scene the best scene it could be.”

It also took time, careful planning and, at times, quick thinking. “Pre-production time was vital to make sure that we found the right cast and make sure that all the details around each scene were in place and agreed upon. Long days, myriad get-togethers, a five-day shoot and many, many hours were spent to bring this concept to life,” said Wendy.

“In any major production, there's always a ton of moving parts with many obstacles to overcome. That’s just in the nature of pushing to make great work,” said Alex White, managing partner at VML. “But with a committed client team and committed suppliers, we overcame anything that got in our way of the vision for this to come to life.”

The result is a piece of work that is nostalgic, uplifting and carries a message of hope. "Our campaign speaks of the South African story of why we exist,” said Thami. “Thanks to our partners, VML, we brought our vision to life. And thanks to the Vodacom family and leadership, we look forward to the next 30 years of connecting people for a better life. Here's to the next 30 years of wonderful, as we go further together.”