The evolution of the beer ad

A mammoth production, even for SAB, the new ads are set on the Knysna coast 10 000 years ago and take a witty look at the clichéd beer-swilling cave-man - who doesn't seem to have evolved much in the interim.

Created by the Old Shanghai Firecracker Factory executive creative directors Glen James and Kevin Kleynhans, the campaign promises men who are ready to evolve a premium beer that offers all the benefits of low alcohol without compromising on taste.

Launching in September, the 'evolution' commercials are about moving to a more modern lifestyle that's more balanced and health conscious.

James says: "SAB asked for something completely radical and we came back with something that has real humour and is an evolution in beer advertising which is usually so serious.

"The ads all demonstrate that if you don't evolve, you will remain a cave person; all beer drinkers are cave-men and only the enlightened drink Sterling."

SAB Marketing Manager for the premium beer portfolio Bruce Reinders says it's a brave campaign: "It's a high risk commercial simply because it's not the usual beer commercial. It's unique for SAB and humour in itself can be pretty risky."

Reinders says there's a natural aspiration and shifting in the market towards both status and a healthier lifestyle and that Sterling Light Lager is being positioned to match these shifting needs.

Titled 'Showing Off', one of the ads depicts Neanderthals on the beach trying to impress some nearby cavewomen by flexing their muscles. Enter the 'modern man' who jogs past, Sterling Light in hand, leaving his audience open-mouthed - they have never seen a 21st Century man before.

To create the documentary feel of the ads, Old Shanghai hired special effects team The Creature Shop to create the special effects and prosthetics which give a sense of realism to the commercials. The team also researched the diet of the cave-man for the 'braai' ad so that the women chopping vegetables in the background would have the correct 'salad' ingredients.

Production company Picture Tree had to rig up a pulley system to haul six tonnes of equipment down the side of a vertical cliff while the Neanderthals braved freezing temperatures at dawn to stand knee-deep in a river for the 'fishing' shots.

Reinders says: "We have created an identity for Sterling Light as the beer for the modern man and have achieved this by poking fun at the habits of the stereotypical regular beer drinker."