The accolades for Expedia’s touching ‘Find Your Understanding’ ad keep on rolling in. The emotional clip for the travel brand ran away with the reader-selected vote for AdAge’s Biggest Tear-Jerker Ad of the Year Award by a final count of 56% and will be honored at the AdAge Digital Conference in New York City on April 16.
Directed by UBER Content’s Eliot Rausch, the long-form spot chronicles the emotional and physical journey of a father, Artie, traveling across the country to attend his daughter’s same-sex wedding. Shot using real footage, Eliot documents the transformative nature of travel on Artie’s road to coming to terms with his daughter’s sexuality.
The 180LA-created spot has been praised throughout the advertising world by the likes of Creativity, FastCompany and Adweek, and last month, ‘Find Your Understanding’ was named one of TED’s “10 Most World-Changing Ads”. The prestigious organization explained its selection process for honoring the most compelling campaigns at the TED2013 Conference, “The best ads are excellent content–driven by ideas. Culturally relevant content with strong storytelling has the power to spark change, raise awareness, and communicate new ways of thinking.”
The ad’s push for equality could not be timelier, as we await the ongoing Supreme Court decision on gay marriage in the days to come. If only AdAge readers could vote there too.