Toronto casts a spell in new tourism ad

A new tourism ad for Toronto celebrates everything from Drake to the LGBT community to jellyfish, with plenty of stops along the way.

The campaign focuses on views and that’s not just a nod to Drake, Andrew Weir, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of Tourism Toronto, told CityNews.

“There’s new sense of pride in Toronto. Things look cool in Toronto and we see things in a different way.”

The campaign, created by Tourism Toronto and marketing firm J. Walter Thompson, bills Toronto as “Canada’s downtown” – a boast that is already seeing some criticism.

The campaign “comes from a new Toronto confidence,” Weir said.

Toronto, he said, is the most-visited destination in Canada. While other cities of course have vibrant downtowns, Weird said, “international visitors will start in Toronto … because that’s where the planes fly.” Tourists then travel to other places as well, he said.

“We’re riding a real wave of momentum right now, driven mostly by international visitation. Numbers from U.S. and overseas markets are both up 10 per cent in 2016. That’s a big jump. We likely won’t see that kind of growth in 2017.

“People want Canada, and they want the cities of Canada,” Weir said.

The digital ad is set to “I Put A Spell on You,” written by American Jay Hawkins and made famous by Nina Simone. In this case, the song is sampled by Toronto’s Mike Wise, with vocal performance by Toronto poet and singer, Bethany Lee.

Vibrant nightlight scenes – Chinatown’s neon, flames shooting up from food truck kitchens, Caribana revelers dancing in front of stopped streetcars – are interspersed with praise for Toronto’s ethnic and sexual diversity, and welcoming nature.

The stopped streetcar isn’t the only sign of the TTC: dancers are seen performing on the subway, a nod to the TTC’s own marketing campaign. That campaign was created with the National Ballet.

There’s also references to the Blue Jays and the Raptors, with one kid in a park doing the famous Jose Bautista bat flip as the crowd cheers at the Rogers Centre. Not a source of civic pride? The Toronto Maple Leafs. The team isn’t seen in the video.

Drake seen in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it performance at the 30-second mark, and the name of the ad – “The views are different here” – echoes the Toronto rapper’s latest album. As for jellyfish, they can be seen in the ad, and at the Ripley’s Aquarium.

In this city, it’s OK to let your guard down – whether that means kissing your same-sex partner, or hanging off the CN Tower, the ad shows.

The diversity is not a direct response to Donald Trump, Weir said, but Tourism Toronto might capitalize on his election.

“This is not [a campaign] that’s in response to a particular set of circumstances … [However], some of the latest conditions have obviously brought it in to sharper relief,” Weir said.

In fact, some of it’s because of changing Canadian policies. As of 2009, people from Mexico needed a visa to visit Canada. As of December 2016, Mexicans no longer require a visa.

“One market we’re very excited about in 2017 is Mexico,” Weir said.

“It was a very strong market, that changed with the visa requirement … that alone creates an opportunity. On top of that, you layer on some of the political circumstances, and Mexicans may be looking to travel somewhere other than the U.S. this year.”

Watch the video, and let us know what you think in the comments section.