Mission Impawsible: Red Stripe + Storm Saulter’s Jamaican Bear Commercial

Words by Jesse Serwer

Red Stripe has a new advertising campaign, and it stars the elusive Jamaican bear. No, there is no Sasquatch-type urban legend about bears in Jamaica (at least not that we know of). It’s actually a play on words, as Red Stripe’s new slogan is “Jamaican Beer.” But that hasn’t stopped the Caribbean’s most recognizable beer brand from staging a viral marketing campaign that might lead you to think otherwise. OK, well maybe not. The first commercial for the campaign— the handiwork of Storm Saulter, LargeUp friend and director of Jamaican feature film Better Mus Come—is a little over the top, with a beer-craving bear outwitting Jamaican operatives responding to a break-in at a Red Stripe warehouse. But Red Stripe’s Jamaican Beer Youtube page also includes “footage” of a Jamaican bear in the wild and some very convincing-looking faux news reportage on the break-in. So, yeah, who knows, right? You can even follow the big guy on Twitter at @iamRED_JAbear.