That's it.

A small piece of land, yet a thousand shades of beauty - they say about Georgia. This is a place of unbelievably diverse landscapes, different paths, and mixed cultures. But sometimes, it is a double-edged sword. Georgians must adapt to a shifting road environment. This versatility is the core attribute of the Mazda CX-60 Plug-in Hybrid. Starring Georgian Sumo legend Tochinoshin, the film's narrative mirrors the vehicle’s flexibility alongside the complexity of Georgian nature. It is the story of an Ozeki ensuring that Japanese engineering meets the demanding soul of his homeland.

Cultural Context

Georgia and Japan share an unusual touchpoint: Sumo. Levan Gorgadze (Tochinoshin) is a national hero, the first Georgian and the third European to win the highest honor of them all, the Emperor’s Cup. By reaching the rank of Ozeki, he represents discipline and power to a nation that prizes strength sports.

Also, Georgians care deeply about their global representation; Levan’s journey and prestige in Japan made Sumo popular overnight. Suddenly, you would hear Sumo slang everywhere. The campaign bridges Japanese engineering with Georgian needs, using Tochinoshin's authority to establish the standards.
The campaign centers on a synergy of Georgian and Japanese cultures. Tochinoshin is a national hero in both countries, embodying strict Japanese traditions and the Georgian aspiration for physical strength.
The cast includes Yasuhiro Kojima, a Japanese linguist who translated Georgian classics. In a nation that prizes its unique language, a Japanese scholar mastering the Georgian language signals profound respect. By pairing a Georgian who conquered Japan’s national sport with a famous Japanese expert who embraced Georgian culture, an authentic cultural dialogue was born.

Insight

The key insight was simple: the new Mazda CX-60 PHEV felt like it was created exclusively for Georgians.

Locals constantly adapt to a shifting road environment. People would love to "go green," pay less, and switch to EVs; however, they do not trust the Georgian charging infrastructure. That is why the versatility of the Mazda CX-60 Plug-in Hybrid stands out. Its ability to shift from electricity to petrol when necessary, or adapt to country roads, is exactly what Georgians need.

Idea:

We framed the Mazda CX-60 PHEV's new technical capabilities as the perfect match for the Georgian landscape's versatility.

We achieved this by portraying national hero and Sumo legend, Tochinoshin, as the ambassador of his demanding homeland and applying his high standards to the vehicle. His stamp of approval ultimately resolves the narrative tension: "That’s it!"

Execution:

The director prioritized cinematic tension and, to manage a non-actor athlete, capitalized on his natural stoicism. This ensured that Tochinoshin’s approval of the product felt earned rather than scripted. "The goal was to tell a story. We wanted to place the product in the context of two cultures and to articulate the connection between Georgian chaos and Japanese order," says the director.

This Japanese order is disrupted by the protagonist, and the polite dialogue maintains a subtle tension resolved only by the final approval. The film remains in Japanese for authenticity, yet we used Georgia’s most iconic film voice actors to provide a familiar overlay. This specific style of voiceover is embedded in the nation’s collective memory and evokes deep cinematic nostalgia.

Results:

In a country with a total population of around 3.8 million, the film reached 1.25 million unique viewers; one in every three citizens saw it (Total Views: 6.16 Million) despite a very restricted budget.

98.3% of the total reach consisted of non-followers, and the campaign achieved a 24% year-over-year increase in qualified leads.

The arrival of Tochinoshin was kept a secret, as he had not been in Georgia for years. After revealing him in our campaign, his presence alone gave the brand enormous media coverage.