Wild Design

To stand out in today’s creative landscape, great design is more important than ever - yet many people still feel it’s out of reach. Whether it’s creating content for work, promoting a local business, or sharing personal moments, tools can feel overly complex or reserved for experts. Graphic design platform Canva’s latest campaign challenges that perception, showing that with the right tools, anyone can bring their ideas to life. Even a humble pigeon.

Created by independent creative agency DUDE, ‘Wild Design’ is a new brand campaign for the Italian market, designed to build awareness of how the free-to-use design platform can empower non-designers to create - whether it’s a social post, a flyer for a local event, a professional logo, an important presentation, or a video edit of their summer holidays.

Launching across TV, connected TV, social, digital, OOH/DOOH and radio, the campaign introduces an unlikely creative hero: an inventive pigeon named Picci1, whose story unfolds in a richly detailed, handcrafted world.

The hero 30-second film, set in a typical Italian piazza, follows Picci1 as he perches above a struggling trattoria with poor design and no customers. While other pigeons jostle for the last remaining crumb, he seizes the opportunity to step in as an unlikely creative director, using Canva to create a new visual identity, marketing materials and communications in moments. The rebranding turns the empty restaurant into a thriving local hotspot - meaning more crumbs for the pigeons and proving that great design can make a difference for everyone.

Produced by UK studio A+C and directed by former Aardman Studios animator Dan Richards, the film uses stop-motion to bring the story to life with charm and heart. Every element - from Picci1 himself to the tablecloths and food - was physically built using a tactile, textile-inspired approach. The puppets, sets and props are all handcrafted, giving the campaign a warm, imperfect feel that mirrors Canva’s belief that creativity should feel accessible, not intimidating.

Wild Design will roll out across multiple touchpoints. Three 15-second cutdowns highlight key Canva features, while a second film will launch mid May.

The campaign also extends into radio and OOH. A documentary-style radio execution playfully examines the pigeon’s unexpected creative abilities, while outdoor executions see him “take flight” across Italy’s cities, showcasing Canva’s Magic Charts, Magic Eraser, video editing tools and more with comic, character-led scenarios.

Thanks to a combination of charming characters and painstaking craft, the campaign positions Canva not just as a design tool, but as a platform where creativity, no matter how humble its starting point, can truly take flight.

Wild Design launches in Italy across TV, connected TV, social, digital, OOH/DOOH and radio, marking Canva’s first major top-of-funnel campaign in the market, with a second wave rolling out in mid-June.