The Character is the Key

Turns out, the secret to a memorable brand might be the same as a great film.

Our unreasonably talented client Nodge Films premiered their excellent film Chicken Town this week. We were lucky enough to attend the premier (because we’re very important), and something from the post-film Q&A stuck with us.

Two of the most pivotal people in the film’s production, director Richard Bracewell and co-writer Patrick Dalton, spent almost the whole session talking about the characters. A little on the production process, the funding journey, and the shoot. But nothing like their focus on the characters. How they were written and why they mattered. How falling in love with them was the thing that made the rest of the story worth telling.

It’s the fundamental principle of storytelling; people are interested in people. Films are engaging because you emphasise with the characters, how they respond to situations and how their actions influence the plot. You care about what happens in the narrative because you care about who it’s happening to. Get the characters wrong, and no one will care about the plot.

This got us thinking about the similarities in how we approach branding. Companies often come to us thinking about the plot they want to write. What they need to do, where they need to show up and how they want to be seen. Which makes sense, because thats how business works. But the thing that gets missed in this approach is the sense of who they are and why their story is interesting. This is where their character comes in.

A brand’s character can take time to uncover. We’ve worked with companies where it was right there from day one, just waiting for the perfect expression. Others take a bit more development. But once you find it, things click. Messaging becomes simpler. Design decisions feel more intuitive. The plot becomes much easier to write when you give the brand room to behave like itself.

The brands that people remember? They’re the ones with character. The ones which feel genuine, that people can connect with. You know how they would act, and how they wouldn’t. The perennial brands that don’t need a rebrand every 18 months because they’re not chasing the plot, they’re staying in character.

That’s why we focus on finding out who they are first. It might start with strategy, visual exploration or messaging. But really, all we’re looking for is the character underneath. The bit that makes the rest of it feel inevitable. Because once you’ve got that, it all gets easier. You’re not guessing what the brand should do next. You’re just helping it say what it already knows.