skills/creative-director/references/legendary-campaigns/cards/skittles-magic-2009.md

---
id: skittles-magic-2009
title: "Magic"
brand: Skittles
agency: TBWA\Chiat\Day
year: 2009
country: US
region: north_america
industry: cpg
pattern: [P11]
category: film
idea_type: execution
involvement: passive_view
channel: digital
duration: campaign
goal: [awareness, engagement]
budget: medium
emotion: [surprised, ironic_sincerity]
emotion_tier: 3
insight_domain: joy
media_epoch: tv_first
awards: [unknown]
quality_score: 6
scalability: universal
risk: edgy
confidence: medium
quality: stub_minimal
source_url: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8PVt7a78xc4
---

# Magic (Skittles · 2009)

## Insight
TODO: Verify exact year. Part of Skittles' sustained absurdist platform — one of a series of executions exploring transformation, surreal humor, and candy's illogical relationship with reality.

## Mechanic
A Skittles spot using magic or transformation as the absurdist premise — likely featuring an impossible transformation triggered by Skittles, played with complete deadpan sincerity and no explanation offered.

## Why it worked
Skittles was one of the few candy brands to build a consistent creative language out of pure absurdism across multiple years. The "magic" theme connects to the brand's candy-as-transformative-force territory that made spots like "Touch the Rainbow" culturally memorable.

## Steal
Transformation is a universally legible story structure. Absurdist brands can use transformation mechanics (A becomes B because of product) to create memorable visual moments that work without any rational product claim.

## Related
- Pattern: [[../MOC-pattern.md#p11]]
- Sibling: [[metro-trains-dumb-ways-to-die-2012.md|Dumb Ways to Die]]
- Sibling: [[old-spice-man-your-man-could-smell-like-2010.md|The Man Your Man Could Smell Like]]
- Emotion match: [[absolut-absolut-campaign-1981.md|Absolut _____]]

---

*Author: Serge Shima ([t.me/aimastersme](https://t.me/aimastersme) · [sergeshima.com](https://sergeshima.com) · [aimasters.me](https://aimasters.me)) · License: CC BY 4.0 — attribution required · Source: [smixs/creative-director-skill](https://github.com/smixs/creative-director-skill)*