Intertrend Creates Toyota’s First-Ever Anime Content Series

Intertrend Communications, a culture-forward creative advertising agency known for helping leading U.S. brands better understand and reach Asian American audiences, today announces the launch of Toyota’s first-ever original anime content series, “GRIP.” This new adrenaline-fueled campaign premieres today and features Toyota’s Gazoo Racing (GR) series of cars as the hero, using authentic Japanese anime illustrations as a storytelling technique. The campaign aims to inspire young audiences who think they know Toyota and to showcase the brand in an exciting new way that celebrates the thrill of driving.

The five-episode content series, created by Intertrend, Executive Producer Frank Mele and Supervising Director Jae Woo Kim, is a high-octane anime adventure that combines heart-pounding action and a battle between the human spirit and computer control. Airing weekly, each episode is one minute in length with the finale running slightly longer at one minute and 10 seconds. With their GR rides and unwavering determination, the lead character Jae and his crew are the last hope for the spirit of driving. “GRIP” features a familiar yet alternate metropolis where the thrill of driving has been all but extinguished. The mastermind behind this somewhat joyless cityscape is Dr. Aron Synth, owner of powerful tech conglomerate SynthCorp. Dr. Synth controls a vast fleet of cookie-cutter vehicles, which he has successfully persuaded the public to perceive as safer, more efficient and will lead to a more controlled society. He refers to human drivers as unpredictable viruses that could crash his seemingly infallible system of order.

“Intertrend has been working with Toyota to creatively market to the AAPI audience for more than 20 years. Due to anime's widespread popularity, people have grown an attachment toward the genre and the once niche fan base has now sparked enthusiasm around the world,” said Matthew Choy, Executive Director of Strategy/Creative, Intertrend. “The idea behind Toyota’s ‘GRIP’ series is to showcase the brand in unique, relevant and unexpected ways. We are truly world-building and creating an alternate anime reality with intricate layers, storylines, Easter eggs and more. Focused on authenticity, connection and artistic excellence, we have built branded content for Toyota that will grow, evolve, and last for years to come.”

Joe Moses, VP of Marketing, Toyota, added, “Partners like Intertrend understand the needs and motivations of our audiences and fuels the important cultural insights that drive our creative campaigns. The ‘GRIP’ content series showcases all that’s exciting about performance-oriented GR cars, while telling a thrilling story that we know will resonate with younger consumers.”

To access the “GRIP” series, downloadable campaign assets and a variety of other GR-powered content, please visit www.toyota.com/grip.

ABOUT INTERTREND:

Intertrend is a multicultural creative agency that understands the intersection of cultures, emerging trends, and the interaction between brands and consumers. With a passionate team of over 70 professionals focused on creative excellence, Intertrend creates deeply resonant and exceptional consumer experiences. Founded 32 years ago and based in both Long Beach, Calif. and Plano, Texas, the agency has worked with leading brands in automotive, financial services, retail, entertainment, pharma and telecom. Intertrend also incepted and houses a family of exclusively owned entrepreneurial brand units within Intertrend Lab and Intertrend Plus, that build to its core expertise across digital, content and experiential including The Art of Bloom, Imprint Culture Lab, Imprint Venture Lab, Architecture for Dogs, Make Noise Today, Pivot Marketing, Rezonate, and a nonprofit called Creative Class Collective (with the following programs: Long Beach Walls, Art Renzei, Unexpected Connections, Port City Creative Guild). Interpreters and interrupters, interdisciplinary and international, Intertrend is where culture and content meet. For more information, please visit www.intertrend.com.

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