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“What do you do to fill your tank?” 

That question is the central metaphor behind this campaign for Texaco—the first new work from the company after several years of silence. 

When Wunderman Thompson won the business in 2019, the brand was looking for a change. Their image was dated: red muscle cars and distressed typography, neither of which spoke to their audience anymore. The agency won the pitch with a “Millenials get shit done” manifesto spot that was an ode to hustle culture.

Then COVID happened.

My partner Kelly Hering and I were brought on as a part of a pandemic rebrief. The “go, go, go” rock and roll anthem that won Wunderman the gig didn’t make sense in a world where basically nobody went anywhere. 

We sold a new campaign that shifted the focus from “fuel your drive” to “what fuels you?” and crafted a new direction for Texaco with help from director Terry Hall at Psyop.



The spot paints portraits of the car-adjacent activities that “fuel” drivers, bookended with two quick pitstops at a Texaco station. The vignettes are connected visually through a circle motif—and by a prismatic color story designed with Aubrey Woodiwiss at Carbon.


Agency: Wunderman Thompson Midwest
Role: ACD / Art Director

Credits

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