Ad Analysis - Chipotle "From The Earth"

 

For my ad analysis, I chose a Chipotle commercial titled “From The Earth.” The ad follows avocados through their growth, to getting picked by farmers, packaged into boxes, and their eventual arrival at a Chipotle store where they are peeled, cut, and mixed into guacamole. The advertisement uses a fast-moving, stop-motion style made up of many shots that gives the impression of a long period of time condensed down into 30 seconds. The beginning of the ad depicts the actual growth of a tree that eventually buds an avocado out. It seems like some kind of animation was used for this part because it seems very unlikely the producers would actually be able to film this entire process, but the stop motion style is playful and satisfying to look at, so we’re supposed to suspend our disbelief. A voiceover plays over this portion, but is mostly absent in the rest of the ad. It begins with: “At Chipotle, we believe the best food on earth is the best food from the earth.” After the avocado is grown, a hand appears from off-screen and picks it right off the tree. From there we see a group of workers moving around in this fast style that looks almost like someone is fast-forwarding through the whole picking process, made up of numerous still images cut together. The forest where this takes place is lush and full of green and yellow colors which gives off this really natural earthly feel. It’s meant to look very real and natural, but it feels almost surreal in its staging. I think this is also from the stop motion used. Throughout the ad, a lighthearted string instrument plays that matches the colorful and natural tones of the shots. Loud, crisp sound effects accompany the shots that feel really natural. We hear the sound of the avocado being picked from the branch, with the sound of birds and a bit of wind in the background. It all combines to feel like this is right in the wild. As the avocados are loaded into boxes, the shot switches to inside the box. We see a person place avocados one by one into the box, eventually covering the whole screen. The next thing the audience sees is another hand reaching in and pulling out an avocado. This is a neat trick they use to make the transportation process between farm and store look seamless. One second we’re in a forest, and the next we’re in the Chipotle kitchen. This is definitely done to reinforce their message that their food is “from the earth”, that it’s completely natural and ethically sourced. As the audience, we’re supposed to feel reassured that this food is healthy and are supposed to feel good about eating it. From here, we see the process of making guacamole, which in turn becomes much more like a traditional food commercial, meant to make our mouths water and crave this food. The inside of the avocados are also extremely green in these shots, continuing this earthy feel from before. After the avocado is mixed with bright purple-skinned onions and bright red tomatoes, we see a burrito bowl, full of these same colors. A glob of guacamole drops from above and lands perfectly on the bowl. We then see Chipotle’s logo appear and their slogan “For Real”. This “For Real” text seems to be further assurance that the food is both “Real” and that this ad is being truthful. There’s obviously a lot that was probably left out of this whole process between when the avocados are picked and when they arrive at a store, but the ad seems to want us to imagine it’s as simple as it’s shown here. Chipotle is a large fast-food chain, but the ad wants us to feel like we’re making a healthy choice in eating it, and that we’ll also be willing to pay the extra fee for this same guacamole. I also think that the ad implies that the rest of the ingredients are sourced in this same way.