What it had to solve
Move beyond product showcases for a 50th anniversary and translate a technical innovation — any light powers the watch — into culturally rich storytelling for gen Z and millennial audiences.
The idea
Make light the storyteller: two actors' unexpected Lisbon journey runs on whatever light hits it — headlights to disco lights — like the Eco-Drive watch
How it works
Directed by Matt Genesis and filmed on location in Lisbon, starring Devin Druid (13 Reasons Why) and actor/director Annie Marie Elliot; director's cuts and short spots ran globally on digital and streaming from January 22, 2026.
What it did
No quantified results in the source; the campaign gave Eco-Drive's 50th a narrative device — any light tells the story — instead of a technology demonstration.
Background
Eco-Drive is Citizen's light-powered watch technology: any light, harnessed to run the movement. For its 50th anniversary, Citizen wanted gen Z and millennial audiences to actually know that — so instead of another product showcase, it teamed with production company Late Shift and agency Bossy Women on a campaign called Powered By Any Light.
The device is simple: light drives the story the way it drives the watch. Directed by Matt Genesis and shot on location in Lisbon, the film follows Devin Druid, known from 13 Reasons Why, and Annie Marie Elliot through a delightfully unexpected journey powered by any light — from headlights to disco lights.
The milestone campaign started running globally on January 22, 2026, mixing director's cuts and short spots across digital and streaming platforms. Late Shift executive producer John Hollingsworth framed the brief as being about "how light itself tells a story" — a 50-year-old innovation retold as everyday narrative rather than spec.
Why it lands
A 50th anniversary invites a museum piece; this treats the innovation as a live mechanism and builds the plot out of it.
The cast targets the brief directly — a Netflix-known actor and an indie actor/director give gen Z and millennial entry points.
The mechanism travels: any spot, cut or platform can be "powered" by whatever light is in it, which suits a mixed director's-cut/short-spot rollout.
What you can take
Anniversary campaigns land when the heritage technology itself becomes the storytelling mechanism, not just the thing being celebrated.
Since then
As of January 2026 the campaign was running globally across digital and streaming from January 22; the source reports no performance results.
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