The archive · Advertising · Marketing decision · 2024–2025
Montblanc marks Meisterstück's 100 years with a Wes Anderson film on Mont Blanc
A century-old pen gets a fantasy short film by Wes Anderson set at a fictional Montblanc headquarters, and the campaign wins Silver at Cannes Lions.
Montblanc
What it had to solve
The Meisterstück, introduced in 1924, is Montblanc's most recognizable product: black cigar-shaped body, three gold rings and a handcrafted gold nib. For its centenary, marketing chief Vincent Montalescot wanted the writing icon itself to be the protagonist of the story in a way that felt completely unexpected, and the maison invited one of cinema's great storytellers to put his own spin on the world of Montblanc.
How it works
The Meisterstück, introduced in 1924, is the pen most people picture when they hear Montblanc: cigar-shaped, three gold rings, handcrafted gold nib. To mark its centenary, Montblanc's marketing chief Vincent Montalescot wanted the writing icon itself to be the protagonist of the story — and in a completely unexpected way.
The maison invited Wes Anderson to write and direct a roughly three-minute film, produced and co-directed by Roman Coppola with cinematography by Linus Sandgren. Rupert Friend, Jason Schwartzman and Anderson play three characters inside an imaginary Montblanc venue atop Mont Blanc, introducing the maison, its history and the Meisterstück, while watches and leather goods appear alongside the pen. The film debuted online in May 2024 and at a Los Angeles launch event at the Paramour Estate, with campaign visuals shot by Charlie Gray.
It is Anderson's signature world applied to a heritage brand: eccentric characters, deadpan wit and a visual style that is recognizable in a single frame. Montblanc said the collaboration would shape its marketing through the centenary year, and at Cannes Lions 2025 the campaign won a Silver Lion in the Consumer Goods subcategory of Film, with Solomon Winter serving as the art-buying agency.
Why it lands
- A hundred-year-old product borrows attention from a filmmaker whose style is the message: Anderson's world makes heritage tangible without a single feature claim.
- Setting the story in a fictional headquarters on Mont Blanc literalizes the brand's name and snow-capped emblem inside the narrative.
- Writing, direction, production design and photography came from one eccentric vision, so the centenary felt like art direction rather than an advertisement.
- The film works as entertainment first: viewers who would skip a luxury commercial will watch three minutes of Anderson.
What it did
The film gave a heritage product a story told by one of the most recognizable filmmakers alive, and Montblanc said the collaboration would shape its marketing through the centenary year. At Cannes Lions 2025 the campaign won a Silver Lion in the Consumer Goods subcategory of Film, with Hamburg art-buying agency Solomon Winter credited alongside the client.
What you can take
For an anniversary, hand the brand to a distinctive storyteller: the auteur's recognizable world makes a century-old product feel storied, so craft itself carries the campaign.
Since then
The campaign's award record shows a Silver Lion at Cannes Lions 2025 in the Consumer Goods subcategory of Film, with Solomon Winter as the art-buying agency; the sources record the concept and credits but no sales figures. The case stands on the transfer itself: a maison whose identity is writing and craft handed its centenary to an auteur, letting his recognizable world make the Meisterstück's story feel authored rather than advertised.
Sources
- Montblanc Marks 100 Years of Meisterstück Pen Through the Eyes of Wes Anderson
- Watch: Wes Anderson Directed This Funny Commercial for Montblanc
- Letzter Tag, zweimal Silber, einmal Bronze (Cannes Lions 2025 awards)
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