Barbie and Mattel have released their first campaign with BBDO San Francisco, encouraging young girls to bridge the gap between themselves and their full potential.
Barbie and Mattel have released their first global campaign, The Dream Gap, with creative agency BBDO San Francisco.
‘The Dream Gap’ is the gap that comes between girls and their full potential, the ad explained.
A study conducted by researchers from the University of Illinois, Princeton University and New York University found that young girls lack the confidence of boys the same age.
“Starting at age five, girls stop believing they can be presidents, scientists, astronauts, big thinkers, engineers, CEOS,” a bevy of emphatic little girls chorus in the ad.
Aligning with International Day of the Girl, October 11, Barbie has issued a rallying cry for ambitious and inspired young girls.
“We need to see brillant women being brilliant, and how they got to where they are. To imagine ourselves doing what they do. But we can’t do it alone,” the ad continues, calling for mums, dads, brothers and bosses to help close the gap.
After a sharp dip in 2014, Barbie dolls have been re-conceptualised as a force for social change, appearing as directors, scientists, game developers and presidents.
In 2018, Mattel, Barbie Australia and BBDO Melbourne launched ‘Never Before Barbie,’ a line six dolls featuring jobs never before held by a woman.
From AFL chairman to governor of the Australian Reserve Bank, commissioner of the Australian Federal Police to head of ASIO, president of the Australian Olympic Committee to first woman on the moon, Barbie sought to bring light to the issue of gender diversity in Australia.
Drawing on data from the US National Centre for Health Statistics and the Department of Education, parents were to seen to desire very different things for their children.
“Parents are twice as likely to google, is my son gifted, than is my daughter gifted,” three girls recite in the ad, an overt nod to the study.
Created by Ruth Handler in 1959, Barbie has worked to create a world in which girls see unlimited possibilities.
In a statement addressing The Dream Gap, Mattel defined five pillars of focus: raising awareness through impactful content; showing girls as role models; leveraging Barbie as a role mode; continuing to offer empowering products; and, rallying partners around the world.
To this effect Barbie will fund New York University associate professor Andrei Cimpian to complete a two-year post-doctoral fellowship on the issue of The Dream Gap.
