The man who got “The River” flowing 

At almost two metres tall, he’s hard to ignore. His thoughts are big too. As anyone who works with him quickly finds out, so are the expectations he places on himself, those around him and his work. How does someone like this think up a national campaign for banks, more or less starting with a blank sheet of paper and ending up with a detailed concept? 

To start with, Sascha simply asked himself how he could explain the importance of Swiss banks in a relatable, contemporary and intuitively understandable way. Instead of putting facts and figures at the forefront, he shifted the focus to the various stages in people’s lives, economic developments and change in general. This gave rise to the idea of the river as a metaphor for movement, growth and continuity. Sascha sees the financial world as being in a state of constant flux. Companies grow, markets evolve, lives keep moving on. Swiss banks are on hand through all of this, acting as enablers and providing stability. The river combines motion and dependability, creating a strong foundation for the campaign’s imagery and content. 

The picture was clear in Sascha’s head, but it took some persuading for others to see it. There were some burning questions: What has a river got to do with banks? Why are all the people in a boat? What are the lighting elements all about?  

Sascha likes to do things differently and defy expectations. He doesn’t shy away from discussions, even tough ones, and finds the right arguments to win people over. “The River” is deliberately unlike classic campaigns. Others explain, this one narrates. The river isn’t just for decoration, it’s the backbone holding the story together. It links people, generations and perspectives and creates a context that goes beyond individual messages. Sascha’s biggest challenge lay in making it credible. He knows that Swiss banks are a sensitive topic with a lot of history and differing opinions. An overly emotional narrative could easily have been perceived as sugar-coating the subject, while an excessively matter-of-fact one might have seemed distant. The main aim was to strike the right balance – touching the viewer without being too dramatic, telling a story but not indulging in propaganda. 

How does he see the campaign half a year after it was launched? He’s still satisfied with his work and with the campaign as a whole, but he’s enough of a professional to know that it’s not his opinion that matters. What’s important is that the campaign works, is understood and has an impact out in the real world. Feedback shows that this is the case. At the same time, though, it’s clear that a campaign like this is a longer-term project. Trust is built slowly, it doesn’t happen overnight. He thinks it’s a positive sign that people view it as unusual and keep asking him whether and how it will continue. It’s not an ending, it’s the start of a story that’s begging to be told. At any rate, Sascha Fanetti’s ready with some more big ideas.