Dermablend and Zombie Boy ‘go beyond the cover’

I had never heard of Dermablend until now. Now with tweets and blog posts talking about an ‘amazing’ video for the brand, I do. The video, with nearly 2.1 million views as of date, is likely to be talked about even more in the days to come. Dermablend is a ‘coverage cosmetics’ brand in the U.S and according the PR blurb: from tattoos to undereye circles to more serious skin conditions, Dermablend Professional provides an array of products that deliver reliable coverage. Given this background, I thought the ‘Go Beyond the cover‘ initiative was superb.

We’ve seen ‘Before-After’ campaigns in advertising so often, especially for weight loss & hair implant products, that we attach very little credibility to the claims. I think the video works (even if you did not know who Zombie Boy is) given the sheer contrast in the before-after. And for the uninitiated:

Rico Genest, also known as Zombie Boy, the 26-year-old model and fashion muse best known for his head-to-toe skeletal tattoos. Genest gained attention after appearing in Lady Gaga’s video for “Born This Way,” as well as walking the Thierry Mugler runway in Paris, to name a few. His notoriety and unique appearance have also earned him a cult Facebook following.

To create the “Go Beyond the Cover” message, Dermablend Professional teamed with Tuxedo Agency to produce a video featuring Zombie Boy. During the shoot, a team of makeup artists applied Dermablend Professional Leg and Body Tattoo Primer andLeg and Body Cover to completely cover Zombie Boy’s tattoos on his head, neck, chest, stomach and arms. In the video, a completely tattoo-free Genest slowly rubs away the Dermablend Professional product to reveal the tattoos that lie beneath.

Not only is the video a fantastic product demonstration, by marrying it with a ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’ the campaign gets even more pass-along value. Great stuff by Tuxedo.