Mother Nature can be brutal. A new campaign from Columbia leans on meme culture with a nail biting campaign designed to show that its outdoor gear is designed to take on anything nature can throw at us. 

The new brand platform, which was created with the help of Adam&eveDDB, titled Engineered for Whatever, embraces the chaos of the outdoors. 

From severe weather warnings to broken bones and falling into muddy puddles, at the centre of the campaign, a fast-paced brand film shows people battling the great outdoors. 

The film, directed by Henry-Alex Rubin and produced by Smuggler, splices real-life footage with video game and animation to depict people in an array of sticky scenarios presented by Mother Nature. From being hunted by ravenous vultures, pancaked by hidden potholes and rag-dolled by collapsing snow drifts.

The spot even features a dark comedic cameo from mountaineer Aron Ralston. Ralston is known for surviving a canyoneering accident by amputating his own arm, a story depicted in the critically acclaimed movie, ‘127 Hours’. 

The dynamic film is soundtracked fittingly with a thrash metal cover of Irving Berlin’s classic, Blue Skies, once performed by the likes of Ella Fitzgerald and Frank Sinatra.

The work is the first for Columbia from Adam&eveDDB and marks the first major brand platform relaunch for Columbia in a decade. The brand platform has been designed to show that Columbia gear isn’t just made for the outdoors, but engineered to conquer it.

Alongside the hero film, the brand platform consists of a refreshed visual identity, including a new typeface, logo lock-up, colour palette and layout system. The new platform is set to roll out across retail, social and digital platforms globally. It will also include a range of new out-of-home campaign executions and new product testing series. 

Inspired by Jackass, the product testing series features real-life stunt people pushing Columbia’s gear to the limits. Iterations will see tests such as dangling over crocodile infested water to test the strength of utility pants, rolling down a steep mountain slope inside a giant snowball to see if jackets can keep people warm and seeing how Columbia’s Omni-Head Infinity technology holds up against a snowplough.

“With ‘Engineered for Whatever’ we’re showing people that our products are made to handle the extreme and unpredictable, with a healthy dose of humor and joy. By embracing the real and unexpected sides of adventure, we’re staying true to our legacy and charting a distinct and memorable path for our brand going forward,” says Matt Sutton, Head of Marketing at Columbia.

As lovers of the outdoors will know, it's not always a walk in the park. The punchy campaign speaks to audiences with brutal honesty, to prove that Columbia is an expert in the outdoors and ready to take on anything.