SCAD student campaigns for Nutella Ambassador
Written by Emilie Kefalas
Fun fact: Nutella is not French, it’s Italian. Chrissy Eckman, a third-year motion media design student from Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, didn’t know that when she bought her first jar during her first year at SCAD. All she knew after she stuck her finger in for a quick taste was that she was hooked on the hazelnut spread.
Today she’s campaigning to become the ambassador of World Nutella Day, a global event during which fans of Nutella share and express their love for the product.
Eckman continued her love affair with Nutella this past summer when she studied abroad at SCAD’s Lacoste campus.
“It was life-changing, and that sounds cheesy,” said Eckman. “But it was the most amazing experience of my life so far, and I did eat a lot of Nutella. Now I only eat the single serving packs because I can monitor myself a little bit better.”
She was in Lacoste when she drew her first sketch of a Nutella jar. This fall quarter she returned to a motion media course and ended up using a Nutella campaign she created in class to become one of five finalists for World Nutella Day Ambassador.
Eckman found out about the opportunity through friends who knew of her love for the spread.
“I already follow Nutella on Twitter and Instagram,” said Eckman. “[But] even before I saw it on there I got a screenshot of an email my friend got … I was already working on a project for one of my classes that was about a jar of Nutella.”
The application process required Eckman to submit a short video describing why she loved Nutella.
“You had to pick one of five personalities, so luckily ‘artist’ was one of them.”
Supporters can vote up to five times a day online for their favorite personality. According to Eckman, the votes are not publicized because they only contribute to a portion of the final score.
Eckman explained how she has put Nutella one-hundred percent into her life through not just her diet, but in her schoolwork too.
“I’m using my artwork to help promote myself and to bring art and Nutella together. I went back to a doodle that I had done in my sketchbook in France … I thought it would be funny to kind of pair that with the modern spin of romance in the city of love and bring Nutella into it, because I love Nutella.”
If awarded the title of Chief Ambassador for World Nutella Day, she would win an all-expenses paid trip to New York City for the event in January.
“It’s a once in a lifetime experience,” Eckman said. “If I win, I’ll be their face for social media for that day.”
Eckman believes having a motion media background provides her with a huge advantage, because motion media is all about advertising — an added edge to her campaign.
“I think I understand how to pick up on campaign aspects,” said Eckman
According to Eckman, the SCAD community has been incredibly helpful and supportive of her during her campaign. Because her campaign integrates her skills as a motion media major, she hopes the graphics she’s created will add an interesting and unique element to her portfolio.
With a limited number of campaign days remaining, Eckman encourages students and Nutella lovers alike to follow her campaign, vote and see how she is applying her major to this special opportunity.
“I think that if I had any advice I could take from an experience like this, [it would be to] just do what you love because you’re going to have so much more fun. You can turn it into something, especially if you can find outlets for it. Make yourself an interesting person. Go for what you enjoy.”
To vote for Chrissy as Chief Ambassador up to five times a day, go here, or use the hastag #voteChrissyNutellaAmbContest on Twitter to vote once a day. The contest voting concludes on Nov. 29 at 5 p.m.
