SBS marks 50 years in Australia with launch of ‘The Ad That Can Only Be Seen On SBS’ via Droga5

As SBS celebrates its 50th birthday in 2025, the public broadcaster has launched a new campaign highlighting its distinctive position in Australian media, created by Droga5 ANZ, part of Accenture Song.  The tagline, “We Go There”, recognises the broadcaster’s history of taking risks, breaking boundaries, and boldly treading where others won’t.

SBS is one of five main free-to-air television networks in Australia. The network’s stated purpose is “to provide multilingual and multicultural radio and television services that inform, educate and entertain all Australians and, in doing so, reflect Australia’s multicultural society”.

VIEW THE ‘WE GO THERE’ FILM ON SBS ON DEMAND HERE. Viewer discretion advised.

The provocative film that can only be viewed on SBS sits within a larger campaign, directed by Damien Shatford from The Sweetshop.

The campaign includes creative executions across television, outdoor and digital that reinforce SBS’s role as the network that continually dares to push the envelope, in a landscape where other networks and streamers offer generic and often homogenised content.

Says Jane Palfreyman, Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer at SBS: “At SBS we know who we are and in our 50th year this unique campaign pays tribute to that heritage. We are a national broadcaster who is prepared to truly go there. To challenge, to inform, and to provoke with purpose.

“We also know many Australians affectionately, if not jokingly, think SBS stands for Sex Before Soccer… and we’re okay with that. This campaign acknowledges that legacy, as well as the place of trust that SBS has built in the minds of millions of Australians. Amid the intense competition in the streaming sector, this campaign acknowledges there are still some TV shows that really stand out – and these can only be found on SBS On Demand.

“While the creative is playful, clever and encourages audiences to reappraise our brand, we’ve also thought carefully about how we show the various creatives in this campaign, in line with our standards and audience expectations.”

Outdoor creative from the ‘We Go There’ campaign will be featured in some of Australia’s most prominent out of home locations.

The campaign is spearheaded with a 60 second film so daring and so SBS, it can’t be played anywhere but SBS.

The campaign is also complemented by a series of billboards that leave everything to the imagination, featuring bold headlines that hint at the inimitable content on SBS On Demand. The media strategy and planning is led by Hearts and Science.

Says Tara Ford, former Chief Creative Officer at Droga5 ANZ (now CCO at Droga5 London): “This campaign is more than just provocative—it has all the DNA of SBS. Every scene represents something you’ll see on the platform that you won’t see anywhere else. Even the format—creating an ad that can’t be seen everywhere —brings that idea to life.”

Client: SBS
Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer: Jane Palfreyman
Head of Creative: Joel Noble
Head of Marketing and Media: Uma Oldham
Project Lead: Becky Honey
Marketing Manager: Lauren Phelan
Creative Manager: Peter Jeffs
Producer: Amanda Galkin

Agency: Droga5
Chief Executive Officer ANZ: Matt Michael
Chief Creative Officer APAC: Tara Ford
Chief Client Officer: Belinda Drew
Executive Creative Director: Barbara Humphries
Creative Director: Sam Dickson
Creative Director: Cameron Bell
Associate Creative Director: Lennie Galloway
Associate Creative Director: Thomas Gledhill
Head of Strategy: Ben De Castella
Senior Producer: Elliot Liebermann
Senior Business Director: Samar Karim

Production Company: The Sweetshop
Director: Damien Shatford
Producer: Allison Lockwood
Co-Managing Director: Edward Pontifex
Co-Managing Director: Greg Fyson
Executive Producer: Kate Roydhouse
DOP: Ross Giardina
Art Director: Mile Pitt
Casting: Danny Long Casting
Stills Photographer: Michael Malherbe
Editorial: ARC @arc_site
Executive Producer – Daniel Bradford Fry
Producer – Sally Quade
Editor – Lucas Baynes
Assistant Editor- Amelia Pieri
Colourist – Fergus Rotherham
Online Artist – Richard Lambert
Colour & Online Assistant – Max Wyld & Christian Misuraca
Music Creative Director: Adrian Sergovich
Sound Designer: Simon Kane
Executive Producer: Katrina Aquilia

Media agency: Hearts and Science
Group Business Director: Blake Power
Account Director: Oliver Woodrow