‘Toothless's Real-World Premiere’ by WPP Media won Gold in Experiential Open Air at The Drum Awards, staging a live-action reveal of the beloved dragon from the How To Train Your Dragon saga, transforming São Paulo into a spectacular open-air event.
The client briefed us with one clear ambition: Toothless had to turn up in person to his own premiere.
Our challenge was set.
In 2025, Universal Pictures and DreamWorks took their biggest creative leap yet: reimagining the 'How To Train Your Dragon' saga as a live-action film. This was a bold commitment, a slight risk, and a chance to bring beloved characters truly to life with stars like Gerard Butler and Nick Frost leading the cast.
The challenge went beyond launching a new film; it was about convincing audiences that this was different to what had come before. After growing up with animated Toothless, fans now had to believe he could exist in the real world. We had to stage an event which proves that Toothless was real.
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So we simply sent the beloved dragon an invite, and with a little behind-the-scenes magic, he arrived in spectacular fashion. The São Paulo night sky became our canvas, transforming the city into a stage for a one-of-a-kind open-air spectacle. A custom Hologauze installation remained invisible until the moment of reveal, when Toothless and his friends suddenly soared into view at colossal scale. For the actors and director, it was the first time they met their co-star outside the green screen, sharing the same awe as the crowd.
The spectacle generated 10 million impressions, built global anticipation and helped propel the film to over $630 million worldwide. For one unforgettable night, a dragon escaped the screen and ruled the sky.
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