Culture

Oreo shares heartwarming coming out commercial shot by lesbian director

By Zoya Raza-Sheikh

8th April 2022

Filmmaker Alice Wu has partnered with Oreo to share a moving advert capturing the vulnerability of coming out as gay to your family.

Oreo has established a reputation for creating powerful adverts in dedication to the LGBTQ+ community, and this time, they’ve done it again.

In a newly released commercial, American director Alice Wu has brought to life an emotional advert that sees a teenage boy trying to come out to his family.

The advert appeals to Chinese American and Asian diasporic communities as it tenderly challenges the notions of family, love and acceptance.

Wu, who identifies as lesbian, is known for her hit queer film Saving Face, a film that follows a young closeted Chinese-American woman and her relationship with her family.

The director is also known for the Netflix’s widely popular modern queer rom-com The Half of It which demonstrates similar impactful themes on identity, culture and sexuality.

Oreo shared its new advert with an empathetic message expressing solidarity with the LGBTQ+ community and the difficulty of coming out to those around you.

“Some people think coming out is a one-time event. But in reality, it’s an ongoing series of conversations that need love and courage,” the brand shared across social media.

“Took a Sunday this past March to shoot a little thing for @oreo. Hope you like it,” Wu posted online

The director added, “This was a true labor of love and a great team of people who made it. Just a few names: Editor Christjan Jordan, DP Pat Scola, PD Anne Ross, CD Young-Ah Kim, producers Andrew May, Chris Cho, SKUNK, etc. And great thanks to @oreo who was incredibly supportive throughout.”

“You know it’s good storytelling and filmmaking when we don’t give a damn about the known sponsor, just the characters and the story. Y’all watch this! You’ll prolly want to see more of her work,” TV producer Alice Fuller posted. 

Reactions to the newly debuted advert have begun to roll in and many LGBTQ+ viewers have praised the advert for its poignant storytelling and heartfelt representation.

“This is awesome, thank you for supporting people in their time of need. This can be one of the hardest moments for them, thank you for helping to normalize this. Thank you!” one user posted.

Another shared their reaction online: “Thank you @Oreo!! This is SUCH an honorable message – it means the world to a lot of people! Some will love this, and some will say silly things in ignorance.

When I think of Oreos brand, I will think of bravery and courage, acceptance, and love! That’s a brand I can get behind!!”

Oreo has established a reputation for supporting the LGBTQ+ community in its adverts.

In 2021 it partnered with queer icon Lady Gaga to release a limited-edition range of Chromatica themed cookies which went viral.

The company also debuted a Pride campaign titled Proud Parents alongside PFLAG (a national US organisation for LGBTQ+ people and their families) in 2020.

The partnership was a successful year-long initiative designed to shine a spotlight on the powerful impact love and acceptance can have on LGBTQ+ youth.

To celebrate the moment, Oreo launched limited-edition #ProudParent packs of Oreo cookies featuring rainbow-coloured creme.

You can watch Alice Wu’s standout Oreo advert here or below.