Road? To Have The Night Off

Why Did The Chicken Cross The Road? To Have The Night Off!

By the time you’re reading this you will have no doubt seen our latest advertising campaign featuring a man in a chicken suit! To support the local film industry, Huon made the decision to create our ‘Give Chicken the Night Off’ campaign ad in Tasmania, using iconic Hobart locations to play out the chicken’s ‘night off’!

Filmed over a busy week in January 2021, the campaign features a man dressed as a chicken enjoying a ‘night off’ from dinner responsibilities as salmon takes the stage on the dinner plate. We caught up with the star of the campaign, the chicken man himself, Dylan Heste, to see how the filming experience was for him.

–Upon reflection, Dylan said his experience as a chicken, albeit “hot and fluffy”, was heaps of fun. –

“It’s amazing to see people’s faces as soon as I put on the suit, the chicken comes to life,” said Dylan. Showcasing popular Hobart locations such as the Playhouse theatre and the Hobart Workers Club, in the ad, the chicken plays out popular activities one might enjoy when devoid of work responsibilities, such as going to the movies and playing pool at the pub. “There’s this real joy the chicken feels in every scene as he experiences something new and exciting for the first time,” said Dylan. “He’s never been to any of these environments so he’s having a lot of fun, and there’s a real child-like quality to what he’s experiencing.” Other Hobart locations featured in the ad include Alceme Yoga Studio, Superstar Karaoke, UTAS and Tahiti Felix’s Master Tattoo parlour. While there’s no doubt Dylan had a ball performing all the ‘night off’ activities, he said there was one experience that stood out for him.

“I loved acting out the chicken getting a tattoo,” Dylan said. “The juxtaposition of the chicken in the tattoo parlour environment was very funny.” “The actor who gave me the tattoo [Jason] did a great job at giving me a tattoo.” Although getting a tattoo is pretty cool and edgy, Dylan wanted to clarify to those reading that the chicken didn’t really get a tattoo.

–A great night off –

–“I always love bringing these lovable loser characters to life, and the chicken role delivers that in spades,” said Dylan. –

–The team behind the campaign –

In all seriousness, as a Tassie actor, Dylan said he was thrilled to have the opportunity to be part of the project. “I’ve really enjoyed working with such a talented crew and taking a fun concept off the paper and bringing it to life,” said Dylan. “It is also great to see Huon choose a comedic approach to their advertising. I think especially coming out the year that everyone’s had, it’s nice to do something a bit silly!” We couldn’t agree more!