Art direction and design for the global launch campaign for the Nike Ultrafly — Nike’s first carbon-plated trail racing shoe.

Let it Grip

Inspired by a passion to serve the needs of all runners, Nike Running’s designers created the Ultrafly — their pinnacle trail racing shoe. Following more than two years of rigorous testing and development with elite Nike Trail athletes, the Ultrafly takes off-road speed to the next level. Designed to be fast AF.

Directed by Tucker Phillips, with photography by Frankie Carino, our campaign features Nike Trail athlete, Nienke Brinkman, letting it (g)rip on the trails outside Flagstaff, Arizona.

We took to the trails outside Flagstaff, Arizona — a mecca for the trail running community due to the altitude and the terrain there — to find a beautiful, barren landscape in which to showcase the Ultrafly. Orange rocks and black lava stone echo the Nike ‘prototype’ colourway, and helped to demonstrate the explosive speed the carbon Flyplate provides.

Natural elements retrieved from the trails that the shoe is designed for were shot in studio to create a visual language that articulates unique product benefits — ultimate speed, courtesy of the Ultrafly’s ZoomX cushioning and carbon Flyplate, and unparalleled grip, thanks to the all-new Vibram® Litebase outsole.

A central feature throughout the campaign launch was our custom typeface, Ultrafly Display. Inspired by the grid-like Vaporweave mesh fabric used on the shoe’s upper, the typeface was created to reflect the raw technical nature of the Ultrafly’s many product innovations.

The global launch was timed to coincide with Ultra-Trail du Mont-Blanc, the world’s biggest trail race which takes place every August in Chamonix. Working alongside Sunst Studios in Berlin, Nike created an Athlete Camp activation for runners to wear test the Ultrafly, join organised trail runs, take part in customisation workshops and watch the race.

Our campaign and design direction featured heavily throughout, from digital displays in an immersive product innovation demo chalet, to typographic apparel heat transfers and even electric motorbikes used to get people to the trails.

Thank-yous & Credits

Creative Direction: Jack Saunders for Nike
Art Direction & Design: Bravo. Charlie. Mike. Hotel.

Production: Kimberley English for It’s Possible

Director/DOP/Edit: Tucker Phillips

Photography: Frankie Carino
Product Stills and Environmental Details: Handover Agency
Styling: Charlotte Patterson
Sound: Glue Factory Music
Colour: Connor Bailey
AC: Ely Phillips

Athlete: Nienke Brinkman

Copywriting Support: George Tyson

Special thanks to the team at Nike (KB, Jesse, Allie, Joachim and Kersten)