Advertising case study 3: Audrey Hepburn Galaxy advert

Our final close-study product for Advertising and Marketing is the 2016 Galaxy chocolate advert 'Chauffeur' featuring dead film star Audrey Hepburn.

This product provides an excellent opportunity to explore a range of different representations: celebrity, place (Italy), gender and more. 

Sample questions for Advertising and Marketing

In your Media exams, you are likely to get questions similar to these:

- Why do advertisers use stereotypes? [6 marks]

- Explain how advertisements reflect the historical context in which they were created. [12 marks]

Galaxy advert: background information


This is the advert CSP:

You can read more about the incredible CGI technology that went into creating the advert here. There is also a Guardian feature from the production company behind the advert explaining the technical process. 

GLOW words to use for this CSP

• Intertextuality: When one media text refers to or suggests another media text
• Semiotic codes: The media language choices (‘signs’) that create connotations for the audience.

Historical context of confectionary advertising

Nostalgia, or a "yearning for yesterday," is a frequently used advertising tool.  It is particularly common in the chocolate industry.

This classic Flake advert from the 1980s creates a nostalgic atmosphere of a more innocent time: 

Galaxy brand identity

The Galaxy brand identity has focused on luxury and indulgence for over 25 years. This 1995 advert is a good example of the Galaxy brand and also features a nostalgic soundtrack:





Audrey Hepburn
Audrey Hepburn was a huge Hollywood star in the 1950s and 1960s. She was associated with Hollywood glamour and style and was also a fashion icon and model. She died in 1993 at the age of 63.

For the Galaxy advert, the advertising agency used a CGI-version of Hepburn from 1953, the year of her hit film Roman Holiday. The advert is set on the luxurious Italian Riviera which creates intertextuality and nostalgia – two key audience pleasures.


Intertextuality in Media Products

Intertextuality is where one media product (e.g. Galaxy) makes reference to other media products (e.g. Audrey Hepburn movies such as 1953 film Roman Holiday) to interest and engage the audience.

Narrative theory

Propp’s  Character theory

Vladimir Propp stated that there were seven basic character functions when he analysed 100 fairy tales and that these were present in most narratives. Media products still use these recognisable character types today:

Hero, Villain, Heroine/Princess, Father, Donor, Helper/Sidekick, False Hero

Todorov: equilibrium

Tzvetan Todorov suggested that all narratives follow a three part structure.

They begin with equilibrium, where everything is balanced, progress as something comes along to disrupt that equilibrium, and finally reach a resolution, when a new equilibrium is restored.

Equilibrium > Disequilibrium > New equilibrium

This can be applied to most media narratives.

Galaxy advert: Representations

The TV advertisement for Galaxy uses a range of stereotypes. Stereotypes are used so that semiotic codes can be quickly communicated to the target audience. What stereotypes are used in this advert and why? Are they reinforced or subverted?

Place: Italy

Celebrity: Audrey Hepburn

Product: Galaxy chocolate

Time: 1950s

Gender: Men & Women, gender roles

Galaxy 'Chauffeur' advert: blog tasks

Work through the tasks in this blogpost to make sure you're an expert on this CSP.

Re-watch the Galaxy advert then answer the questions below:



1) Who is Audrey Hepburn?

2) Why did Galaxy select Audrey Hepburn for this advert? 

3) What are the connotations of Audrey Hepburn and celebrity in this advert? 

4) Why is the advert set in the 1950s? What audience pleasure does this provide?

5) What is intertextuality?

6) What Audrey Hepburn film is suggested in this advert and how is this effect created (e.g. mise-en-scene - CLAMPS: costume, lighting, actors, make-up, props, setting)?

7) Which of Propp's character types are represented in the advert? (Note: you will not find them all). 

8) How does the advert's narrative (story) follow Todorov's theory of equilibrium?

9) What representations of gender can you find in this advert?

10) Are stereotypes reinforced or subverted in the Galaxy advert? Give examples.


Grade 8/9 extension tasks

Read the Framestore case study and the Guardian feature again. How did they recreate an Audrey Hepburn film using location, casting and CGI?

Now read this Vintage Everyday feature behind the scenes of the Galaxy advert. What other background information do you learn here regarding the construction of the advert?

Women in the 1950s are represented very differently in two of our advertising CSPs: OMO and Galaxy. What similarities and differences can you find by analysing the two products?

Complete this work by next Monday.