Attack on Titan Trailers – Driving Cultural Phenomenon

Challenge

This was more than a campaign — it was a farewell chapter to a phenomenon that had defined a generation of anime fans. As the series finale approached, Attack on Titan had massive cultural momentum—but faced competition from other streaming platforms. The creative needed to capture that energy, elevate Crunchyroll’s platform credibility, and engage a wide range of viewers: superfans, newcomers, and mainstream audiences.

Strategy

We deployed a dual-creative approach to drive both emotional depth and broad reach:

• Appetite for Destruction
  
  
  
  • Focused on visceral action set to classical music
    
    
  • Highlighted epic stakes and cinematic scale
    
    
  • Targeted new viewer acquisition
    
    
• Crescendo
  
  
  
  • A fusion of high-energy anime action and high-culture music emphasizing character arcs and one-of-a-kind choreography
  • Crafted to activate the core fanbase

Together, these complementary campaigns created a storytelling arc that honored the IP and elevated Crunchyroll’s role as a cultural tastemaker.

Execution

• Adaptive Leadership: Navigated narrative complexity and spoiler sensitivity through iterative creative refinements, ensuring the trailers remained compelling while protecting storyline integrity.
  
  
• Team Enablement: Partnered closely with Brand Marketing to manage licensor approvals and translate creative vision into campaign-ready assets.
  
  
• Lead by Results: Allowed metrics, impact, and industry recognition to speak for the work—while spotlighting the efforts of influencer partners and creative collaborators.
  
  

Results

• Business Impact:
  
  
  
  • 12% increase in free trial conversions (5M new users)
    
    
  • 25B impressions and 200M+ engagements across platforms
    
    
  • Record-breaking viewership for the season finale.

• Trailers broke the top ten in YouTube’s trending and were featured in ScreenRant, Comic Book Reader, and Newsweek, to name a few. 

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• Industry Recognition:
  
  
  
  • Won Telly and Marcom Awards for Best Trailer and Creative Excellence
    
    
• Platform Differentiation:
  
  
  
  • Crunchyroll’s Facebook page became the top referral source for Attack on Titan content
    
    
  • Dual-campaign model adopted as the new standard for future high-impact launches
    
    

Learnings

• Dual creative strategies allow brands to scale impact without compromising narrative integrity.
  
  
• Cross-functional collaboration is essential for scaling campaigns that maintain IP quality.
  
  
• Focusing on measurable outcomes drives influence without relying on individual promotion.
  
  

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