AOK’s beastly bedfellows

Directed by Ayappa through Stink Germany, and created by Scholz & Friends, this humourous campaign for AOK brings to life the horrors of nocturnal worrying.

An intrusive AI chatbot, a leaky washing machine, gloomy newsreaders, guilt-tripping parents and more all appear to two hapless insomniacs in the 'Don’t take your stress to bed' platform featuring a man and a woman who cannot switch off.

Ayappa commented: "I wanted to bring restrained weirdness, so the characters don’t become complete caricatures. So I chose a calm camera, moody visuals and a slightly oversized bed. The intention was to teeter between humour and dread, that fine line where you're not sure whether to laugh or squirm. Because we have all been in this bed."

The production team built a studio bedroom with an ordinary bed that was widened to fit the intruders. Everything stays in crisp focus: the sleeper in worn-in pyjamas, the others in work clothes, each seemingly starring in their own film – but in someone else’s bed.