The citizens of Marietta, GA take fried chicken seriously. In 1963, Georgia Tech architectural student Hubert Puckett designed the town’s BIg Chicken landmark for what was then called Johnny Reb’s Chick, Chuck and Shake.
According to the Atlanta Constitution Journal, KFC considered tearing down the bird structure in 1993 after high winds damaged it, but people protested.
Today, the Big Chicken is bigger and better than ever. The restaurant reopened to the public May 11 following a $2.2 million renovation. To celebrate the reopening beyond the borders of small town Georgia, KFC franchisee owner and VP of Marketing for KBP Foods Anthony Gianino, asked Wieden + Kennedy to produce a short film to commemorate the event.
“It’s every child’s dream to one day grow up and create a film based on an enormous metal corporate mascot,” says creative director Jason Kreher, a Snellville native. “Today, I am that child. The child who grew up.”
The creative team from Wieden+Kennedy Portland, KFC’s creative agency, is from the Atlanta-area, and Georgia’s own animation and design studio, Awesome Inc, was tapped to bring this to life.
By the way, on New Year’s Eve, Marietta doesn’t drop a disco ball, they drop a Big Chicken,” said Gianino. “And, now, there’s Big Chicken Small Movie—a sweet celebration of a Georgia town and a giant steel chicken.”
