BRIDGES/E-FREIGHTER CAMPAIGN
Embraer Commercial Aviation - Campaign Identity
Creative Direction · Art Direction · Visual System · Production Direction
Credits:
Creative Direction, Concept & Art Direction — Leandro Dourado
Campaing Identity — Embraer & Gravity
Photo/Video Shoot — Leandro Dourado + GPM + Vitor Machado
Design Development — Gravity
Client / Product — Embraer E-Freighter
First Customer Campaign — Bridges
BRIEFING
The E-Freighter is a new product category for Embraer, converting E-Jets from passenger aircraft into dedicated freighters.
As the program evolved, I became the creative lead supporting the product's visual communication — from documenting the early conversion process to developing content around the aircraft and its evolution.
When the first customer, Bridges, came on board, we needed to establish a campaign identity that could introduce the product while also creating a scalable visual system for future customers.
The system needed to work across multiple formats and channels — from print advertising and social media to digital banners and other campaign assets — while remaining flexible enough to adapt to each customer's story.
FINDING THE VISUAL LANGUAGE
The initial creative exploration had taken the agency in several different visual directions. I stepped in to help bring the project back to a more focused connection with the product and its positioning.
One principle became fundamental: the campaign identity should enhance the aircraft, not compete with it.
I looked back at the visual language developed for the E-Freighter itself, particularly the original livery studies, which featured angular sketch-like lines that suggested movement and the process of drawing or designing the aircraft.
Rather than simply reproducing that language, I wanted to evolve it into something that could communicate technology, transformation and the future of air cargo.
This became the foundation for what the agency named the “Tech Spiral.”
TECH SPIRAL
The visual language transformed the original sketch-like lines into a dynamic light trail.
Inspired by long-exposure photography and light trails, the lines were developed with a subtle neon treatment, maintaining the feeling of a line being drawn while introducing a more technological and contemporary character.
I worked closely with the agency throughout the exploration, refining the shape, weight, intensity and overall treatment of the spiral until it became a more restrained and sophisticated element.
The result was designed to communicate the E-Freighter's key positioning: a modern, technologically advanced aircraft entering a market traditionally associated with older converted aircraft.
IDENTITY SYSTEM
For the Bridges campaign, the Tech Spiral became the central visual element surrounding the aircraft.
Its color system was designed to combine the E-Freighter's signature cyan with the customer's brand color. For Bridges, the cyan transitioned into their orange, creating a visual connection between the product and the customer.
This became one of the system's key rules: the visual language could adapt to each customer's brand while maintaining a recognizable E-Freighter identity.
Inside the spiral, we introduced key facts and value propositions specific to each customer and deal — such as increased range and reduced operating costs.
The campaign template established a consistent structure:
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Customer-specific E-Freighter livery
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Tech Spiral visual element
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Customer-adapted color treatment
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Key customer-specific benefits
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Tailored campaign messaging and persona
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Embraer and customer branding
The same principles could then be adapted for future E-Freighter customers without rebuilding the campaign identity from scratch. The final structure/template ended up as below.
REAL PRODUCT
Instead of relying exclusively on 3D renders, commonly used to showcase aircraft in advertising, I led a dedicated photo and video shoot while the first converted aircraft was available before delivery.
We documented the aircraft extensively, including a staged cargo-loading sequence using empty boxes to recreate the operational environment. I directed the shoot and art direction, creating a library of real product imagery that could be incorporated into the campaign alongside rendered assets.
The resulting photography and video gave the campaign a more tangible connection to the actual aircraft while providing additional content for future communications.
DEVELOPMENT
The campaign was developed in close collaboration with Embraer's international creative agency: Gravity.
I led the creative direction from the Embraer side, providing the initial brief, defining the visual territory, presenting references and continuously refining the agency's explorations.
The process involved multiple rounds of visual studies, particularly around the Tech Spiral's shape, scale, glow, color behavior and relationship with the aircraft.
My role was to ensure that the final system remained visually distinctive, commercially relevant and faithful to the product's positioning, while being flexible enough to scale across customers and formats.