Discarded plastic bottles pick themselves up, straighten themselves out and go on an epic journey in a new spot from Ikea East Asia, promoting one of its products, a curtain made from recycled plastic. 

The film, by Wieden + Kennedy Shanghai, sees the crumpled bottles straighten themselves out and start moving together, herd-like, in a sequence that recalls Sony Bravia's famous bouncing balls spot from 2005. However, color isn't the theme here, but sustainability; the bottles take off in a bird-like flock and end up flying into an apartment where they become products include the Gunrid, an "air purifying curtain" made from recycled plastic bottles.

The film comes full circle when we see a boy help his dad recycle a plastic bottle at home, followed by the tagline “Good for me, good for the planet.”

"Sustainability isn’t a prevalent topic in Asia, so it was important for us to create a film that people could connect to emotionally,” says W+K Creative Director Dennis Kung. “We used a lot of personification techniques from sound design, to human-like movements to bring the bottles to life. This helped people connect to the inanimate objects, become emotionally involved in their journey and ultimately care more about sustainability.”

The film, which will air across China, Japan, and South Korea, is part of Ikea's new global focus on sustainability and affordability. The Gunrid curtain is one of a range of a sustainability-focused products at Ikea; others featuring in the film include the Angslilja renewable cotton quilt set and the Hallbar recycling bin.