One of the scenes from the Why Would You Bother campaign. Photo: Supplied.
Wollongong has embraced its trademark self-deprecating humour in a cheeky new tourism campaign that opens with a stunning shot of Wollongong North Beach and an apologetic phone call: “Sorry to drag you to Wollongong. I’m still stuck here”.
In true Aussie style, it then boldly poses the question: Why would you bother?
Despite this self roast, locals are loving it.
Officially unveiled on Wednesday (26 November), Destination Wollongong’s new marketing campaign followed a soft launch from 6 November that generated significant community engagement and more than 254,000 views across social media platforms Meta and YouTube.
An Illawarra-made product, from the talent, crew and even the concept, it playfully taps into Wollongong’s usual dry humour and the modest way locals often downplay their own backyard.
Online viewers praised the tongue-in-cheek tone, the comparisons to iconic global destinations, and the celebration of Wollongong’s “quietly spectacular” landscapes.
One commenter wrote: “So many people who live here take it for granted and don’t realise how good they have it. Close to the highlands, gateway to the South Coast and an hour and 20 from Sydney.”
Another added: “Great tongue-in-cheek ad with backdrops that Mykonos would die for.”
One woman joked they should “leave her at home next time”, while another bloke said the ad was missing the real icons: “the palm tree up a light post or the Towradgi Hump”.
Destination Wollongong general manager Jeremy Wilshire said the campaign was inspired by an internationally recognised tourism campaign for Oslo, which asked “Is it even a city?” and hilariously told travellers not to come. It resulted in a strong uplift in those wanting to visit.
“Let’s face it – we don’t have enough budget to be boring,” Jeremy said.
“Our mantra is to be bold, creative and playful, so we’re happy to have a crack at things that are a little edgy, perhaps even polarising. It gets people talking.
“While the response has been overwhelmingly positive, we’re comfortable with some people not liking it.
“I’d be more offended if people accused us of being bland or vanilla.”
Jeremy said the campaign was grounded in research, with studies during the past few decades having shown that Wollongong residents were tough markers of their own backyard.
“We don’t always appreciate what we have, and that is born out through our strong ‘visiting friends and relatives’ market, which is responsible for 36 per cent of our domestic visitation,” he said.
“They’re often blown away when they arrive or return. That’s the genesis of the campaign.”
Illawarra filmmaker Sam Tolhurst from Honest Boys Productions said the brief immediately stood out as something special.
“Destination Wollongong came to us with a brilliant concept based on their research that locals often carry a bit of a cynical disposition about our hometown,” Sam said.
“They’d drawn inspiration from Oslo’s tourism campaign and wanted something that captured that same wit, but with an unmistakably Wollongong and Australian flavour.”
Sam admitted to being captivated by Australian culture and people, with the project now standing as one of his favourites.
He said Destination Wollongong gave the team creative licence, trusting them to build an Illawarra-based crew who understood the tone.
“We wanted to highlight the incredible variety along the coastline and in the city, but we also had to choose places we could realistically reach within our shooting windows — from Bald Hill and the Sea Cliff Bridge through to Sharkies, North Wollongong and the CBD,” he said.
“Honestly, we shot so much that ended up on the cutting-room floor.
“We could have made this commercial anywhere in the Illawarra and it still would have held up.”
He said the tongue-in-cheek tone was driven not just by the script, but by lead actor Lucy Heffernan’s improvised lines.
“Lucy brought so much to it. The video is very dry and very tongue-in-cheek, and that contrast between her delivery and what you’re seeing on screen was always a priority,” he said.
For Sam, the project was also deeply personal.
“I’m incredibly proud to be from Wollongong, and everyone involved in the production has strong ties to the region,” he said.
“Being able to showcase our hometown in such a unique, innovative and playful way was an opportunity we all jumped at.”
The video also stars Mara Jean Quinn and had support from Teel Studios, Holly Trenaman from Screen Illawarra, and an Illawarra crew.
