Brief:

• Elizabeth Arden, the beauty brand acquired by Revlon last year for $419 million, debuted two videos on social media featuring Oscar-winning actress Reese Witherspoon as the “storyteller-in-chief.” The spots tell the story of Elizabeth Arden, a cosmetics pioneer who was a leader in fighting for women’s right to vote and died in 1966, per a statement made available to Mobile Marketer.

• Digital agency Iced Media created the social video campaign which debuted on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. Using dynamic animation and graphic overlays, the videos juxtapose Witherspoon’s narration with Elizabeth Arden’s photo archive to illustrate the brand’s history.

• Iced Media developed the storyteller-in-chief role for Witherspoon to explore the parallels between her career and company founder Elizabeth Arden. Both women are known for their entrepreneurial savvy and championing women and their causes, Adweek reported.

Insight:

The videos on social media are well-timed to tap into interest in strong women and is likely to reach an audience of younger consumers looking for inspiring stories on Facebook, YouTube and Instagram. Elizabeth Arden’s history as a pioneering businesswoman and social activist has gained more attention in the past year with the Broadway premiere of “War Paint,” a musical about the parallel careers of Arden and Helena Rubinstein, who built the modern cosmetics industry.

As a company, Elizabeth Arden wants to build on its rich history with the social media campaign featuring Reese Witherspoon, who has built a successful career in male-dominated industries like entertainment and fashion. The actress financed her own film production company and founded Draper James, a southern-influenced clothing brand with an e-commerce site and stores in Nashville and Dallas.

The campaign debuts at an especially poignant time for women in the workplace amid revelations that some of the entertainment industry’s biggest female stars have suffered years of sexual abuse and harassment. After the New York Times and the New Yorker magazine this month published detailed allegations about media mogul Harvey Weinstein’s sordid behavior, women have banded together to share their stories and voice demands for better treatment. After the reports, Weinstein was fired from the film studio he co-founded, and later resigned from its board of directors. Witherspoon this week revealed that she was once assaulted by a movie director when she was 16 years old, which “wasn’t an isolated incident in my career,” USA Today reported.