TLDR
- Polymarket launched its first US political ad campaign on October 14, three weeks before the midterm elections.
- Academy Award winner Kathryn Bigelow directed two of the three ads in the national campaign.
- The third ad was directed by Pantera, a filmmaking trio from Argentina.
- The campaign was produced by Smuggler and focuses on voter issues like grocery and gas prices.
- Adweek described Polymarket as a “controversial” prediction market as scrutiny of the industry grows.
Polymarket, the crypto-based prediction market, has launched its first political ad campaign in the United States. The national campaign debuted on October 14, three weeks before the midterm elections.
The news was first reported by Adweek. It marks the first time Polymarket has run political advertising in the US.
The company brought in Academy Award-winning director Kathryn Bigelow to lead part of the campaign. Bigelow directed two of the three ads.
Bigelow is best known for the films The Hurt Locker and Zero Dark Thirty. She won the Academy Award for Best Director for The Hurt Locker.
Kathryn Bigelow and Pantera Direct the Polymarket Ads
The third ad was directed by Pantera. Pantera is a filmmaking trio from Argentina.
The group is made up of Brian Kazez, Pato Martinez and Francisco Canton. Their spot runs alongside the two ads directed by Bigelow.
The full campaign was produced by Smuggler, a production company. All three spots are part of the same national push.
Polymarket Ads Focus on Gas Prices and Cost of Living
The ads show three fictional scenarios. Each one is tied to issues that voters care about, such as rising grocery and gas prices.
In Bigelow’s first ad, a campaign worker makes a late-night discovery about her congressman. The discovery is described as scandalous, and she becomes a whistleblower.
In another of Bigelow’s ads, a bachelorette party takes a bad turn. The mood changes when the group is faced with the soaring cost of living.
Reports did not give details on the plot of the third ad from Pantera. All three spots are built around everyday voter concerns.
Adweek described Polymarket as a “controversial” prediction market. The campaign launches at a time when scrutiny of the prediction market industry is growing.
Prediction markets let users trade on the outcomes of real-world events, including elections. Polymarket is one of the best-known platforms in this space.
The reports did not include details on how much Polymarket spent on the campaign. They also did not say where the ads will air.
The ads debuted on October 14 and arrive in the final weeks before Election Day on November 3. Reports have not said whether Polymarket plans more political ads tied to the midterm results.
