The switch

Japan – All is not what it seems in cosmetics brand Shiseido’s captivating ad.

• High School Girl? plays with gender fluidity 
• Demonstrates the transformative power of Shiseido’s products

A number of brands have used the ‘big reveal’ concept to great effect, such as Lidl’s Lidl Surprises campaign, which saw members of the public become unwitting participants in a pricing experiment. Japanese cosmetics brand Shiseido further highlights the power of surprise in its gender-shifting ad.

The camera pans across a classroom of what appear to be young women and cuts to close-up shots of their faces. Upon reaching the last pupil, the wigs come off and the make-up is removed, revealing the boys beneath the beauty products.

Shiseido isn’t the only brand examining genderless beauty. MAC’s MACnificent Me campaign invites men and women to share their personal definitions of beauty.