No creatures on earth travel quite like birds do. They soar the skies, then land in new places. They see the world from a different perspective, one to which all real travelers aspire.
Airbnb’s Home to You celebrates that passion for travel and the kind of hospitality that makes people feel at home anywhere. The short film transforms real Airbnb listings into elaborate birdhouses inspired by destinations around the world.
Airbnb’s ‘Home to You’ Takes Flight
The Airbnb Home to You film comes from director Alma Har’el, who was born and raised in Israel. Har’el is a music video and film director best known for her documentary Bombay Beach.
Bombay Beach took the top documentary prize at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival. It also received a nomination for the 2011 Independent Spirit “Truer Than Fiction” Award.
Har’el has also directed music videos for artists including Sigur Rós, The Rolling Stones and Nikka Costa. Her work gives Airbnb’s unusual collection of miniature homes a fittingly cinematic treatment.
50 Homes Become Birdhouses
The project recreates dozens of Airbnb properties as birdhouses. In fact, the campaign brought together artists and craftspeople to build 50 miniature homes inspired by actual Airbnb listings.
The finished houses become part of a larger story about travelers finding a place to land. It’s a simple metaphor, but an effective one: birds travel the world and still need somewhere to call home.
Airbnb launched in 2008 and is based in San Francisco. By the time of the campaign, the company connected travelers with accommodations in more than 33,000 cities across 192 countries.
The Artists Behind ‘Home to You’
The project brought together a team of artists with some wonderfully specific specialties. Joshua Stricklin served as head artist, while Grace Alie worked as colorist. Brooke Ashe created miniature props, and Paul Wendling brought his expertise in miniatures.
Mike Bowen served as the birdhouse specialist. Singer and songwriter Zach Shields contributed music, while ornithologist Carolyn Atherton brought some actual bird expertise to the proceedings.
The result is part advertisement, part short film and part tiny architectural experiment. Most importantly, it manages to sell the idea of travel without losing the sense of wonder that makes people want to travel in the first place.