The Oscars’ Best Picture category may be getting some new entrants—if Mazda has anything to say about it.
In Mazda’s new campaign, “5 Sides of the All-New CX-5,” which debuted during the 2026 Oscars, the car brand created a cinematic universe in honor of the 2026 CX-5.
Through five short films directed by Paul Hunter, shot by Academy Award-winning cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema, and starring Jessamie Waldon Day, the brand showcases different sides of the CX-5 through movie genres, including romance, action, sci-fi, musical, and horror.
The ads were designed to give film fans a cinematic experience outside of the main Oscars broadcast, and a 60-second ad airing during the Academy Awards served as a trailer for the films.
“We had this idea of, ‘Why not do five separate films for the CX-5?’ Because the customer that we’re trying to appeal to not only likes films, but they also lead a multi-dimensional life,” Brad Audet, Mazda’s CMO, said. “These are people who have a lot of things going on in their world, and they have to play different roles. Therefore, the car needs to be a different character.”
Driving the campaign forward
With the CX-5 debuting the same week as the 98th Oscars, Mazda looked to get Disney involved in the process early.
“We’re always thinking about ways where we can leverage and do something unique, and we’ve done this in the past with Disney in different ways,” Audet said. “Rather than waiting until we had an idea baked, we got them involved at the onset.”
According to John Campbell, svp, streaming, entertainment, and multicultural solutions at Disney, the process started with him receiving a late-night text from the creative team behind Mazda’s idea last fall, and things rolled from there.
Among the highlights, the campaign marks Mazda’s debut as an Oscar Silver Sponsor, and the car brand teamed up with both Disney Advertising and AMPAS to align with Disney’s “Oscars Everywhere” strategy.
In addition to the trailer airing in the main show, the fully integrated sponsorship will also extend across TikTok Pulse Premiere, social channels, and a Hulu Takeover, including an ad selector that lets viewers choose which Mazda ad genre they want to see.
Some variations of the short films will debut on Oscar night, with more rolling out until April 1. But the campaign also has a philanthropic element.
As part of the campaign, the brand collaborated with the AMPAS Academy Gold Program, a talent development initiative for the next generation of filmmakers, bringing two Academy Gold alumni on the set of the Mazda commercials.
