Cerveza Cristal (lit. Cristal Beer) is a Chilean brand of pilsner beer, introduced in 1977 and sold by Compañía de Cervecerías Unidas (CCU).
Star Wars (later retitled as Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope) is a 1977 American epic space opera film written and directed by George Lucas. Often regarded as one of the greatest and most influential films of all time, Star Wars quickly became a worldwide pop culture phenomenon, launching an industry of tie-in products, including novels, comics, video games, amusement park attractions and merchandise such as toys, games, and clothing.
The Force is with Cristal Beer (Spanish: La Fuerza está con Cerveza Cristal) is a series of television commercials made for Cerveza Cristal (owned by Compañía de las Cervecerías Unidas (CCU)), broadcast in Chile in December 2003 during broadcasts of the original Star Wars trilogy films on Canal 13. The commercials, which were separated from the broadcast of the film by only a black frame, were inserted in such a way that they appeared to be continuations of scenes from the film. For example, in a scene from Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, Obi-Wan Kenobi gets up from his seat to open a chest, which is followed by the commercial where a hand (dressed similar to Obi-Wan’s) opens an ice chest containing bottles of Cristal beer.
Ad Age noted that the campaign, which blurred the line between television content and commercials, probably could not be aired in the United States “without invoking the fury of George Lucas”.
Product placement, also known as embedded marketing, is a marketing technique where references to specific brands or products are incorporated into another work, such as a film or television program, with specific promotional intent. Many argue that product placement is ethically questionable, because it manipulates people against their will.