Extreme sports take a Jackass-inspired detour in this spot for Bubblicious out of J. Walter Thompson, Tokyo. A gen-Xer chews a stick of Bubblicious and blows a big bubble before laying stomach down on his skateboard.
He’s then pushed down a steep incline, gathering speed and heading for a collision with a car that comes into view. The bubble is his quasi airbag protection as he hits the side of the automobile. An extreme sports colleague is in the car and he yells out triumphantly over his buddy’s stunt.
Amazingly the skateboarder survived with nary a scratch as a voiceover extols the virtues of Bubblicious.
JWT’s directorial selection for the assignment as most apropos: Jeff Tremaine of Saville Productions, Beverly Hills, who helmed the highly successful movie and TV series Jackass.
“It was a uniquely fun way to convey the size of bubbles of Bubblicious gum,” said Tremaine. “With the bubbles large enough to simulate an airbag, then why not incorporate that in a fun creative way. I’m delighted the Japanese have a similar love of outrageous stunts as I do.”
Tremaine is no stranger to the ad arena, having directed spots for Nintendo and Glad. He just wrapped the movie sequel Jackass 2.
Tremaine’s support team at Saville included executive producer Michelle Travinski and production supervisor Lynda Pribyl. The DP was Dimitry Elyashkevich.
The JWT creative team consisted of creative director Masahiko Tanaka, copywriter Eiji Honma, art director Masatoshi Iwasaki, and senior producer Yuki Takahashi.
Editor was Los Angeles-based freelancer Seth Caserel. Audio post mixer was Takaaki Ishimura of Vision Universe, Tokyo.
Sound designer/producer was Stevie From of 2 to 4, Tokyo. Composers were Los Angeles-based Joey Peters and Willi Aaron.
Principal actors were Chris Sowers, Preston Acuff and Joseph Roberts.
SUPERLATIVE Signs Director Claudia Abend For Spots and Branded Content
Latin American director/editor and documentary filmmaker Claudia Abend has joined SUPERLATIVE for her first U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content.
Abend's empathetic docu-style POV has garnered several international awards for the documentary films Hit (2008) and The Flower of Life (2018). Her spotmaking credits include such brands as Procter & Gamble, Nestle and Blue Cross/Blue Shield. SUPERLATIVE has already worked with Abend, together producing a new ad campaign for digital agency Tinuiti and The Honest Company, a consumer goods corporation featuring eco-minded products.
“We found Claudia through her poignant documentaries on the festival circuit,” said SUPERLATIVE creative manager Stefan Dezil. “We are excited about her textured narratives, emotional storytelling, and her powerhouse long-form storytelling abilities, currently on her third feature film. As SUPERLATIVE continues to build our brand after premiering our latest films at Sundance and SXSW, Claudia is the kind of multidimensional artist we are excited to partner with on branded content and beyond. Fluent in English and Spanish, her reel shows real prowess with infants, food and skin products, families both young and old. Great visual storytelling and inspirational doc work.”
Abend began her career in her native Uruguay, studying film and editing in college. “My dad would show me films like Citizen Kane,” she said. “I love cinema and became an editor. It was here that I learned all about communicating human emotion.”
From the get-go, Abend hit it big as a documentary director, teaming with Adrianna Loeff on Hit, a movie chronicling pop artists of Uruguayan music. Abend took home a Best Editing... Read More