In a world marked—and some might say marred—by the need for instant gratification, Volkswagen showcases the accelerating power of its Golf GTD in a spot that lasts a mere 15 seconds. In even less than that, we see that this speed factor makes for a more svelte physique as both the male driver and passenger appear trim and fit until the Golf comes to a halt.
Absent the centrifugal force generated by the rapid acceleration of the vehicle, the two guys’ guts sag and balloon before our eyes. Aptly titled “Bellies,” this :15 was one of five directed by Curtis Wehrfritz of Untitled Films, Toronto, for agency Red Urban, Toronto. The campaign for Germany shows the hilarious physical consequences of the Golf’s powerful acceleration.
As part of an integrated campaign overseen by DDB Team Blue, the :15s were filmed on location in Toronto over the course of two days. Featuring several locations, a car-mounted camera and plenty of prop gags, the shoot was no small undertaking. But Red Urban and director Wehrfritz were up to the challenge, pulling it off on time and with minimal sanity loss.
Global reach Red Urban has owned the Volkswagen brand in Canada for three-and-a-half years, developing brand strategy and creative work for their market. But the agency is also part of the aforementioned Team Blue, a partnership of Volkswagen agencies from around the world that collaborate on certain projects. Christina Yu, executive creative director of Red Urban Canada, has quickly grown her profile within the global Volkswagen network.
“After several years of working on global creative for Volkswagen, the network has come to appreciate our creative sensibilities and how we capture the Volkswagen brand,” said Steve Carli, president of Red Urban Canada. “Christina has become a real leader on global creative projects.”
Rounding out the campaign of 15s targeting German consumers are:
• “Ice Cream” in which ice cream is blown off its cone by the powerful surge of the Golf GTD, much to the chagrin of a girl passenger left holding an empty cone in the car’s backseat.
• “Pizza” which shows a dad motoring his GTD home quickly to bring fresh hot pizza back to his family. However, when he gets home and opens the box, the pizza pie’s toppings are a gooey, cheesy mess separated from the crust. His wife and kids look quite disappointed—so much for dinner.
• “Delivery” in which a pregnant woman gets into the front passenger seat of the GTD, which speeds off. The car’s thrust also speeds her delivery as we hear a newborn baby crying before the mom even gets to the hospital.
• And “Gum” in which a bubble gum-blowing passenger has his bubble burst by the GTD’s rocket-like acceleration.
Yu headed a Red Urban creative ensemble which also included art director Patrick Shing, copywriter Cooper Evoy and producer Anna Tricinci.
