Stylized, Gothic "Dragster" Is Worlds Away From Usual Product Category Advertising.
CLIENT
Pennzoil Product Company.
PRODUCTION CO.
Passport Films, New York. Nico Beyer, director; Serge Roman, DP; Lise Ostbirk and Kathrin Lausch, executive producers; Edward Grann, line producer; Jan Houllevigue, production designer. Shot on location.
AGENCY
GSD&M, Austin, Texas. Tim Sabo, creative director/art director; Clay Hudson, associate creative director/copywriter; David Hepp, producer.
EDITORIAL
Mad River Post, Santa Monica. Joel Marcus, editor; Alexis Chavez, assistant editor; Matt Grayson, producer.
POST/VISUAL EFFECTS
525 Post Production, Hollywood. Clark Muller, colorist. MacGuff Ligne, Paris. Bruno Chauffard and Francois Launet, colorists/effects artists; Franc Daradat, on-set effects supervisor/effects artist.
AUDIO POST
RavensWork, Venice, Calif. Eric Ryan, mixer.
MUSIC/SOUND DESIGN
CHKW, Santa Monica. Jon Klok and Damian Wagner, composers/sound designers; Chris Garcia, producer.
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BY KATHY DeSALVO
A Pennzoil spot promoting its new formula is distinguished by compelling visuals that depict a futuristic drag race set in a surreal, nightmarish world.
"Dragster" was created by Austin, Texas-based GSD&M and directed by Nico Beyer through Passport Films, New York; Paris-based MacGuff Ligne created the visual effects in this post-intensive ad. In describing the spot, Beyer, speaking to SHOOT from Germany, said, "The film is not about logic. It’s about power and racing. It’s kind of [like] if you had an end-of-the-world racing track and you had the last spectator on earth watching a spectacular race. It’s more like a nightmare of a race, but in a fascinating way."
The spot’s foreboding tone is established with an opening shot of the dragster revving up on a dragstrip (lit down the sides by 460 fluorescent white lights) as fire shoots out from its rear exhaust pipes, highlighting the cloudy night sky. "It knows two speeds–stop and go," the voiceover intones. A series of quick-cuts show the car’s helmeted driver and reveal the neon yellow dragster on a desolate strip in a desert (shot on location in Nevada). Lightning flashes through the sky, portending the dramatic race to come.
"It just beat a series of the toughest stop-and-go driving tests in the world–and it’s brand new," the VO continues. A succession of nightmarish images follow: a shot of the driver’s green eye is visible though his helmet visor, which quick-cuts to one of the images reflected in that visor, a haunted-looking teenager, the lone spectator in the stands, as ominous clouds swirl furiously behind him; cut to the "Christmas tree," the five-tiered starting light–red, red, red, yellow and green–used in drag racing. It pans down the starting light; in one shot, a tangle of roots suddenly sprout from its base.
"Go ahead–guess," taunts the VO, setting up a sequence in which the driver’s expression becomes that of an evil animalistic beast snarling at the camera. A split-second morph causes his helmet to reappear on his head. The starting lights go from red to yellow to green and, horrifically, turn into eyes. Cut to a closeup of the green eye, then to the wheel of the dragster. "You have 4.3 seconds." The car takes off like a shot, leaving in its wake a fiery explosion that fills the entire frame. "Introducing Pennzoil with Pure Base," announces the VO. The spot’s final image is a wide shot of the dragster racing across the desert, setting the Pennzoil logo aflame.
Beyer enlisted his regular storyboard artist to draw a detailed storyboard based on his ideas. He also put together extensive reference boards for GSD&M to convey his notions of color, the elements and locations. "I make photos myself or get them out of National Geographic or the Magnum photobooks," said Beyer, "so [the team] gets a precise idea of which world they’re entering with the film, because, as you see in the spot, it’s quite difficult to describe in a treatment or storyboard."
"Dragster" was filmed over three nights in July. Most of the visual effects were done in-camera and manipulated in post, owing to Beyer’s desire to work as organically as possible. For instance, Beyer used special camera lenses to create the blurred-around-the-edges look of certain shots. The flames–which appear transparently bluish, as initially shot–were enhanced with additional flame footage to give them more vibrance, as were the billowing clouds, created with daytime cloud footage layered over nighttime shots.
The flames presented Beyer’s most difficult challenge. The dragster had to be rigged up to shoot the high-powered flames, which required the skills of a pyrotechnic expert. The other difficulty was getting the angles right to shoot the flames. Beyer explained: "As the flames weren’t as vibrant as they should have been–because the exposure doesn’t reach that far–we had to shoot other flames without motion control in exactly the same angle: If you get it right, you’re lucky, and if not, you have no flames." The director said he doesn’t like motion control because of its inflexibility and because it takes a lot of time and people and "never looks as fluid as you wish."
To help craft his dark vision, Beyer called on several regular collaborators, including editor Joel Marcus, who just joined the Santa Monica office of bicoastal Mad River Post (SHOOT, 7/21, p. 7) following seven years as a freelance editor in London. Marcus, who completed "Dragster" as a freelancer through Mad River, has cut nearly all of Beyer’s jobs over the past four years. "[My challenge] was to give the spot the right tension, that feeling of a build-up and then a kind of release of energy," said Marcus.
The month-long postproduction was turned over to MacGuff Ligne, which often works with Beyer. "They have a very unique style," said Beyer. "They’re one of the only ones that work with computer graphics in an organic way, not in a way that it looks digitally generated."
Edward Grann, the job’s line producer, related that MacGuff Ligne uses its own proprietary software. "One of the amazing things about these guys is that they work in Unix [the operating system that Flame software is based on]. It’s a little more difficult, but, for instance, if you needed an effect that didn’t exist, it allows you to write a program to fix it." This proved the case here, as when they created a software solution that allowed them to create flames in some of the moving dragster shots.
The finishing touch was a musical sound design score supplied by Jon Klok and Damian Wagner of CHKW, Santa Monica. Synthesized tones and Tibetan drums, with different ambient noises and environmental sounds mixed in, were used to create the dark feeling. "They were worried about making it too nightmarish and scary," said Wagner. "We tried to keep it more surreal."
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Wilson Griak Has
A Partnership Q&A
CLIENT
Partnership For A Drug-Free America.
PRODUCTION CO.
Wilson Griak, Minneapolis. Wrye Martin, director; Mike Welckle, DP; Ridge Henderson, executive producer; Lisa Keljik, producer. Shot on location.
AGENCY
Peterson Milla Hooks, Minneapolis. Dave Peterson, creative director/art director; Ed Prentiss, copywriter; Gary Tassone, producer.
EDITORIAL
Fischer Edit, Minneapolis. Brett Astor, editor.
POST
Crash & Sue’s, Minneapolis. Lynn Worley and Sue Bratch, colorists. Northwest Post & Transfer, Minneapolis. Marie Thomas, online editor.
AUDIO POST
Ken Brahmstedt, Minneapolis, mixer.
THE SPOT
In the :30 "Girl/Interview," a young girl sits in an empty classroom and answers questions from an off-camera woman. "What would you do if a stranger talked to you?" The girl answers, "I wouldn’t talk to him because he might be bad." "And what would you tell someone playing with matches?" She answers, "I would tell them not to play with them because they might start a fire." The woman says, "How come you know so much?" "My mommy told me," the girl says. "And what did your mommy tell you about drugs?" The girl looks blank and slightly confused and remains silent as the voiceover states, "Your children are listening. Are you talking?"
Spot broke July 9.
***
Air Force One Phones Lady Foot Locker
CLIENT
Lady Foot Locker.
PRODUCTION CO.
Air Force One, New York. Trez Bayer, director; Kevin Jones, DP; Walter Thomas, executive producer; Janice Doskey, producer; Barbara Gilmore, production manager. Shot on location.
AGENCY
Kirshenbaum Bond & Partners, New York. Karen Dunbar, creative director; Scott McDonald, art director; Abby Jaques, copywriter; Randy Cohen, executive producer; Mary McInerney, producer.
EDITORIAL
Kirshenbaum Bond & Partners. Brad Walter, Avid editor.
POST
Red Car, New York. Jerry Fried, online editor; Ken Rosenberg, assistant editor. Moving Images, New York. Tim Masick, colorist.
AUDIO POST
Red Car. Rob Sayers, engineer/ mixer.
MUSIC/SOUND DESIGN
Elias Associates, bicoastal. Fritz Doddy, composer; Rich Nappi, sound designer.
THE SPOT
A spoof of radio call-in shows, the :30 "College" focuses on a female student who’s just been accepted into two colleges–one in New York and another in Oregon. For help with her dilemma, the student turns to Lady Foot Locker for advice. Ms. Footlocker tells her to visualize playing in a pick-up basketball game in New York, then imagine herself running through the woods of Oregon.
Spot broke Aug. 1.
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J.J. Sedelmaier
For Quilted Northern
CLIENT
James River Corp./Quilted Northern Bathroom Tissue.
PRODUCTION CO.
J.J. Sedelmaier Productions, White Plains, N.Y. J.J. Sedelmaier, director; David Wachtenheim, head animator; Anthony DeLaurentiis, assistant animator; Kathie Hopler and Dave Lovelace, assistant animators/production ink and paint; Bonnie Timmons, designer/artist; Irene Cerdas, production coordinator/production ink and paint; Rob Marianetti, Don McGrath, Jane Taylor, and Mike Wetterhahn, production ink and paint.
AGENCY
DDB Needham New York. Mike Rogers, creative director/copywriter; Ed Zazzera, producer; Charles Picarillo, art director.
POST
The Tape House Editorial Company, New York. John Crowley, colorist; Joe Salleres, online editor.
AUDIO POST
Superdupe Recording, New York. Mitch Raboy, engineer.
MUSIC
Pomposello Productions, New York. Tom Pomposello, composer.
THE SPOT
Grandma Mimi makes her Quilters debut in the :30 "Grandma Mimi." The Quilters matriarch is alarmed to hear that her beloved Quilted Northern Tissue has been changed. The busy Quilted Northern Quilters explain that the Tissue is now 40% more absorbent, to which Grandma reluctantly responds, "Not bad kids, not bad." The spot closes with one seamstress whispering to another, "From Grandma Mimi, that’s a compliment."
Spot broke July 2.
***
Chris Bell Shops For
The NFL On DirecTV
CLIENT
DirecTV.
PRODUCTION CO.
Stiefel & Company, Hollywood. Peter Darley Miller, director; Larry Fong, DP; Frank Stiefel, president; Drew Bracken, producer. Shot on location.
AGENCY
Campbell-Ewald, Los Angeles. Lance Mald, creative director; Steve Williams, copywriter; Vince Murray, art director; Betty Meadows, producer.
EDITORIAL
Lost Planet, Santa Monica. Keith Salmon, editor; Monique Eissing, assistant editor.
POST
The Finish Line, Santa Monica. James Bygrave, online editor. Company 3, Santa Monica. Michael Pethel, colorist.
AUDIO POST
Mike Recording Services. West Los Angeles. Bob Gremore, mixer.
MUSIC
Chris Bell Music & Sound Design, West Los Angeles. Chris Bell, composer; Andrea Crook, executive producer.
THE SPOT
"Shopper" highlights DirecTV’s "Sunday Ticket" programming, which allows viewers unlimited NFL action. The spot humorously treats such football superstars as quarterbacks Brett Favre, Troy Aikman and John Elway, and wide receiver Jerry Rice as pieces of meat, allowing shoppers to choose exactly what game they want to see each week.
Spot broke in August.
***
Generator Industries
Visits Burgerville
CLIENT
Burgerville.
PRODUCTION CO.
Generator Industries, Portland, Ore. Todd Korgan, director; Joe Meade, DP; Allan Lemley, executive producer; Denny Anderson, line producer. Shot on location.
AGENCY
Big Ads, Portland. Joel Thomas, creative director/copywriter; Mark Slotemaker, art director.
EDITORIAL
DownStream, Portland. David Massachi, Avid editor.
POST
DownStream. George Mitchell, online editor; Jim Barrett, Spirit colorist.
AUDIO POST/SOUND DESIGN
DownStream. Drew Canulette, audio sweetening/sound designer.
MUSIC
Shapiro Music, Boston (now SFS, New York). David Shapiro, composer.
THE SPOT
Burgerville’s "Employees and Guest" campaign uses employees and customers to promote Burgerville’s Tillamook cheeseburgers, ice cream milk shakes and Walla Walla onion rings.
Spots broke July 1
