By Emily Vines

In a striking Web film about the new premium vodka Skyy90, creatives at Lambesis, Carlsbad, Calif., have successfully merged style and information. Alain Gourrier of Tate USA, Santa Monica, Calif., directed the short, which appears at www.skyy90.com. The two-minute-and-twelve-second branding film manages to marry beautiful imagery with detailed information about the product. Modern Luxury likens the spirit to modern furniture, architecture and technology.

“If we’re going to [promote] the most technologically advanced vodka out there, then we have to come up with something pretty technically advanced and innovative for the Web site,” executive creative director Chad Farmer said. “So, we decided to have the Web site be based on an integrated film.”

Once on the site, the film immediately begins to play. A droplet falls and morphs into a clear gem. The following images are of ultra modern shapes–the stainless steel Walt Disney Concert Hall in downtown Los Angeles, a home with glass walls, an abstract sculpture in a sleek bar.  “What is modern luxury?” a voiceover asks. “It can be defined as better taste through high design.”

The film then segues into the finer points of the vodka, like its ingredients and distillation process. As the story develops, still images from the film appear below the main screen. These provide pathways for the viewer to explore the varied topics in more detail. The first icon-like box is labeled “Art of Modern Luxury,” which leads to data on the “Luxury Locations” and “Luxury Items” featured in the movie.

On why Gourrier, who also edited the film, was the right director for the job, Farmer said, “He was the one who immediately was able to understand all of this complicated technology and distillation process, which we had to clearly communicate, but be able to articulate it within a story — [he] was able to actually keep the poetry at a higher style to [what is] basically an educational film.”

Indeed, it was the aesthetic of the piece that attracted Gourrier to the project. “It was very interesting in the sense that it was extremely stylish,” he said. “Extreme style is a rare feat in advertising.”

Gourrier and Farmer were also able to collaborate well during the edit. “Chad forced the length of the shots, long and lingering, and in a sense it was a vision that I understood,” the director said. “I understand it now even more when I look at the piece on the Internet because it is so relaxing, almost a Zen experience because it’s not cutty, it’s not playing into the current vibe of making things energetic by chopping it up to pieces; it’s supposed to be meaningful.”

The marketing strategy in this initial launch is to target people in the industry, and in phase two target the consumer. Television spots will be cut down from the film. The product will be released this month in limited markets before it goes national.

At Tate USA additional credit goes to executive producer David Tate, who also ended up doing the voiceover, and producer Heidi Soltesz. Hugh Bacher was head of production. Pieter Vermeer was DP.

Bryan Nichols was associate creative director at Lambesis; Toby Farmer, art director; Maurice Pendarvis, copywriter; and Anna Allen, producer.

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