Imagine a world in which a sports team’s name could be taken literally. Such is the scenario put forth in "Lions, Colts & Bears," part of the Gatorade Fierce campaign out of FCB Chicago. In the :30, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning and his human teammates face off Gladiator-style against some beastly opponents: actual lions and bears. Steve Beck directed the ad via Industrial Light+Magic Commercial Productions (ILMCP), San Rafael and Los Angeles, Calif. Beck recently moved over to bicoastal Reactor Films. (SHOOT, 7/27, p. 1).
The spot opens with a close shot of Manning taking a swig of Gatorade Fierce. Droplets of Gatorade’s signature colored sweat dot his face. Then Manning and his teammates take to the dirt field inside a massive coliseum, where they square off against a team of lions—the king-of-the-jungle variety. Two big cats switch positions behind the defensive line, as if adjusting to a Manning-called audible. The quarterback takes the snap from center and drops back to pass. Manning gets away from some feline pressure as his offensive linemen try to keep the lions at bay.
Looking deep towards the end zone, Manning spots an opening and heaves the ball downfield. An ambitious lion lunges at the ball, attempting to intercept the pass. But Manning’s perfectly thrown, tight spiral eludes the beast and nestles into the hands of the wide receiver. Manning raises his helmet in triumph. On the coliseum’s Greco-Roman scoreboard, a stone tablet flips over to reveal the number "6," reflecting the Colt’s game-winning touchdown. But the scoreboard can be fickle, and the tablet reading "Lions" gives way to another labeled "Bears." Manning takes a confident chug of Gatorade before a "here we go again" expression crosses his face. At the far end of the coliseum, a pack of Grizzlies charges onto the field; one of them lets out a challenging growl. The tag: "Is it in you?"
The combo live-action/effects "Lions, Colts & Bears" is a follow-up to the high-profile Beck-directed, ILMCP-produced ad that pitted Toronto Raptors’ star Vince Carter against a prehistoric raptor in a pick-up, one-on-one game of basketball. "Raptor vs. Raptor" was also selected as a SHOOT Top Spot (2/25/00, p. 16).
"Peyton is a signed spokesperson, so we knew we wanted to do a spot with him," said FCB creative director/copywriter Colin Costello. "We looked at different team names and came up with the idea of using lions." Costello and FCB creative director/art director Geoff Edwards developed storyboards, which Beck then embellished. "Steve made them more comprehensive," Edwards explained. "He spent months going over motions, certain things lions can and can’t do. But everything we’d wanted from the start, he was able to achieve. That was magic. We thought the trainer was going to look at us like we were crazy."
Live-action footage was captured inside a hangar at Van Nuys Airport, Van Nuys, Calif. Initially, an outdoor shoot had been planned, but weather concerns brought the production inside, according to ILMCP executive producer Marcie Malooly. The hangar’s floor was covered with dirt, creating a 50-yard field, and blue screens were used to block out the surroundings while black drapery kept the light levels low. The ad’s entire background—including the crowded coliseum—was digitally created.
"From the get-go, we strove to maintain an aspect of realism, so we built everything around what the lions could do," reported Beck. Three different lions were used: one that was adept at wrestling, a second that looked particularly menacing, and a third that specialized in chasing things. The lion trainer was Randy Miller, who served in the same capacity (as well as being a stand-in for Russell Crowe) on Gladiator.
Asked if he phoned Gladiator director Ridley Scott of bicoastal RSA USA and London-based RSA Films to ask for advice, Beck chuckled, "No." But he did place a call to that film’s visual effects supervisor, John Nelson, who helms spots through Rhythm & Hues, Santa Monica. "I knew John, so after a while I did finally give him a call," said Beck. "I was afraid to call until I knew I had a handle on it. We went through it and he said to keep certain things in mind. He was absolutely on target."
Beck, who hadn’t worked with lions before, told SHOOT, "The number one issue is safety." Beyond that, he added, "You just have to be patient, methodical and plan things accordingly. There’s an overall sense that you have to listen to the trainers, because they’re going to try to get the best work out of the animals."
A conceptual challenge originated from the time frame. "The most complicated thing was getting [the story] done in thirty seconds," recalled Malooly. "The scrimmage takes a while, but we just played with the rough cut until everyone was happy. I tried to talk the agency into a sixty, but we didn’t win out on that one."
Not that Malooly is complaining. In spite of her company’s proven track record on "Raptor," she said, "There was a lot of competition [to get this job], which always happens when there’s great creative. We began designing the coliseum in the bid phase in order to close on it. So getting the job was my best moment."
During the 10-week postproduction process, footage of the individual lions was composited to give the effect of several lions in frame, and footage of the human players was layered in. In reality, the players and the cats never came face to face—with the exception of Miller, who in some scenes doubled as a football player.
The coliseum lent an epic grandeur to the battle taking place on the field. Beck said that the scenery includes various "reality-based cues" that authenticate the CG images, such as people in the stands, and shadows. Malooly cited details such as the large decorative horses—a reference to the Colts—along the top of the stadium.
Edwards noted that from the beginning, "the client had quite a bit of trust. If ILM could put a raptor on a court that wasn’t there, they were pretty confident this would work." Even so, he added, "they were enamored with the finished result."
As for the spot’s star, Manning was "a complete gentleman" during the shoot, according to Beck. "He’d just say, ‘Where do you want the ball, boss?’ " Edwards characterized the spot as "a coming of age" for Manning. "We did a spot with him three years ago [‘Under the Cap,’ directed by Rocky Morton of Morton Jankel Zander, Los Angeles, and also featuring Michael Jordon and Mia Hamm], and we made kind of a goof of him," Edwards explained. "Peyton was the foil of that commercial, so it was nice to give him this. He’s proud of it."
