In a fleeting moment of advertising consciousness, a fugitive might view himself as the Energizer Bunny, having to constantly keep "going and going and going" in order to stay one step ahead of the law. But in this spec spot directed by Tim Cronenweth of Hollywood-based production house Event Horizon, the criminal being pursued learns his lesson the hard way. He doesn’t have to be the Energizer Bunny. He just has to have the Energizer Bunny on his side.
"Fugitive" opens on a car that pulls up to a roadside diner. Shots of people in the restaurant staring at the person who walks in are followed by a shot revealing who the newcomer is—a bearded man. Making his way through the dining area, the man heads for the restroom. Once there, he pulls out a portable shaver and goes to work on altering his appearance. But halfway through, his shaver conks out. The problem is that his shaver was powered by batteries other than Eveready Energizers.
Emerging from the men’s room, his face becomes a conversation piece—one side is clean shaven, the other is bearded. On a TV set in the restaurant, a newscast shows a sketch of the man and alerts the public that he is dangerous. The newscaster says that the fugitive might be wearing a beard, or could have shaven it off by now to conceal his identity. The composite drawing shows the man’s face: half shaven, half bearded. The composite is the spitting image of the fugitive, in the aftermath of his "grooming interruptus."
A law enforcement officer walks into the restaurant and smiles upon seeing the man, who realizes that he’s been caught dead to rights. Adding insult to injury, the ubiquitous pink Energizer Bunny appears, beating his drum as it keeps "going and going" along a restaurant countertop.
The spec piece was based on a concept from a team at TBWA/Chiat/Day, Los Angeles, the long-standing agency for Eveready Energizer batteries. Chris Schifando was the copywriter; the art director was Bernie O’Dowd; and the agency producer was Karen Scott.
Erwin Kramer produced for Event Horizon. The spot was shot by DP Jeff Cronenweth. Production designer was John Spearson.
"Fugitive" was edited by Adam Parker at Jigsaw, Santa Monica. Paul Song of The Finish Line, Santa Monica, served as visual effects artist and online editor. Colorist was Mike Pethel of Company 3, Santa Monica.
Composer/sound designer/audio mixer was Tom Page at Decibel Architects, Los Angeles. Assisting him in the mix was freelance audio engineer Ted Blaisdell. Renee Page served as executive producer for Decibel Architects.
