Mercedes-Benz Vans has rolled out its global “Made to Perform” campaign from agency Preuss Und Preuss and directed by Bernd Faass who’s represented by Park Pictures (UK/US) and Element E (Germany).
This “Made to Perform” film follows a fleet of Mercedes-Benz Vans drivers as they celebrate their vans in pure synchronicity. The piece is a cinematic climb as the drivers build to form a circle of vans to surround a human formation of the Mercedes-Benz logo, for which Faass displays technical excellence adeptly handled with his signature lightness of touch. Faass is an alum of SHOOT’s 2019 New Directors Showcase.
“Made to Perform” was shot in Portugal with service production by Mamma Team and soundtrack by MassiveMusic.
Credits
Client Mercedes-Benz Vans Agency Preuss Und Preuss, Berlin & Stuttgart, Sunna Pilz, producer; Michael Preuss, executive creative director; Oliver Flohrs, creative director; Maximilian Stengl, art director. Production Companies ELEMENT E GmbH (Germany), Park Pictures (UK/US) Bernd Faass, director; Patrick Volm-Dettenbach, exec producer; Stefanie Schuster, producer; Ekkehart Pollack, DP; Jens Spori, DP, 2nd unit; Jana Oberdorffer, production coordinator. Production Services, Portugal Mamma Team Editorial Oliver Don, editor Music MassiveMusic Sound Design Denis Elmaci. VFX Company Lymborg GmbH Matthias Bauerle, lead artist; Thomas Sali, VFX animation. Color Mograde Berlin Benedikt Hugendubel, colorist.
How do you top one of the most viral brand videos ever made? Spoiler alert: you can’t. But when Dollar Shave Club tapped Zack Seckler to direct a new campaign to revive the absurdist humor of its iconic launch video, he knew he had a rare opportunity to create something special.
The brief was simple: introduce the concept of a physical “Club” that people would love to join while showcasing Dollar Shave Club’s products and embracing the weird. From script to direction and post, Seckler--an alum of SHOOT’s 2021 New Directors Showcase--was invited to help sculpt that vision.
The result is this “Welcome to the Club” spot which invites us to join a unique, seemingly exclusive but in reality an accessible and affordable fraternity of Dollar Shave Club members. But you need to know the password or more accurately, the two-word phrase--"shave money."
“The Club” campaign brings the brand back to its humorous roots, reflecting a new chapter after being acquired by Nexus Capital Management from Unilever in late 2023. The work takes Dollar Shave Club back to its disruptive beginnings and what made the brand a viral sensation from its inception in 2011.
