Can a blind man race his bicycle alone down a curve-filled mountain road? You bet, if he’s being monitored via the instantaneous communication offered by Vodafone’s 5G. In a new spot and this short film directed by Harry Patramanis (represented in the U.S. by CoMPANY Films), the state-of-the-art Vodafone Giga Network 5G helped champion tandem cyclist Christos Sandalakis do what seemed impossible–ride by himself. The work for Vodafone was produced for agency Wunderman Thompson in Athens, Greece.
The idea of an almost blind cyclist (Christos has lost 99% of his eyesight) speeding down a mountain road assisted via a 5G Vodafone connection was a challenge that Patramanis readily accepted. “It was essential to gain Christos’ trust and get him used to my cameras being so close,” said Patramanis. “I spent some time at his home, filming him work through his day; waking up, training indoors, being with his bike and then to the velodrome to work out with his tandem partner, Sotiris.”
Patramanis wanted to capture Christos going down the mountain, helped this time not by his tandem partner, but by the “pilot” in a control booth. “My idea was to capture Christo’s path, in parallel with the control room (where the instructions were given), to experience the thrill and tension on both sides. First we chose a location on the mountain that had almost no signal from any network, setting up our own 5G antenna. The signal path had to be visible in its entirety from the antenna, keeping the signal strong for the entire three miles stretch Christos would cover. We wanted to feature some exciting curves going downhill so Christos could get up some speed. Our goal was for him to feel that same sense of velocity alone that he experiences in a velodrome. That meant going downhill at 50 miles per hour.”
A 5G phone was installed on Christo’s helmet and the phone camera transmitted picture to the control room where the “pilot” watched the monitor, giving real-time instructions. “The 5G network is not only super fast but extremely responsive which was needed for the super quick reactions that Christos had to perform,” said Patramanis. “I shot all the angles using ten cameras plus one drone. The day of the shoot Christos was able to do the route a few times, each time better than the first. He was so thrilled being by himself on the bike, he wanted it to last forever! It was a great joy to accomplish this project.”
CreditsClient Vodafone Agency Wunderman Thompson, Athens, Greece Lazaros Efmorfias, executive creative director; Yiannis Tsaganelias, Dimitris Drakatos, associate creative directors. Production Movielab/Shampoo Films Harry Patramanis, director/DP (handled in the U.S. by CoMPANY Films); Eleni Asvesta, Giorgos Alexandris, producers. Editorial Yannis Chalkiadakis, editor. Color Manthos Sardis, colorist. Music MUSOU
Director Gia Coppola Teams With Mejuri For “A New York Minute”; 1st Episode Takes Us To The Grocery Store
Mejuri, known for turning fine jewelry into an everyday luxury, has partnered with director Gia Coppola (The Last Show Girl, Palo Alto) and The Directors Bureau in Los Angeles, for the first time reimagining the brandโs story as episodic content. In a series of microfilms, co-created by Coppola and premiering following New York Fashion Week, Mejuri eschewed a typical celebrity campaign and cast us as voyeurs to a group of aspiring young women--real people, not actors--at the crossroads of their adult lives against the backdrop of New York City.
Titled โA New York Minute,โ the series features five real-life friends, who include one perfectly imperfect heroine named Emma. The women celebrate ordinary moments and interactions which reveal, sometimes retrospectively, the extraordinary within the mundane. Adjacent to the brandโs own community, the 30-something year old cast includes Laura Love (Emma), Rebecca Ressler, Natalie Vall-Freed and Rozzi Crane. Mejuriโs jewelry makes an appearance as the best supporting actor.
โWhen I met with Gia and The Directors Bureau team, there was instant creative and personal chemistry and a natural alignment on the desire to push and blur the lines between marketing, storytelling, and the construct of what a โcampaignโ could be,โ said Jacob Jordan, chief brand officer, Mejuri. โGia was able to push that idea into something that truly feels new and artful, with a realism and relatability that almost feels jarring. Gia was such a perfect collaborator and partner, someone I had complete trust in to be a catalyst for Mejuriโs values of celebrating women as their truest selves. I canโt wait for us to continue to tell the next chapters of this story.โ
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