Venables Bell & Partners followed up its Super Bowl spot for Audi tackling the gender pay gap issue a little over a month ago with the testosterone-fueled “Monster” in support of the Audi S5. Now the agency is back to promote the new Audi Q5 SUV with “The Decision.”
The spot raises the question of what to do in a situation where you must choose between your safety and driving a flashy SUV.
A man is being placed in a witness protection program, given a new identity, home and bank account. But driving a “perfectly inconspicuous SUV” is a step too far for him, so he decides to risk his life by driving a Q5 instead.
That’s…a pretty dumb move, dude. Plus, the guy clearly is using the car’s GPS, making him easily trackable.
As an audience are we supposed to identify with the guy’s need to show off or is it just supposed to show how addictive it is to drive the Q5?
At any rate, it’s a pretty roundabout way to promote the powerful SUV, which a press release describes as a “progressive vehicle that literally leaves the competition in the dust – with a 2.0-liter TFSI engine that can propel you from 0 to 60 mph in just 5.9 seconds.”
That all sounds pretty impressive, so why isn’t that a more clear selling point in the ad?
“The Decision” makes its broadcast debut April 1 during coverage of the NCAA Finals.
Credits:
AGENCY: Venables Bell & Partners
FOUNDER, CHAIRMAN: Paul Venables
EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Will McGinness
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Justin Moore
SENIOR ART DIRECTOR: Rich North
COPYWRITER: Rus Chao
DIRECTOR OF INTEGRATED PRODUCTION: Craig Allen
SENIOR PRODUCER: Brian Stanley
HEAD OF BRAND MANAGEMENT: David Corns
GROUP BRAND DIRECTOR: Chris Bergen
BRAND SUPERVISOR: Justin Wang
BRAND MANAGER: Abu Ngauja
BRAND MANAGER: Hope Stadulis
GROUP STRATEGY DIRECTOR: Tonia Lowe
DIRECTOR OF BUSINESS AFFAIRS: Quynh-An Phan
PROJECT MANAGER: Leah Murphy
PRODUCTION COMPANY: MJZ
DIRECTOR: Dante Ariola
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Eriks Krumins
PRESIDENT: David Zander
HEAD OF PRODUCTION: Janet Nowosad
PRODUCER: Natalie Hill
EDITING COMPANY: Final Cut
EDITOR: Rick Russell
ASSISTANT EDITOR: Dillon Stoneburner
EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Suzy Ramirez, Eric McCasline
PRODUCER: Barbara Healy
MUSIC COMPANY: Human
MUSIC COMPOSER: Matthew O’Malley
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Craig DeLeon
PRODUCER: Kamela Anderson
SOUND DESIGN: Therapy Studios
SOUND DESIGNER: Eddie Kim
ASSISTANT SOUND DESIGNER: Dillon Cahill
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Allegra Bartlett
FINAL MIX: LIME Studios
MIX: Loren Silber
ASSISTANT MIXER: Lisa Mermelstein
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Susie Boyajan
ASSOCIATE PRODUCER: Kayla Phungglan
VFX STUDIO: Electric Theatre Collective
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Adam Watson
VFX SUPERVISORS: Adam Watson, Thomas H Smith III
2D ARTISTS: Thomas H Smith III, Brendan Smith, Krystal Chinn, Nick Hiegel, Fefo De Souza
2D ASSIST: Gretchen Capatan, James Aguilar
CG ARTIST: Corinne DeOrsay
AFX: Ken Pelletier
EP: Kate Hitchings
VFX PRODUCER: Catherine Yi
COLOR SERVICES: Company 3
COLORIST: Stefan Sonnenfeld
SENIOR PRODUCER: Katie Andrews
MOTION GRAPHICS: VB&P Lumberyard