If you're the type of nut-job MacGyver with delusions of heroism who fantasizes about speeding onto a runway to catch an ailing commercial jetliner in the bed of your pickup truck, Nissan suggests considering its Frontier model.
In one new ad, a shaky first-person camera opens on a tense airport scene, where a crowd has gathered around a TV newscast to watch as a jumbo jet with busted wheels attempts an ill-advised crash landing—narrated gravely in the dulcet tones of a local anchor. But at the last possible moment, some unknown, brave, foolish driver races to the rescue, pulling up beneath the nose of the doomed jet and bringing it safely to the ground—presumably saving countless lives. The audience in the airport, meanwhile, dashes from the monitor to the window to watch live as Nissan saves the day.
The concept—that with your Frontier, anything is possible—is sound enough. The execution feels like something of a discordant hybrid, drawing stylistically from viral videos, which aspire to authenticity, while clearly owning up to the fact that it's an ad, with an event that doesn't even try to seem real.
A second spot in the rescue series, meanwhile, features a Frontier pushing a struggling sand buggy to the top of a dune—which seems a more plausible lift. Still, you probably shouldn't try it at home.
CREDITS:
Client: Nissan
Vice President, Marketing Communications: Jon Brancheau
Director, Marketing Communications: Bill Peffer
Senior Manager, Marketing Communications: Phil O'Connor
Senior Planner, Marketing Communications: Tony Weeks
Agency: TBWA\Chiat\Day, Los Angeles
Chief Creative Officer: Rob Schwartz
Creative Director, Americas: Tito Melega
Associate Creative Director: Jason Locey
Associate Creative Director: Nik Piscitello
Account Team Credits - Television
Managing Director: Jon Castle
Account Director: Ben Muldrew
Account Director: Bonnie Schwartz
Management Supervisor: James Aardahl
Management Supervisor: Val Tyll
Account Supervisor: Liz Lefler
Account Executive: Elisa Kupferschmidt
Assistant Account Executive: Kelly Glover
Account Group Assistant: Andi Lichtenfeld
Product Strategy Director: Joel Weeks
Senior Product Strategist: Mark McNaul
Senior Planner: Christine Schnaitter
Account Team Credits – Digital/Social
Account Director, Digital and Social: Craig Werwa
Management Supervisor, Digital and Social: Lisa Togami
Account Supervisor, Digital and Social: Beth DeMarco
Account Executive, Social: Katie Hollenkamp
Assistant Account Executive, Digital: Peter Estermann
Account Group Assistant, Digital: Dana Fors
Business Manager: Nestor Gandia
Film Credits
Executive Director of Integrated Production: Richard O'Neill
Executive Producer: Elaine Hinton
Producer: Katie Lambrecht
Assistant Producer: Katie Johnson
Traffic Coordinator: Malika Jones
Production Company – Harvest Films
Director: Baker Smith
Head of Production: Rob Sexton
Executive Producer: Bonnie Goldfarb
Executive Producer: Scott Howard
Producer: Vincent Oster
Production Supervisor: Tanya Stephens
Assistant Production Supervisor: Melanie Melnyk
Assistant Director: Brad Stevenson
2nd Assistant Director: Patrick Farrell
Director of Photography: Chris Soos
1st AC: Lisa Byall
2nd AC: Carrie Lazar
D.I.T.: Brandon McKenzie
Editorial Company – Venice Beach Editorial
Executive Producer: Hunter Conner
Editor: Rich Shambaugh
Assistant Editor: Eric Rusch
Visual EFX Company – Zoic
Executive Producer: Ian Unterrainer
Producer: Jennie Burnett
Visual EFX Supervisor: Steve Meyer
CG Supervisor: Andy Wilkoff
Special EFX Company – Robot Repair
West Coast Creative Director: Doug Darnell