Following up on February’s speed reading test, W+K London continues the trend of cranking out unusual ads for Honda with “Feeling” for the Honda Civic.
The 60-second spot takes a surreal approach, slowing down footage of the vehicle as engineers rearrange the scene to their liking, a nod to how Honda engineers obsess over every detail to create the perfect driving experience. Directed by RSA films’ Johnny Hardstaff, the spot is visually striking, absorbing enough to grab viewers attention and pull them into the scene, ripe with details like blossoming trees in the countryside, a slow-motion butterfly and a (very slowly) galloping horse. When the action returns to full speed at the end of the spot, it feels like a rewarding conclusion to the well-established scene, which fits the “The Power of Dreams” tagline perfectly.
“Feeling” was not exactly an easy ad to bring to life. “It involved a huge amount of planning,” W+K London copywriter Max Batten told Adweek. “All the action was shot in layers, which were combined at [VFX studio] MPC. The frozen elements were created using a combination of slow-motion filming and CGI. The shots had to be incredibly precise, and Johnny did a fantastic job bringing it all together.”
Credits:
Client: Honda Europe
Agency: Wieden & Kennedy London
Creative Director: Scott Dungate
Copywriters: Ben Shaffery, Max Batten
Executive creative directors: Tony Davidson, Kim Papworth, Iain Tait
Agency executive producer: Danielle Stewart
Group account director: Nick Owen
Account director: Alex Budenberg
Account manager: Maria Kofoed
Head of planning: Beth Bentley
Planning director: Martin Beverly
TV producer: Michelle Brough
TV production assistant: Tom Dean
Production company: RSA Films
Director: Johnny Hardstaff
Executive producer: Kai Hsiung
Line producer: Annabel Ridley
Director of photography: Martin Ruhe
Editorial company: Work Post
Editor: Art Jones
VFX company: MPC
VFX supervisors: Adam Crocker, Anthony Bloor
Flame artist: Adam Crocker
VFX producer: Dionne Archibald
Lead 3D: Anthony Bloor
Colorist: Jean¬Clément Soret
Music and sound company: Nate Connolly, Mutant Jukebox
Sound designer: Sam Ashwell
Sound studio: 750mph
Producers: Shervin Shaeri, Mutant Jukebox
Mix company: 750mph
Mixer: Sam Ashwell
Producers: Sam Robinson, Mary-Ann D’Cruz