REVERSE and Johan Stahl Ignite Curiosity With Lexus Film
Bicoastal production company REVERSE teamed up with agency Team One to create a series of Lexus spots for an integrated campaign called “Our Greatest Curiosity.” Directed by Johan Stahl, the spots celebrate human curiosity by posing fascinating questions about how we experience the world. The campaign will extend into 2020 and spans TV, streaming video, digital, social, alternative OOH (airports, gyms, elevators, cinemas), print, and audio.
“Our Greatest Curiosity” breaks the status quo as car advertising goes. Instead of copious car shots, Team One committed to capturing humanly relatable imagery to keep the focus on the viewer as the VO says, “We’re curious about you.
The 60-second anthem spot visually underscores the campaign theme of curiosity. On land, underwater, and into space, we see a series of vignettes that capture the riveting, majestic, and even intimate moments of the human odyssey.The spot will air on cable, primetime and late-night programming, with media-buys planned for major TV events, such as the Oscars, Golden Globes, and the World Series. Additionally, they will air during broadcasts of NHL, NFL, NCAA Football, and English Premier League matches.
You can check out the film below:
Stahl also directed a series of 15-second teaser spots as part of an interactive component of the campaign online. The teasers introduce provocative questions that lead to long-form videos where the curious can learn more about Lexus.
“These spots required a visual language that would go beyond just looking cinematic,” says Stahl. “They had to put a premium on the human experience itself. So my focus was to find authentic moments that felt experiential, sensory-driven, and humanly relatable.”
“Our Greatest Curiosity” marks REVERSE’s third collaboration with Team One on the heels of a recent campaign for Sparklight.
Rather than working from a traditional script, REVERSE embarked on the project with a list of key moments to shoot. Stahl and his team travelled to Spain for the ambitious production, filming at several locations, including the Dam at Llosa del Cavall and the Redwoods of Espinelves – both in Catalonia. They also captured impressive scenic backgrounds in and around Barcelona, including the caves of Montserrat, a 12th century Spanish farmhouse, and Museum Blau, a natural history museum. In addition, REVERSE helmed several studio shoots, including recreations of The International Space Station, a full-on Chinese food market, and an underwater exploration scene via a Bathyscaphe – shot “dry for wet,” creating a water environment through lighting and camera tricks that were enhanced with VFX.
“This production required a lot of energy, stamina, and determination to capture everything we envisioned for the campaign,” says Stahl. “I loved every second of it – and that’s a testament to Team One, which gave me a lot of creative freedom to bring ideas and interpretations of the boards to help make this campaign click on all cylinders.”
“Johan is exceptionally skilled at directing visually-driven narratives and capturing authentic human performances, so this job was right in his wheelhouse,” says Thibaut Estellon, Founder/EP at REVERSE. “It was also a perfect fit for REVERSE as a company, where we take a lot of pride in our ability to not only execute high-end productions, but also develop directors and create opportunities for them with leading agencies and brands like Lexus that truly embrace creative that’s daring and unexpected.”
“The collaboration with Team One was amazing,” concludes Stahl. “They’re a talented and trusting group of people. I would go into the fire with them many more times if needed. And while I’ve always fancied myself a classic car guy, I absolutely fell in love with the LC500. What a great machine.”
CREDITS
CREATIVE AGENCY
Creative Agency: Team One, LA, CA
Agency Chief Creative Officer: Chris Graves
Agency Group Creative Director: Craig Crawford
Agency Art Director: Patrick Dougherty
Agency Copywriter: Jason Brady
Agency Copywriter: Jason Whitehead
Agency Art Director: Ryan Davis
Director of Content Production: Sam Walsh
Agency Producer: Sascha Peuckert
Director of Business Affairs: David Peake
Music Supervisor: Neil Cleary
Management Supervisor, Product Insights: Joe Rigonan
Product Insights Manager: Vincent Scott
Program Manager: Jamie Lau
Account Director: Ben Allison
Account Supervisor: Monica Abbracciamento
PRODUCTION
Production Company: REVERSE / New York City, NY & Los Angeles, CA
Director: Johan Stahl
Director of Photography: Werner Maritz
Executive Producer: Thibaut Estellon
Producer: Larry Gold
Production Service Company: Goodgate, Barcelona Spain
Location: Barcelona, Spain
EDITING
Edit Company: Cut n Run, LA
Editor: Steve Gandolfi
Assistant Editor: Moss Eletreby
Managing Director: Michelle Eskin
Executive Producer: Amburr Farls
Head Of Production: Annabelle Dunbar-Whittaker
Senior Producer: Jared Thomas
Edit Company: TOM, LA
Editor: Brendan Carney
Editor: Sergio Maggi
Motion Graphics: Robert Johnston
Post Producer: Veronica Santana
Editor, Director of Post Production & VFX, Executive Producer: Bryan Cook
EP Post Production: Gina Grosso
VFX
VFX Company: MPC, LA
Creative Director: Rob Hodgson
VFX Supervisor: Rob Ufer
Executive VFX Producer: Karen Anderson
Senior VFX Producer: Bomyee Hwang
On-set VFX Supervisor: Naomi Anderlini
Senior Flame Artist: Alex Kolasinski, Sam Shiftlett
Flame Artists: Kathleen Kirkman, Sean Anderson
Nuke Artists: Luis Artigas, Joshua Pena
BGLR Line Producer: Jagadish Radhakrishna
Cleanup Lead: Sugumar S
Cleanup Artists: Prasanth Palaparthi, Abdullabeeb Kondachan, Akhil K.P.
Roto Lead: Mahendra Reddy
Roto Artist: Ekanathan Kuppan
COLOUR
Color Company: MPC, LA
Senior Colorist: Mark Gethin
Color Executive Producer: Meghan Lang
Color Producer: Rebecca Boorsma
Associate Color Producer: Phoebe Torsilieri
Color Assist: Nate Seymour
MIX
Mix Company: Margarita Mix, LA
Mixer: Bruce Bueckert
Assistants: Mike Murzyn, Sean Melia & Brian Frank
Executive Producer: Whitney Morris
SFX
SFX Company: Squeak E Clean Studios
Sound designer: Drew Fischer
Producer: Johanna Cranitch
Executive Producer: Christina Carlo
MUSIC
Music Artist: Kings Kaleidoscope
Category: Automotive , Cars