Cinema has Made it to TV Commercials???

True mastery ofCcinematography and SFX 

Recently I was searching the web for a very particular topic; how to use Adobe After Effects to freeze time. My inspiration had been the 20-something second scene from the recent comedy film "The Other Guys," featuring Mark Walhberg and Will Ferrel frozen in time causing havoc in a local bar. The shot features incredible special effects work and clever cinematography, the two ingredients I needed for my for my IMM 412 FX class final. However, as my search continued into the nitty gritty of how to accomplish this shot I stumbled upon something else.

Back in 2009 Phillips, an electronics company, released the first cinema sized television. When I say cinema sized, I don't necessarily mean the screen is the size of your house, but rather the aspect ratio is a whopping 21:9 (as compared to HD tv's 16:9. So, to help promote this new product the company created a 139-second (2m19s) continuous tracking shot of a frozen moment after an armored van heist gone wrong. It was directed by Adam Berg, with production contracted to London-based production company Stink Digital. The ad went on to become a huge critical success, winning the advertising industry's most prestigious award: the Grand Prix at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival. It is the second online advertisement to win in the Film category. This was amazing, cinema had made it's way to television and even more surprisingly via a commercial. Not only did this bring about awareness to Phillips as a company, but it also awed viewers with some true mastery of Cinematography and SFX from their couch. 


So, how did they do it? The path taken through the location was roughly 100 meters long, and was broken into seven shots. The sequence was shot on an Arriflex 435 camera, and with the use of three different cranes, one being a motion controlled rig in order to produce the range of movement the camera takes. Two versions of each of the shots were taken, one at 50 frames per second (instead of the usual 24 or 25 fps) to minimize any motion from the extras, and a second "clean" pallet shot with all extras and suspended vehicles removed. This greatly minimized some of the post production rotoscoping and passes. 


Phillips created a true masterpiece and I can only urge companies to follow the lead and create some truly unique content as well. 


Check the Video Out Here!!!