Posted on May 1, 2021
On the back of spending six months in the Melbourne COVID-19 lock downs, I was approached to bring to life a dream project. The following is a little about the look development and approach to execute the vision of this project.
“We went for two distinct looks in the piece to contrast the world stuck in lockdown versus the world opening up again. Bold moody blues were used to symbolise the unknown and loneliness of lockdown, and warm gold/orange tones were used to emphasise freedom, a sense of hope and cathartic release associated with post-lockdown”.
Joel Egan DP
The team was assembled based on leading technicians within the commercial auto and luxury auto category. Shot in Melbourne at the end of 2020 with COVID-19 restrictions easing meant multiple locations could be scouted and a COVID safe set could take place.
Developing the look and feel in pre production was critical as this dictated big decisions regarding final locations, time of day, logistics and infrastructure requirements to achieve the overall vision and aesthetic of the spot. Ultimately the final locations locked down gave the team windows of time where large lighting infrastructure could be brought in to pre-light and rehearse whilst waiting for the perfect time of day to shoot.
Says Joel Egan, Filmmaker / DP, “ The pandemic is a dark time for the world and presents a very emotional experience for everyone from all walks of life. The concept of ‘The Road to Recovery’ presented an opportunity to tell a larger story and capture the feeling of lockdown and coming out of it at this point in time. From a narrative point of view, to create an emotive experiential car spot that symbolizes more than the amazing features or driving experience of the car but conveys the bigger personality of the car or the emotional state of both the car and our character was the ultimate goal”.
“We went for two distinct looks in the piece to contrast the world stuck in lockdown versus the world opening up again. Bold moody blues were used to symbolise the unknown and loneliness of lockdown, and warm gold/orange tones were used to emphasise freedom, a sense of hope and cathartic release associated with post-lockdown”.
We worked with two tracking teams including FlyCam Motor Crane Australia and Harpy Film Services who represent Melbourne’s leading technicians in the automotive commercial, TV and feature film industry.
Says Joel Egan, Filmmaker / DP, “Creatively, it was important to represent the subconscious of the car and character racing to freedom. We used a combination of mixed frame rates and shutter speeds to make the car feel like it was traveling faster than it actually was. In post production, we then worked with Sam McCarthy, our editor who used a combination of speed ramping and post production zooms to finesse the feeling and flow we were trying to achieve”.
As an industry and film community in Melbourne severely affected by the long lockdowns of COVID-19, this was a huge opportunity to come together and to support one another, push the boundaries of what can be achieved as a film community and end 2020 on a positive note.
On a personal note, this project could not have been achieved without the commitment and support of all of the talent, partners, crew and everyone involved.
Written By Joel Egan Freelance Cinematographer, Director of Cinematographer
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