Subaru XV turns into playground for tiny extreme-sport enthusiasts

Co-created by ADK Arts and Cutting Edge, the 45-second spot, titled “Free Field”, is part of a wider campaign that launched in Japan in September last year. it is airing until July or August, according to Cutting Edge. The campaign is also supported by print, online and OOH.

“The entire commercial was created as a 3D pre-vis, as everything had to be millimetre perfect in order for the shoot to happen smoothly and camera moves to be accurate,” said Junichi Tanaka, ADK creative director.

“The script called for a dramatic visual journey around the XV, which meant extreme camera moves and full 360 sweeps," said Jeff Gaunt, Cutting Edge VFX supervisor and director. "On set, the high speed of the camera moves was also possibly the greatest challenge. Creatively, one of the significant achievements was keeping a photo-real look, given the huge technical requirements.”

Cutting Edge is currently working on a follow-up XV spot, which will be more visual effects oriented and exploring the idea from a fresh angle, according to the post-production house.

CREDITS

Client Subaru
Agency Asatsu-DK
Executive creative director Osamu Saotome
Creative director Junichi Tanaka
Production company Cutting Edge
Production company (Japan) ADK Arts Inc
Producer Richard Hearman
Producer Tomonari Motobu
Production manager Kana Tanitsu
DOP Robert Humphreys
Director / VFX supervisor Jeff Gaunt
Producer (Japan) Junji Matsuo (MJ)
VFX Producer Flavia Riley 
VFX coordinator Jessica Vines
Editor Kerry Farrell
Lead 3D / particle animation Rob Conn
3D animation Matthew Hanger
Matte paint Richard Deavin
Flame composite Antony Haberl
Nuke composite Lars Andersen
Light and render / fluid animation Phil Jackson
Colourist Justin McDonald
Sound engineer Ross Batten
MOCON operator Gerald Thompson
MOCON assistant Daniel Agdag