Directed by Jakob Ström for Energy BBDO, this ad opens on Celia, a 14-year old girl chewing gum and scrolling through her phone. The older sister, Lena, is filming herself learning a dance and tries to ask Celia for a piece of EXTRA® gum but, her gestures go unnoticed. Later, Lena grabs a pen and writes: NEW FRIEND: LENA [ ] CONFIRM [ ] DENY on an EXTRA® wrapper. Celia then looks up at her, smiles and puts down her phone reminding us that sometimes the smallest gestures can be the most refreshing.
Titled “Real Friend Request,” the spot is running across multiple platforms and channels, including television and full episode players such as Hulu, Roku and Amazon Fire TV. The :30 is also available on YouTube.
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Credits
Client Mars Wrigley/Extra Gum Agency Energy BBDO Joss Gross, Pedro Perez, co-chief creative officers; Kenny Blumenschein, executive creative director; Elaine Kalvelage, Cassidy Buzin, associate creative director; John Pratt, head of integrated production; Annie Burger, producer; Dan Kuypers, executive directo rof music; Karolina Barej, music business coordinator. Production Company Drama Svecia (Stockholm) Jakob Ström, director; Mikael Flodeell, producer. Editorial Flare Chicago Casey Cobler, editor; Geoff Cronin, assistant editor; Jenny McDonald, exec producer; Allison Hemingway, associate design producer; Steven Aguilar, sr. audio engineer; Jason Kerman, finish artist. Color Nice Shoes Ron Sudul, colorist; Serena Bove, producer.
Steve Fuller wrote, directed and served as artificial intelligence creative lead on this AI spec film for the Amazon Fire TV Stick.
Fuller took on the spec piece not as a tech demo but rather as a storytelling experiment. He was no stranger to AI going into the project, having deployed it for the past couple of years on treatments and as a means to supercharge his design work. Still, the veteran director--who’s enjoyed a longstanding relationship with Jeff Lewis’ The Directors Network--felt the need to learn and experience more when it came to AI. Thus he initiated a spec piece so he could integrate AI even better into his narrative toolbox.
Spurred on by a desire to discover how his directing instincts could translate into the best utilization of AI resources, Fuller came up with a creative concept for a product he was a user and fan of--the Fire TV Stick. What if a treasure trove of iconic characters and worlds were racing towards a huge Fire TV Stick in the middle of a desert, converging there in order to compete for viewer attention? And the climax of the spot has a household about to make the fateful choice for what they’re going to watch from all these varied options and forms of entertainment.
While via AI he was able to amass major celebrity talent and elements of blockbuster entertainment franchises for the Fire TV Stick adventure, that wasn’t the objective for Fuller who explained, “I was not trying to make a short film and suddenly have it star Brad Pitt or Tom Cruise. Instead I wanted to see if I could use AI to make a really big and epic commercial.” The spec project was designed to open up the opportunity to curate imagery, create video sequences--all the while making choices as a director. “I approached it as I... Read More
