Very rarely in television commercials do we get a chance to work on projects that involve large- scale ideas such as burned out neighbourhood streets, a flood-submerged house, or a home engulfed in flames. That sort of thing is generally reserved for feature films.
The scale and expansive measure of this commercial, as well as its intended audience made this a job that took a lot of planning and preparation. From designing sets to sourcing military components (the sandbags from the sandbag wall had to be imported, for example), to environmental concerns (most of commercial was shot on a decommissioned military base that is now a bird sanctuary).
From concept to completion, this was a very challenging job. There was very little time to build and a lot of the details of the sets were left up to myself, and I loved it.
The 90 second theatrical spot is intended to make the viewer feel embedded with the troops in a hostile environment. The viewers are meant to wonder, What war zone are we seeing?. The war zone, as it is revealed, turns out to be the aftermath of various natural disasters.
The scenes ended up looking exactly like my drawings and with the effects and military vehicles rolling and flying around the sets became what they were meant to be:
the backdrop to a disaster.
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