It took an innovative mind to set up a time lapse camera at the turn of the century and keep it running all these years (har-har). The idea behind this spot is simple and elegantly executed. No fancy transformer-style builds or fly-throughs, just a well-mimicked time-lapse with visual effects lurking in the frameworks.
The scenes are packed with subtleties that make it worth watching more than once (like the group pushing their over-heated car into the service station). The resolution of the spot is a nice surprise, as one would expect a timeline of events to keep building upon itself, not regress back to the first frame, which really drives the whole concept home.
Kind of makes you wonder if gas stations will be one of the tall tales we tell our grandkids.
Director: Eric Saarinen
Production company: TWC