fantastic PSA

PSA’s seem to have an unspoken right to be as graphic as they want to be for the sake of people’s safety. The result is usually really interesting and artistic pieces. I really like these two(the first two links on the page), by Duckling for a number of reasons, but mainly because the VFX in them is just amazing. I’m still not really sure how they would accomplish something like this. Here are some stills of the production of the second piece which make sense, but I’m still amazed by the first. If you notice, you see the lady’s skin on her face flapping from the force of the impact. I am so curious how that was done. Maybe they actually crashed the car? Anyone know? It’s an awesome result. The details are amazing. Like the look on the ladies face right before she crashes, the little bit of spit that is exiting the dudes mouth when he hits the kid on the bike, or the bits of glass cutting the skin. It’s all very believable. The ‘play it in reverse’ scheme is also really intriguing in this respect. Just makes you want to frame it through in reverse to see the action play out in forward time. Nice music too… Alison Krauss for those who don’t know.

But anyway you look at it, really intriguing and impressive spots. Especially since all they are for is telling people to not speed.

10 Comments

Paul Ducco

Yeah awesome work. also love their clip for Human by Carpark North. Same bizzare ‘skin flap’ I think it’s done with a high force fan. Really amazing stuff. I saw the ‘Human’ clip some time ago and fell in lov ewith its style, grace and presumed story. thanks for reminding me.

:)

Essence

Not very original. GM’s “What If” ad did it better years ago, and Coldplays’s The Scientist took it to a whole new level ( https://youtube.com/watch?v=EcKQneIxOJI ). One thing that I found disturbing is the way the director seemed to be revelling in the goriness of this violence, almost celebrating it on-screen. Freud would have a field day with this.

Tread

ah yeah, a fan… didn’t think of that. That’s probably how they did it. Thanks for the insight Paul.

M.joshua

Yeah, its actually usually much more than just a fan, its more like a high-compression air hose that releases pretty unexpectedly. They did something similar when the narrative character in Fight Club shot himself in the face at the end of the movie to make it look like the force of the gunblast reverberated through his cheeks.

My dad used to have a similar device at his work when he worked on vending machine repairs.

elpatron

Actually the Art Director of this spot is a friend of mine. His name is Smike. They planted 1 gram of plastic explosives on the windshield to make it shatter. Shot the boy afterwards and composited it. They also used “sugarglass” like the good old western bottles. The carcrash is real. They ramed a car with a stuntman in it going 70 km/t into a car they chopped in half to get the best effect. Now Smike is really more of an artist. The whole idea came from an artproject that would show carcrashes synched up with the sound of oldschool pornflicks – all in reverse.

Thank god for inspiration!

Chill!

Paul Ducco

[quote]#Essence says:
August 25th, 2006 at 11:23 am
One thing that I found disturbing is the way the director seemed to be revelling in the goriness of this violence, almost celebrating it on-screen.[/quote]

Interesting … I’d say that’s more up to the viewer than the director ;)

Paul Ducco

by the way … if anyone is going to use a compressor/compressed air to achieve the effect. PLEASE be careful, air at such high compression can be VERY dangerous, particularly on skin.

barryagilbert

I first watched this on a computer without speakers and was completely shocked – I thought it was a powerfully violent and arresting bit and I didn’t understand what the person commenting about revelling in the violence was talking about because it was so blunt and to the point. Then I watched it with sound and I think that they made a terrible choice with the music – it does make the whole thing seem rather flip, even though their point was obviously how you can go from easygoing inattentiveness to disaster in teh blink of an eye.

I would recommend watching them, particularly the one with the kid, with the sound off – it’s quite powerful. Either way the technical job is amazing.

alexj

I dunno…I think the music is actually what (helps) make these spots SO effective. Its totally unexpected and such a contrast from the visuals that it grabs your attention and really shows off the brutality of a car wreck. Also shows how life can be so care free… then SHIT happens.

What seems like pretty stale subject matter.. (PSA encouraging people to drive slower) they created something thats hard NOT to watch. Very rare… great work!

tboner

quote Essence says;
“Not very original. GM’s “What Ifâ€Â? ad did it better years ago, and Coldplays’s The Scientist took it to a whole new level.” New level must mean boring and without substance.

Music’s great, visuals are flawless, the message is devastating.

Brilliant work!

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