Heart-warming, sincere and truly brilliant, the new Dion Wired “The Visitor’
commercial, conceptualised by advertising agency Ireland Davenport and shot
by director Slim of Egg Films, is a welcome breath of fresh air in retail
advertising.
The commercial, which was shot in Johannesburg in May this year, features an
endearing little mother bird as the star of the spot. The little creature, perched
on a windowsill, watches a happy family interacting with one another inside the
house while participating in various household activities. The family’s
interactions are always centred around an appliance: “I think that the client has
really been quite brave but understands that telling an honest, memorable story
is key to creating a brand tone,’ comments Slim.
The ad draws to a close with the family enjoying quality time in front of the
television; the bird brings its family nest to the window so that they too can
enjoy the entertainment.
Slim says that Dion Wired wanted a departure from stereotypical retail
advertising and to use the appliances in the ad to connect families in a more
authentic way. “The ad focuses on the bird as the protagonist to reveal that a
family life can be connected through the interaction of modern technology,’ he
says. “The task was to ensure that the bird’s story of longing and need was
driven by the family being brought together and enjoying life as a unit due to
the products within their home.’
“It was important that the narrative created the emotion needed to connect
with the viewer,’ Slim comments, “This was directed through the music and the
window, which acted as a visual device that separates the bird, heightening its
longing to be a part of the family. Slow purposeful camera movements and soft
composition and lensing all lent themselves to creating the right
atmosphere.’
The commercial was shot on the Red to ensure high-res images for post, as
there was a fair amount of technical wizardry involved in the bird’s performance,
says Slim. “Having looked at every possible angle of executing the bird within
the story and with my experience in dealing with animal performance, the most
realistic way to portray the birds was to use live birds shot in studio with effects
added in post. It was important that the technical side of what we needed to
achieve should not affect the credibility and authenticity of the storytelling,’ he
explains.
“Basically we reshot the entire story twice – once on location with the cast and
again in studio with our bird. Paying careful attention to every detail, from the
lighting to wind effects, was key and we shot references of a dummy bird (a
bathtub rubber ducky) on location for every scene to ensure that the post
composition of the bird plates matched the reality of the setting completely,’
concludes Slim.
Along with Slim, the production team included DOP Willie Nel, producer Nicci Cox,
executive producer Colin Howard, and editor Saki Bergh from Left and post
production by Sinister Studios.
