The Colonie brought its full-service approach to editing, visual FX and design to 'Hybrid Learning,' a comedic multi-platform campaign for Toyota, featuring Keegan-Michael Key (‘MADTV,’ ‘Comedy Central,’ ‘Key & Peele’ ) introducing the 2016 RAV4 Hybrid.
Burrell Communications tapped the talents of director Tucker Gates (‘Parks and Recreation,’ ‘The Office,’ ‘House of Cards,) DP Mauro Fiore (Academy Award Winner, ‘Avatar’) and creative editor Bob Ackerman (EMMY Award winner) for the integrated series of broadcast commercials, web spots and video vignettes take an off-back approach to announcing the new model, and dispelling the misconceptions about hybrid vehicles.
The storyline of the campaign is driven by Key’s character, Ravelle Forman, (RAV4, get it?) a wide-eyed, slightly unhinged driving school instructor. The zealous fan of the 2016 Toyota RAV4 Hybrid has come out of retirement on a mission: To educate student drivers about a new generation of high-performance hybrids with sophisticated features that rival those of traditional vehicles - while providing a budget-conscience, environmentally friendly alternative.
The :30 broadcast spot, ‘Why Wouldn’t Ya,’ establishes the premise of the campaign with an outlandish parody of driving school. The wacky yet well-informed instructor proceeds to enlighten his skeptical students – each with a distinct and quirky personality and style that clues viewers as to the features that they most value in a car - and assume that a hybrid won’t provide. Using references to his own beloved Toyota RAV4, a mix of visual aids and a steady stream of oddball metaphors, he presents an arsenal of facts, disproving their notions about hybrids with theatricality and unbridled enthusiasm.
“Keegan-Michael Key is such a natural, spontaneous comedic performer that it was no surprise he delivered an abundance of golden moments to pick from, which made the editing of this campaign a joy,” says Ackerman." During the production, Tucker encouraged Key and the talented supporting cast to improvise and play with material, giving the pieces an uncontrived, from the hip feel.
The campaign includes three :15 spots, (‘Dodge Ball,’ ‘High-Price’ and ‘Teacher,’) featuring Key’s Ravel character that will live on the Toyota Facebook page, as well as a national broadcast TV spot, and a series of web spots, which take advantage of the online medium with longer format vignettes that gave Key time to play out new directions and interactions between his character and the pupils.
Shot on the Cal State campus in LA, and both Bob Ackerman and assistant editor Graham Chapman were on location during the production. They took advantage of the opportunity to begin editing the performances during the shoot while the footage was still fresh in their minds. The final cut, visual effects, and motion design were completed back at The Colonie’s Chicago-based boutique.
While the posting of the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid campaign is editorially driven, it also called for a considerable amount of visual effects. Senior VFX supervisor Tom Dernulc took an organic, natural approach when creating the “projected-look” of the videos that needed to run behind Ravelle.
CREDITS:
CLIENT: Toyota RAV4 Hybrid
CAMPAIGN TITLE: ‘Hybrid Learning’
TALENT: Keegan-Michael Key
BROADCAST SPOT: ‘Why Wouldn’t Ya’ (30 /:15 / :26-:04 /:19-:07-:04)
WEB SPOTS:‘Acceleration,’‘Cost Saving,’‘Hybrid Learning,’ ‘Styling,’‘Maintenance,’
SOCIAL MEDIA VIDEOS:‘Teachers Lounge,’ Dodge Ball,’ ‘High Price’ (:15)
AGENCY: Burrell Communications/Chicago
EVP, Chief Creative Officer: Lewis Williams
Executive Producer – Shirley Portee
Producer: Craig Wagner (freelance) and Carlo Treviso
CD: Lisa McConell
Copywriter: Elyse Simpson, Derrick Harmon
Art Director: Derrick Harmon
Co-Writers: Michael-Keegan Key, Rich Talarico
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Independent Media / Chicago
Director: Tucker Gates
DP: Mauro Fiore (Academy Award Winner)
Producer: Susanne Priessler
EDITORIAL COMPANY: The Colonie / Chicago
Creative Editor: Bob Ackerman
Assistant Editor: Graham Chapman, Ben Pokorny
Finishing: Tom Dernulc
Executive Producer: Mary Caddy
(Equipment used: Avid / After Effects / Flame Premium)
VISUAL FX/ANIMATION/DESIGN CO.: The Colonie/Chicago
VFX Artist: Tom Dernulc
VFX Assistant: Ben Pokorny
COLOR CORRECTION CO.: Nolo Digital/Chicago
Colorist: Michael Matusek
AUDIO + SOUND DESIGN: Particle Audio/Chicago
Lead Sound Designer/Mixer: Katy Mindeman
Assistant Engineer: Jordan Stalling
Executive Producer: Laura Feeney
MUSIC COMPANY: Comma Music/Chicago
Composer: Josh Good
Creative Director: Larry Pecorella
Managing Director/EP: Bonny Dolan
