Tell us about your role in the creation of this work.
I’m one of the directors, working together on the project with Andy Fogwill. I worked first on a quick and rough version of the commercial, to test the spirit of the tone and then I focused on the direction of the actors.
Give us an overview of the campaign, what is it about?
The campaign has a strong concept based on the popular social media hashtag “FoodPorn”, which is basically beautifully composed pictures of food . The main character’s universe revolves around the concept of that hashtag, constantly feeding his addiction to Devour meals, and his personal life suffers as a result.. From the scripts, the challenge was to find the right balance between, comedy and drama and, of course, making the product look really tasty. We wanted to be edgy and for the spot to have its own tone, not just another wacky Super Bowl commercial; something that could be a funny spot while showcasing a real drama in the life of this couple.
How is this Super Bowl brief different from the usual brief?
As everyone knows, the Super Bowl is also the Super Bowl of commercials. It’s not different in terms of effort and focus than any other commercial that we work on, but you know that literally the whole world will watch it, discuss it, analyze it and compare it to other ads, so there’s a super strong incentive to deliver something memorable.
Can you share your favorite behind-the-scenes moment with us?
The actors were really great, and they had amazing chemistry. One morning, we were shooting just with Cali, the girlfriend, for a scene where she finds her husband’s secret stash; Devour magazines all sticky with cheese. We were recording and from out of nowhere John (the husband) came into the frame, without his shirt, and took the magazine from Cali’s hand, started a sort of improvised argument. It was really hilarious and the actors where so into their roles. It was a pleasure working with them both.
What was the greatest challenge that you and your team faced during development?
As I said before, the challenge was the tone. Creating this dramatic atmosphere instead of having just a couple of jokes, that was our main challenge.
What did you enjoy most about seeing this campaign through? Did you learn anything new from the experience?
Bonding and connecting with the agency was really great and I really enjoyed it. It was a team working in the same direction and the crew was fantastic as well. I learned so much from working on this project, it put me more into the universe of the characters than just the scene or scenes you are shooting - creating a backstory for the characters, their passions, the way they relate - beyond the moment that you are portraying. Of course, it could seem pointless or just a small detail but it’s important information to build a realistic world when you are telling the story in documentary style. You can see a stronger connection in the actors and it’s a great starting point for creating the wardrobe and the production design.
What is your favorite Super Bowl ad of all time?
Wow, this is a very difficult question. But if I have to pick just one, I know it’s a little bit vintage, but I think that Coca Cola’s Mean Joe Greene is perfect on every level. And of course, I love that we in Argentina aired a version with Diego Maradona.