While the ultimate goal had been to make it to the end of Doritos’ Crash the Super Bowl competition, it wasn’t something expected, said Peter Carstairs, TV commercial director and one of three finalists of 2016’s competition.
“We just wanted to make a funny ad,” he told B&T.
Carstairs’ commercial was announced as a finalist yesterday with his commercial Ultrasound. The thirty-second spot depicts a man crunching down on Doritos during his wife’s ultrasound.
Carstairs said he and the team wanted to give a humourous take on the dynamic between a man and a woman during an ultrasound, where he said the stereotype is seeing the woman enthralled, but the dad is off watching the cricket or eating a hot dog.
And his fun fact for the ad: the ultrasound of the baby used is a real one from his own son, although obviously animated slightly when the baby starts reaching for the Doritos. Check it out below.
When Carstairs was told two weeks ago the commercial had made the finals, he said he hadn’t realised first it was just between three.
“I thought there’d be 10 or 20 or something like that,” he said. “But then they whittled it down to three. I must admit, I wasn’t holding my breath in getting to the final three.
“So totally thrilled!”
Having to keep the secret he’d been shortlisted as one of the finalists though had Carstairs trying not to burst with excitement.
“The hardest thing has been trying to contain it,” he said, “because it’s so ridiculously good. All I told was my wife and my producer, that’s it!”
It’s all in public domain now though, with people able to vote for the ad they want to win on the site.
Carstairs is now fighting for glory with two other commercials from the States.
And he reckons the Doritios Dog one is going to be the toughest to beat.
“I think the dog one is the one to beat, that’s going to be our stiffest competition, but you just never know,” he said.
“Ours is a bit edgier than the other two, but that doesn’t always work for the Americans.” He references Thomas Noaks’ finger cleaner ad from two years ago which, although very funny, was also rather out-there.
Some comments already on social media, said Carstairs, say the Ultrasound ad is a bit gross and confronting, “I thought it was so funny,” he said.
“I never really thought too much about how confronting it might be, but that’s going to be an issue I reckon. The Americans may not go for it because it is a little edgy.
“But I just don’t know.”
Credits for the team behind the ad:
Director: Peter Carstairs
Producer: Helene Nicol
Writers: Heath Collins and Liam Jenkins
Cinematographer: Earle Dresner
Production Designer: Ben Bangay
Editor: Billy Brown
Animation Producer: Steven Kerswell
Sound: Sam Hopgood
