In the insurance company’s latest campaign, NRMA Sleeper depicts a road trip, like any other, except everyone in the car is asleep, even the driver. Yet they arrive unscathed.
According to production company FINCH, which is behind the work, the spot dreams up a world where cars drive themselves to remind us that until they do, we need to drive safely.
It takes place in some timeless, almost forgotten part of Australia where there is an otherworldly feeling of absolute safety.
Directed by Juan Cabral, the film is cinematic, painterly, and human, and was shot around the full moon for ambient light, and just managed to evade the first of the bushfires.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Deh8ONND7N4
Of the production, Juan Cabral happily remembers how “it truly felt like a small crew shooting a short film, everyone waiting for the moon to do it’s thing”.
“Nick and his team were really championing the nuances of long trips,” Cabral said, “embracing the mystery of the night and sleep. The cast was lovely. Including the kangaroo that came to say hi for a little cameo.”
FINCH and MJZ produced the work for Juan Cabral, whose work is described as inventive, humanistic, character-driven and often ventures into magical realism.
He is the writer/director of Cadbury ‘Gorilla’, director of Ikea ‘Beds’ and the creator of the iconic Sony Bravia Trilogy: ‘Balls’, ‘Paint’ and ‘Playdoh’.
Loren Bradley, EP at FINCH said: “It was a pleasure to work with Juan on this project, and the collaborative relationship between client, agency and production executed a beautifully-crafted piece of work.”
Nick Worthington, chief creative officer at Colenso BBDO said: “It’s not often advertisers take the time to tell a proper story these days, but as we all know it’s stories that people love.
“This cautionary tale, while told brilliantly by Juan Cabral, really owes everything to the trust of Brent Smart and the whole team at NRMA. In return, we trust it achieves what was asked—to simply help Aussie families stay safe.”
Credits for the campaign are as follows:
IAG
Chief marketing officer: Brent Smart
Brand marketing director: Sally Kiernan
Creative and innovation lead: Elizabeth Stokes
Creative and innovation specialist: Danielle Picker
Colenso BBDO
Creative chairman: Nick Worthington
Creative director: Dave Brady
Group business director: Lee Lowndes
Business director: Debbie Currie
Head of TV production: Natasha Gill
Head of brand & communications strategy: Lisa Divett
Finch
Producer: Cath Anderson
Executive producer: Loren Bradley
Executive producer: Rob Galluzzo
MJZ
Director: Juan Cabral
DOP: Eric Gautier
President/executive producer: David Zander
Executive producer: Emma Wilcookson
Editorial
Editor: Emiliano Fardaus
Post producer: Julieta Fernandez Castagnino
VFX: Blockhead VFX
Grade: Pete Ritchie
Colour: MPC LA
Colourist: Ricky Gausis
Colour producer: Sasha Pace
Music: Soundtree Music
Composer: Pete Raeburn
Music supervisor: Jay James
Sound design/mix: Wave Studios UK
Sound designer: Parv Thind
Producer: Beth Tomblin
Featured image source: YouTube/NRMA Insurance
