by Bonnie Friend
You’re known for your innovative films, what did you want to achieve with The Other Side?
I wanted to create something that people would be drawn to on a primal level that showed the duality of Honda and the driver. Some interactive stuff can be too complicated. I loved the ideas of centralising the Type R. I think we achieved more than we aimed to, it has reach, something people can connect to – it’s not over complicated, you are drawn to the ‘R’ on the screen.
What’s the idea behind the story?
We wanted to show the two lives and two stories of the driver – day and night, man and his shadow. He has a different Honda for the two sides of his life. It’s not just a technique for the sake of it, the story reflects the two cars.
Interactive videos are gaining momentum, why do you think they are important?
I just think people like that element of control. People are constantly bombarded with imagery and this gives people a way to react to that or control it, it means you have some power in your viewing. You choose your own adventure; you’re watching an edit, but you make the choice when to move between the two worlds.
What do you think the viewer gains from the interactive experience?
It’s fun and you’re seeing all the action where you ordinarily wouldn’t. My son is four and it was fun watching him when he realised he could press the button – he loved it! It’s primal and elegant in its simplicity – you work out the story. It’s like life, it’s your own adventure and makes for repeat viewing because you miss things first time round.
What is different about the process of creating an interactive video compared to any other video?
There’s the whole technical and digital side of it but it still encompasses the same basic elements of film making. It’s two classic stories, the process is just a bit more technical and requires more planning. My favourite shot is with the bubblegum. If you press the button at the right time you get the tyre blowing on the alternative journey. You have to get your timings right but lining that up takes planning.
What did you most enjoy about making the advert?
It wasn’t one specific moment, the whole thing was good fun. At the end of the day it boils down to filming cool cars that are doing cool things. We had a really good team from Wieden+Kennedy and Honda and everyone was collaborative, which doesn’t always happen in advertising.
What was the most difficult part of creating it?
Making the two stories link up. We’ve got these two narratives running simultaneously but they are not always exactly the same. You start to storyboard it and then realise that the timings are strange, we had to be quite subtle to bring it all together.
What is the strangest thing that has happened to you in your career so far?
My jobs are often strange, in a good way. My film (Catch Me Daddy) opened at Cannes which was strange in a delightful way – strange and surreal!
Why did you want to work with Honda on this?
I drive a Honda and I like Honda as a brand. I like Soichiro Honda, I think he was an interesting character who did creative things. The history of amazing advertising that Honda has with the Power of Dreams concept is great as well. It’s fun with all of that background to then get involved.
