Pulling A Stunt
Just like the most successful film & television visual effects this series was a healthy combination of both practical and digital effects. It started as a simple enough concept, sending a stunt double into a hostile bank to apply for a loan. Whereas, the client Unison Credit Union offered a much more welcoming approach. The initial campaign was so successful that like every other box office hit, it required a sequel.
This campaign was directed by myself for Mirror 34 Productions in collaboration with Affirm and Element.
These projects were completed in June of 2017 & March of 2018.
Ideation for the first campaign began with wanting to give a stunt double the ol’ Hollywood heave-ho directly out of the front window of a hostile bank. And when it comes to accomplishing such a feat, there’s only one way to do it, practically. What makes a stunt like this even more difficult is that ‘breakaway’ glass that is so commonly used for other stunts cannot be utilized for a pane of glass this size. Meaning, both the stunt and the glass had to be entirely real.
I’d hope it goes without saying that despite all of this we did not actually send a stuntman through the window to break the glass with his head. An expert stunt team was brought in to install a very specific device that actually shatters the glass pane fractions of a second before the stuntman flies through the now broken shards. Which were also very real. You’ll see the actor needed to roll down his sleeves for the opening takes that were filmed later in the day to cover some minor scrapes and cuts. His face was thankfully untouched. A window installation company was on standby to then install a new window so that the Appleton Children’s Museum could open uninterrupted at 9:00AM.
Thankfully, after all the planning and dozens of rehearsals we got it in a single take. And since everything went according to plan, only a minor edit and some masking was required to polish the final shot.
The next year, client and agency returned with another idea to follow up on the original. This time playing up the concept of a ‘big bank’ very literally, where our stunt double is sent on an oversized adventure. This campaign required green screen, compositing, extra large props, precisely matched camera angles and of course some real stunt work.
Beginning with the stunt double’s approach to the bank teller’s desk. We filmed on location in a massive 90,000 sq. ft. warehouse used for agriculture conventions. Although it had the exact, overwhelming feel we were going for, there was nowhere to hide lighting. Compositing was necessary to eliminate all of the fixtures and stands. Then a massive ball chain was hand-crafted to allow the stunt double to ‘climb’ atop the desk.
All the desk background plates were then filmed on location before moving the production to the studio. Once there we precisely matched our camera angles with the previous frames and captured our stunt double’s action on a fully green painted set. Including a gentle landing, a leap off a 4 ft. high box and finally the climatic plunge into a pile of rejected loans.
Along with simple green screen compositing a number of other methods were utilized to help blend the talent into the background plate. Both shadows and reflections were added along with adjusting the light to match her motion through the environment. For the closing fall, oversized rejected loans were actually printed on vinyl but ended up not looking good on camera. So the pile along with its wrinkling and motion was all added in post production.
For me, this is the type of project I live for. All of the extensive pre-planning, the logistics, technical aspects, make-it or break-it takes, all coming together and then fitting perfectly in the edit is the ultimate rush. Still waiting on the call for the third spot in the trilogy. I’m thinking of fire or an explosion. Fingers crossed.
