Case Overview – Project headline and key visual
R17 - TV COMMERCIAL
Oppo
Location Case Study – Budapest as Iconic City Backdrop
In the last few years, Budapest has become one of the most favoured European shooting locations. The Danube dividing the city into two and the bridges arching over it, the Buda Castle District, a World Heritage site, and the Parliament create a stunning panorama that is unique around the world.
Case Media – Filming on a Ship
Case Overview – Campaign Concept and Narrative
While working on our commercial for the Chinese phone brand OPPO, we had to face the challenges of sailing on the Danube and shooting on boats. According to the advert’s concept, the main character (a boy portrayed by Wang Qiang) is taking part in a party on a river cruise boat when he catches sight of a stunning girl (played by Wang Churan) travelling on another boat next to his. He follows her by running to the far end of his boat so that he can take a photo of her in the sunset with his Oppo R17 mobile.
Case Media – Riverboat Scene and City Backdrop
Production Challenge – Picture Vehicle Selection
The first and most important task was to find the perfect boat, which not only had to meet the technical requirements but also had to fit the commercial’s concept. Since Budapest has become an especially popular location for cruising on the Danube, there are countless cruisers to be seen on the river. But despite the wide range of possibilities, finding the ideal boats was not an easy task because next to featuring as a picture vehicle in the film, both had to be able to allow the whole crew to work on board.
Case Media – Onboard Crew and Filming Setup
Production Challenge – Boat Selection and Scouting
When choosing the boats, their appearance was key, since they needed to be roughly the same height and had to have enough space between the bow and stern for the two main characters. The boats’ capacity to accommodate people was also important, since the two boats carried a crew of 80 and nearly 100 extras, next to the technical equipment. In order to find the right boats, Progressive’s Team scouted and photographed nearly all the boats in Budapest. Finally, the boy’s boat was played by Fortuna and the girl’s by the boat Roham. Roham can rightfully be called a real survivor because since being built in 1894, it has partially sunk multiple times and was left in a boat cemetery for 30 years, until being renovated in 2012, making it today one of Budapest’s most beautiful boats. Due to its turn-of-the-century cruiser design, it was the perfect choice for the girl’s boat.
Case Media – Riverboat Scene and On-Water Setup
Shoot Logistics – Safety and Regulations on Water
Shooting on the boats and river water required special preparations and caution. There were multiple key aspects we had to keep in mind, like the river’s water level, the boating and water transportation rules, as well as the mooring regulations and risks. An experienced supervising captain also assisted us by supervising our preparations and providing us with lots of useful information.
Case Media – River and City Atmosphere
Shoot Logistics – Boat Filming Coordination
In the key scene, the main characters catch sight of each other in the sunset. For this, the two boats had to sail past each other very slowly keeping a given distance, which is only possible with highly complicated manoeuvres that can be repeated only a few times. Actions like reversing, turning, holding position were made more challenging by the traffic on the Danube. The two boats met precisely in front of the Parliament, right in the middle of the building, and then distanced from each other, which could only be executed with fast and well-planned manoeuvres. In order for us to be able to use the shooting days the most efficiently, during the preparation days and in the mornings we practised the scenes with the boats’ captains and the crew, who were in constant radio communication with each other.
Case Media – Synchronized Boat Movement Setup
Shoot Logistics – Base Camp for Filming on Water
Next to the right boats, finding a suitable dock was also important, because a dock was needed that could function as our base camp. This meant it had to have a large enough area around it so that our trucks could park right next to the boats and that tents for extras and wardrobe could be built as well. Naturally, this place also had to be located not too far away from the city’s most stunning points. During the shooting days, our dock was used exclusively by us.
Case Media – Docked Boats and Base Camp Setup
Case Highlight – On-Water Production Expertise and Budapest Backdrop
Shooting the Oppo commercial was a great experience for us and it gave us such specialist knowledge of shooting on boats that we hope we will be able to invest in many more productions to come. Budapest has yet again proven that it is one of Europe’s most favoured shooting locations for good reason. This commercial features the city’s most beautiful elements: the Parliament, the panorama of the Danube shore which is part of the World Heritage, and the Buda Castle District which together create an awe-inspiring sight in the film.
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