Most of my work is locked behind NDAs, but I’ve convinced some clients to let me showcase their projects so you can see how my work produces results, not just pretty images.
CASE STUDY: DACIA DUSTER
Read below how my work surpassed Dacia's video campaign goal 4.5x
I was picked to direct an online regional video campaign for Dacia Duster. In pre-production, I encountered problems and seemingly impossible challenges that would put any director to the ultimate test. To put it simply, there was no safety net.
PROJECT GOALS:
Engage users on social media
Present and familiarize the audience with the Dacia brand
Reach as many viewers as possible in the target group
Show that Dacia Duster could be the right car for them
Problem 1 - SCRIPT
I liked the core idea, but the script was written in a way that it could never be shot in a single day, what their budget allowed.
The story had too many scenes that were too complex for an ad, drawn out and didn't efficiently convey the essential story beats and key messages for the audience.
Problem 2 - CASTING
It was a character-driven story, with two protagonists. The brand had a contractual obligation to cast one specific actor so my hands were tied in casting. The problem with the actor was that he was too old for his role.
This could heavily affect the overall perception of the story. Luckily enough, the actor playing the 2nd hero was a great pick.
Problem 3 - LOCATIONS
One day before the shoot, the client changed their mind and wanted to move the shoot to another area. There was no option to postpone the filming so we had no choice, we were going blind to the new area the next day.
Problem 4 - TIME
Because we had to location scout the same day of the shoot, we lost hours of precious time. There were 4 locations in total and no 1stAD! I knew I would need to improvise a lot to make the scenes work.
MY PROCESS
The creative director from the agency allowed me to rewrite the script from scratch. I left the same key messaging and key action points, but I made it simpler and more focused.
On set I tried to be as efficient as possible with the actors. I didn't have time for many takes. I had to think fast, get the best out of the locations quickly. I was communicating clearly to the actors what I wanted and the production manager what shot to do next.
I took photos of the locations we scouted on the shoot day to point to the producer where to go next. I found interesting angles for shooting the car in the main location.
While the cast and crew were on a lunch break, I scouted additional locations with the DOP and the production manager to save time and make a backup plan if some locations won't be accessible within the time limits.
We rushed with precision and after a very long day, we successfully wrapped the shoot. I managed to get all key shots I had planned and skipped the ones that weren’t essential for the story.
RESULTS
The video was aired on Youtube, Facebook, Instagram and IGTV.
The spot impressed users. It achieved the most extensive user interaction compared to other regional campaigns in the past few years. The campaign excluded any prizes that might drive these results.
The campaign reached more than 3 million people in the Adriatic Region
It generated 4.8M impressions and more than 2M video views
The organic reach of the entire campaign was 90% higher than the average
Social Bankers' user engagement score was 44, which surpassed the campaign's goal 4.5 times.
CASE STUDY: FIAT DOBLO
Read below how my work helped sell 100+ Fiat Doblo cars.
I was contacted by Avtotriglav, one of the leading car dealers in the country to create a TVC for Fiat Doblo. They received a fleet of cars they wanted to sell but Fiat HQ didn’t have video materials because the car went out of production.
This is why they needed someone to envision, create and deliver a 20’’TVC. Going to an Agency wasn’t an option because of time and budget limitations.
PROJECT GOALS:
Present Fiat Doblo as a family car, although it has the capabilities of a cargo minivan
Develop a short character-based lifestyle story that would resonate with the target audience
Showcase the car's spacious interior, trunk & the cargo interior cage
Engage viewers to visit showrooms and convert them into buyers
Sell all available cars with the help of the TVC
Challenge 1 - BUDGET
The budget allowed a 1 shoot day with a small crew. The complexity of the shoot depended on my creative concept. The benefit was I had full creative freedom. For a character-based story, the casting was crucial, however, we couldn’t afford experienced talent from a casting agency.
Challenge 2 - SHORT VIDEO DURATION
I had about 15sec in total to tell the story and deliver all key information to the viewer. The storyline needed to be simple and concise.
Challenge 3 - TIME
It was February, so we only had around 8 hours of sunlight. We couldn’t afford many lights so we needed to get the most out of the day by shaping the natural light.
Challenge 4 - DEADLINE
The turnaround of the project was one month from beginning to delivery, which is not a lot. I had to develop a concept fast, but I needed to be realistic, write something simple and pitch it asap. So I did.
MY PROCESS
I first researched car commercials from other brands in the same car segment. The families featured in these commercials usually had small kids. I decided to deviate from that and feature teenagers in the back seats instead.
I wanted the spot to be visually appealing and charming, but also grounded in reality. The car is durable, affordable and handy, but it is by no means luxurious. I wanted to reflect Doblo’s humbleness in the video. I used the ‘‘less is more’’ approach. I put the storyline in a single location with a relatable family situation.
I wanted to portray cool, approachable parents that our target audience will connect with.
I came up with a simple idea: We follow our family packing for a road trip on their driveway. No driving shots, just the interaction between the characters, our hero Doblo, and simultaneously visually showcase the car's targeted features.
The client loved my pitch. I just changed a few minor details and the script was locked. I also presented my shortlist of candidates for the roles and convinced the client to add more funds so we can get the right talent from the casting agency I was in contact with. After three rounds the cast was locked. In preproduction, I assembled a small but skilled film crew along with a producer that coordinated everything.
The shoot was planned in detail. The most complex shot was where we see three daughters - identical triplets in the car. We had to shoot the scene in 4 plates because we only had one actress for that. We would combine everything into a single seamless shot later in VFX. We had to change the actress’ appearance 3 times for the shot which was most time-consuming.
The professional cast paid off, I managed to get the performances in just a few takes. The shoot went smoothly and by 4pm we wrapped it. I edited the spot, composited three daughters inside Nuke.
RESULTS
The video was aired on TV and social in two regions.
Soon after the video was aired, the client noticed a big increase in Doblo customer visits in their showrooms. With the help of the video Avtotriglav successfully sold all vehicles.
