Josh Miller Shoots Shocking PSA via Sherry Matthews

B-Reel director Josh Miller’s “Restaurant,” a 30-second PSA for ad agency Sherry Matthews Advocacy Marketing and the Texas Department of Transportation, provides a shocking reminder that even a slight buzz can impair your reflexes enough to cause a crash. “Restaurant” features a casual social encounter that ends up in an incredibly violent slow motion crash scene.

 

“This was a great concept for an important cause,” says Miller. “More than anything, it’s a reminder that sometimes all it takes is a single drink to impair your judgement. We each have our own personal threshold, and a casual dinner and drinks with friends can end in disaster. That’s what I wanted to capture in the most simple, visceral and visual compelling way.”

Miller and his team went to some extraordinary lengths to create the effect he calls “beautifully violent.” After shooting the wider shots in an actual Mexican restaurant, Miller built a small set that matched the scene from the restaurant, and then mounted the set on dolly tracks. By making the set movable, the B-Reel team was able to capture the entire crash moment in camera, and at 600 frames per second. 

“We’re very please with the finished spot and the unexpected way it communicates that one or two drinks can impair a driver and lead to disastrous consequences,” said Carol Rawson, PE, TxDOT’s Director of Traffic Operations.

The camera itself was locked to the moving set, so the viewer can’t detect the movement before the moment of impact. So when the crash happens, it feels abrupt and real. Miller captured everything in camera, including the smashing beer glasses and food and drinks flying through the air. As a result, the team was able to avoid CG and heavy post effects, making the spot look as authentic as possible.

Credits

Client: Texas Department of Transportation
 
Agency: Sherry Matthews Advocacy Marketing, Austin
ECD: Charles Webre
Writer/CD: Paul Hicks
AD/CD: Matt Mowat  / Julie Pippin
Producer: Angie Dewees
 
Production Company: B-Reel
Director: Josh Miller
EP: Susan Anderson
Line Producer: David Wolfson
DP: Shane Kelly
 
Editorial: Final Cut/LA
Editor: Sarah Iben
Producer: Jennifer Miller
 
Post Production: The Mill

Executive Producer: Jo Arghiris

Producer: Adam Reeb

Coordinator: Jacqueline Sand

Shoot Supervisor / Flame Lead: Nick Tayler