High Five: UAE
Shane Martin is the CEO and founder of Boomtown Productions in Dubai. A director at heart, he's enjoyed helping the regional production industry to grow and is known as a strong supporter and developer of new talent and filmmakers in the region. Boomtown focuses on quality and creativity and has a great reputation for reliability, respected as a key voice in the regional production industry. Here, Shane shares five great ads to come out of UAE, mostly sharing a common four-wheeled theme...
Porsche Taycan - 'Drive 2 Extremes'
Agency: Keko Dubai
Director: Nick Schrunk
There's a great contrast between the hot and cold climates of Dubai and Finland, and the drone work of Johnny FPV really immerses you into the scenes, giving an extra element of excitement as the camera swoops in close to the drifting Porsche. It's a nice way to prove the Porsche performs in all climates.
Chevrolet - 'Fawazir'
Agency: Commonwealth
Production: Boomtown Productions
Director: Ingrid Bawab
Inspired to bring the famous and nostalgic '80s and '90s, the 'Fawazir' Ramadan riddle shows back to life in a new and fresh way. 'Fawazir' was a series of five riddles so told by the multitalented Hamoody, while reimagining the visual aesthetics at the time and introducing a tongue-in-cheek level of humour, too.
Etisalat - 'What Does Togetherness Means to You?'
Production: Big Kahuna
Director: Dr Bowmnan
The UAE is a real mixture of cultures coming from all over the world which has helped create its own kind of identity. Similar kinds of messaging and taglines have been well-used amongst telcos, but I feel this messaging resonates more with the residents of the UAE as we do all come together with a common interest. Working together for the betterment of ourselves.
Toyota - 'Ramadan'
Production: DejaVu
Director: Shahir Zag
Zag is a Dubai based director to be on your radar. Ramadan is a busy time for the region as all brands compete for eyeballs, so to do something different for a traditionally 'safe' brand caught our attention. Instead of just loading items into the back of a car and showcasing the diverse use of their vehicle, Zag had them all reversing too. That's not a common shot and it stood out to me.
BMW - 'Joy at First Sight'
Production: BigFoot Films
Director: Alan Masferrer
This film ticks a lot of key messaging and themes for the region right now. First off is recognising Ramadan and the first sighting of the new moon to welcome the beginning ramadan. Also, there's been a strong space theme lately with the MBRSC's mission to mars. It's also refreshing to use a female lead chasing her dream to be an astronaut and linking that to the moon. It's visually beautiful and a nice mix of CG elements in the dream-like sequence.
