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Hybrid Mysteries: On the Tracks of Almap BBDO's "Dogfish" Commercial for the VW SpaceFox

Originally appeared in Lürzer's International Archive

Computer animation has come a long way since the heyday of "morphing," so memorable in Lowe, London's Braun commercial from 1992 (and so overused in many spots that followed). Over the years, landmark commercials packed full of eye-popping computer-generated SFX included Michel Gondry's 1997 "Smarienberg" spot for Smirnoff, and, of course, Jonathan Glazer's captivating "Surf" commercial for Guinness (which, in fact, now stands as the most awarded spot of all time). To name just a couple of examples from the new millennium, there was Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO's amazing "Dog breath" spot for Wrigley's X-cite (featuring a man "vomiting up" a live dog) from 2003, Guinness's "noitulovE," the 2006 winner of the Grand Prix in Cannes, and TBWA\Paris' Nissan 4x4 spot, also from 2006, which demonstrated just how far "morphing" had evolved in one generation. A new addition to this long tradition of commercials that manage to stop you in your tracks on account of their brilliant use of CGI effects is, no doubt, Almap BBDO's new spot for the Volkswagen SpaceFox. Its star is not so much the car, which is only shown at the end, but - in a kind of visual metaphor for the SpaceFox's versatility as an all-purpose means of transport due to the size of its trunk - an eerie crossbreed between dog and fish. We see it frolicking at the beach with its human owner, jumping through the waves like a dolphin, even getting caught in the nets of some local fishermen. This creature is funny, touching and, some may feel, even slightly disturbing but definitely something that makes the spot worth watching several times over. "Anything you can imagine" is the pay-off yet - some may feel - a slightly tenuous link to the car advertised. Interestingly, there are two different endings to the spot: the official TV version, featuring a final shot of the creature as a regular Jack Russell terrier sticking its head out of the SpaceFox's window, and one where the creature retains its hybrid mystery straight to the end. This version is aimed at a younger, more adventurous audience, it seems, and plays on the internet only. Michael Weinzettl spoke to one of the creative directors, Dulcídio Caldeira, and the two creatives, art director Renato Fernandez and copywriter Gustavo Sarkis, about the commercial that is currently being talked about all over the world.

L.A.: First of all, can you tell us about Volkswagen's position on the Brazilian market?

Dulcídio Caldeira: In terms of volume, there's a very tight competition between Volkswagen and Fiat for market leadership. In terms of image, Volkswagen has won the Top of Mind awards over the last years and has been considered the most-loved brand by the Brazilians.

L.A.: You have had the account for a very long time, is that correct?

Dulcídio Caldeira: We've been handling the account for many years now. The story of the brand in Brazil and Almap's trajectory are intimately connected. As for the industry characteristics, Brazil is mostly a compact car market. Almap helped Volkswagen to establish the brand as one of the dominant players in this segment. More recently, the market became more receptive for larger models. Almap and Volkswagen are working together to make the brand as important as it is in the compact car segment.

L.A.: What are some of the problems Volkswagen is facing today in Brazil?

Dulcídio Caldeira: Just like for the whole industry, the main problem is the crisis. Credit availability has been severely limited, and the industry will therefore be focusing on promotional advertising. For Volkswagen, which is already loved by Brazilian drivers, the challenge is to keep this positive image while responding to the strong need of immediate sales.

L.A.: Can you describe the target audience for the commercial and the car?

Dulcídio Caldeira: The SpaceFox is a car made for young guys. For people who like to travel and have fun outdoors. The commercial had to be funny and easygoing, reflecting this spirit.

L.A.: What was the briefing for the SpaceFox commercial?

Gustavo Sarkis: The briefing was to emphasize the interior space and the trunk size in a way that made the SpaceFox look younger, giving it a little bit of an adventurer look, bringing it closer to radical sports players, surfers in particular.

L.A.: How did you come up with the idea of this fantastic creature, the "dogfish"?

Gustavo Sarkis: First we arrived at the concept, "Whatever you imagine, fits in." From there, we just started thinking of millions of unusual things that could fit inside the SpaceFox and would give it that loose, laidback, surfer spirit. The "dogfish" was one of them, and when it came up, we knew from the beginning this was going to be one of the strongest ideas of crazy things to fit inside the car.

L.A.: Was the "dogfish" an idea that was easy to sell to the client?

Dulcídio Caldeira: The people at Volkswagen are very open-minded. They are always up to bold ideas. They liked the "Whatever you imagine, fits in" concept. I think they saw it as a nice way to say it's a car with plenty of space for your surfboard, your backpack, your inflatable boat and anything else you might think of. So they felt comfortable to go with this surreal idea of a "dogfish" because they knew it was tied up to a very solid, down-to-the-ground concept.

L.A.: Were you initially worried that this might prove to be very difficult to realize? The finished commercial has, after all, turned out to be quite a benchmark in terms of cool computer effects ...

Renato Fernandez: You bet. When the client approved it, we were very happy at first, but then we thought, "Man, now we have to make it happen, and we better make it look good!" We were very picky throughout the whole process, but in the end it proved to be a risk worth taking. Needless to say, the animation and production companies we worked with were the main key to make it all work out fine. Their idea of building the 3D around a real animal really helped it look even more realistic.

L.A.: Who actually did the CGI for this commercial?

Renato Fernandez: It was a director called Franco Bittolo, from Bitt Animation. He did the CGI for the film "Earthquake" for Axe.

L.A.: Why did you choose Rebolucion, a production company based in Buenos Aires, to produce the commercial? Why not a Brazilian company?

Renato Fernandez: We've always admired their work, and when a good opportunity came up, we thought we might talk to them. A Brazilian production company could have also done well. But it wasn't really a matter of nationality - we were just looking for the production company that was the best fit for the job. It was not the first time we worked with foreign production companies. We've already worked with so many others - Traktor, MJZ, @radical.media - but this was the first time we worked with an Argentinian one. It was a great experience and we hope we can work together again in the future. We think it's great to be constantly looking for different ways of seeing things, no matter whether it's in Argentina, Brazil, the UK or the USA.

L.A.: What about the choice of director? Why did you select him?

Gustavo Sarkis: We chose Armando Bo because we thought his work in general has the kind of personality we wanted the spot to have: unpretentious, irreverent, simple. And during the shooting it was good to find out that his own personality also matched his work. He is a great guy. Very relaxed, but when it comes to work, he is totally committed to quality. His contribution was fundamental. He came up with so many different gags that made the spot even funnier, like the "dogfish" caught in the net. He also understood the mood of the idea perfectly and created those really close friendship environment scenes that gave the spot a warmer touch.

L.A.: How long did the shoot and the post-production take?

Gustavo Sarkis: The shooting took two days and was done at Jose Ignacio, a nice little surfers village near Punta Del Este, in Uruguay. We first shot everything with a real dog, and then it took about 40 days of postproduction to build the fish around it. There were three different companies involved in the process: the production company, Rebolucion, the animation company, Bitt Animation, and the animal training company, Vritra.

L.A.: The old Ben E. King classic "Stand By Me" plays throughout the spot. Is it a very popular song in Brazil, one that is easily recognized?

Gustavo Sarkis: Yes, we just thought this spot asked for a punchy soundtrack, a song that would be popular and could also be related to the friendship between the surfer and the "dogfish" - that's why we picked "Stand By Me." On the other hand, however, we wanted it to have a surfer-sound style, so we did a new version of it. We tried hundreds of songs in so many different styles before we got to the one we finally used.

L.A.: Will the "dogfish" be featured in any other media too, like print or the website?

Gustavo Sarkis: The campaign will be featured in other medias, but not always with the "dogfish". We want the concept to have a long-lasting life and the "dogfish" is only one of the ideas that can fit into it.

L.A.: Might there be a sequel in store for the "dogfish?"

Dulcídio Caldeira: We are probably not going to use the "dogfish" in another commercial, but there might be a sequel for the campaign, a new idea based on the concept that anything you can imagine will fit into a SpaceFox.

L.A.: Why did you think it necessary to finish the commercial on a shot of the Jack Russell terrier, instead of the "dogfish" we see prior to it? Was this in response to a request from the client?

Dulcídio Caldeira: Yes, the client wanted this version to be aired on TV, and the complete version, where we have the "dogfish" all the way till the end, to be aired in specific media for young audiences.

L.A.: What are your ideas on commercials versus virals? Do you think virals have different purposes and targets than TV commercials?

Gustavo Sarkis: We believe in the strong idea. If you have something that's really powerful and well done, people will want to share it with their friends and pass it around. No matter if it's a commercial, a viral or a print campaign.

L.A.: For many years now, Brazil has always been one of the top creative forces in print advertising. Over the past two decades, some of the best print campaigns of all time have come from Brazil. Brazilian commercials were always a bit of a poor relation when it came to international recognition (with some notable exceptions, of course!). Would you say that Brazilian commercials are now as good as the print work from your country? Your "dogfish" would be a good case in point...

Dulcídio Caldeira: We don't think we can say that Brazil is already as good in TV as it is in print, but we can tell you that some progress has been made. Last year in Cannes, the Brazilians had a better performance on TV but we are still far from the ideal. We are not going to match the UK's performance on TV within a year but we're all working on it. We think it will be a slow process, but we will get there.

L.A.: How long have you been with Almap BBDO? What makes it such a special agency?

Renato Fernandez: We've been with Almap BBDO for about seven and eight years respectively. We think it's a special place because there are so many talented people here doing great work all the time. It is inspiring. For instance, last year, a team of trainees did this wonderful campaign for a publishing company and won a Gold Lion. Great work flows everywhere, from a team that is just beginning their career all the way up to Marcello Serpa himself.

Reprinted with Permission