Written by new-contact on Feb 24, 2012. Posted in Production News

Arts & Sciences films a casual apocalypse on location in a crowded Buenos Aires

Arts & Sciences has staged an apocalypse in Buenos Aires. End of the World is the new commercial for US beer brand Shock Top and shows a smooth-talking rep casually negotiating a city street ravaged by meteors and aliens, as he enjoys his last beer with some similarly relaxed friends.

Miami, Dallas and Los Angeles were among the US cities considered as filming locations, but they were too expensive and didn’t offer enough flexibility in terms of the level of local control the production needed during the shoot. Looking internationally Colombia and Mexico were options but the team settled on Buenos Aires.

We needed a city that had an existing good film base as well, as we needed talent, extras and crew at competitive rates to be able to achieve the creative within the client's budgetary parameters.

Marc Marrie, Executive Producer

Marc Marrie was Executive Producer for Arts & Sciences: “We needed a city that had an existing good film base as well, as we needed talent, extras and crew at competitive rates to be able to achieve the creative within the client's budgetary parameters.

“Weather was a consideration and the original script had some beach elements included, so having access to both [the] city and [a] beach in close proximity was a definite deciding factor.”

On location the street was dressed with several props specific to New York as a setting, but the city in the final spot is intended as an unidentified metropolis. The finished piece blends in-camera special effects work with judicious CGI. As it turned out, despite the pyrotechnics and end-of-the-world mayhem, Buenos Aires’ massive popularity as a filming location was one of the biggest challenges.

David Preizler was Executive Producer for Nube Pictures: “On the weekend of our production, I believe there were five simultaneous shoots occurring in downtown Buenos Aires. There were two that I saw a short walk from our set. That doesn’t happen every weekend here but it can create permitting challenges, not only for getting the location the Director wants, but where do you park the trucks?

On the weekend of our production, I believe there were five simultaneous shoots occurring in downtown Buenos Aires.

David Preizler, Executive Producer

“Ultimately it comes down to having a great Location Manager and also a collaborative knowledgeable production team who are familiar with the best location options (in this case for New York City), not only cosmetically, but also the logistical implications for filming on and dressing those streets.”

Marrie advises productions to make sure there’s a good local crew base in whichever city is eventually picked for a shoot: “You will only be as strong as your production service. Be upfront with your service and make sure you're both on the same page before you start production.”

Credits:
Client: Shock Top
Agency: 72andSunny, Los Angeles
Producer: Erin Goodsell
Production Company: Arts & Sciences, Los Angeles
Executive Producers: Mal Ward, Marc Marrie
Production Service Company: Nube Pictures, Buenos Aires
Executive Producer: David Preizler, Jorge di Benedetto
Location Manager: Federico Scherer
Director of Photography: Marcelo Durst
Director: Matt Aselton