Written by new-contact on Nov 4, 2011. Posted in General Interest

Editor's Weekly

It’s been an eventful week in South America, with Tiger Beer and Johnnie Walker active in Chile and Brazil, respectively. Further north Spielberg’s been hard at work with his new feature Lincoln in Virginia. On the other side of the US Chevy dropped one of its new cars out of an aeroplane. We also spoke to location professionals in Sweden and Ethiopia.

Tiger Beer doubled Santiago for New York City pretty effectively in a fun commercial that takes several cues from Hollywood heist capers, lending a sleek and rebellious tone. The Chilean city’s tall colonial buildings have a subtle impact here, but the New York setting comes across mostly through the distinctive yellow cabs and US flags used in the set dressing. Santiago’s recently seen the opening of a Congo Films office, offering a lot more specialised equipment for local hire.

Tiger Beer doubled Santiago for New York City pretty effectively in a fun commercial that takes several cues from Hollywood heist capers, lending a sleek and rebellious tone.

Scotch whiskey brand Johnnie Walker has launched its first Brazilian advertising campaign with the CG-heavy Keep Walking Brazil. The spot shows Rio’s distinctive Sugar Loaf mountain heaving to life as a rocky giant and striding into the sea as the city’s inhabitants look on, understandably awestruck. It’s a tenuous link to the brand itself, although the CGI looks good. The idea is for the giant to symbolise the emergence of Brazil as a global economic power, but this all seems a bit vague.

Shifting focus to Europe and the History Channel has filmed a trio of commercials around Nice in south-east France for its upcoming Indian launch. The spots feature Bollywood star Salman Khan and have a uniquely Bollywood feel, which may come across as a little bizarre in Europe and America but could prove very effective in their target market. You certainly wouldn’t guess they were all filmed in France and they’re proof of what can be achieved on location with a combination of ingenuity and budget pressures.

Chevy's Skydive is a graceful spot and avoids many of the clichés of modern car advertising and that’s always to be commended. Plus Arizona looks spectacular from the air...

In the eastern US Spielberg has been filming Lincoln in Virginia, much to the delight of the locals. Richmond and Petersburg certainly aren’t short of historic buildings to offer the necessary period look, although with a great cast being spearheaded by the mighty Daniel Day-Lewis, it seems likely that Virginia’s locations are destined to be utilised as subtle background dressing. Still, the shoot is delivering a shot in the arm to the local industry.

Over in Arizona, Chevrolet has filmed an eye-catching spot for its new Sonic range of small cars, by dropping one out of the back of an aeroplane at 10,000 feet. Unconventional? Certainly. Effective? Maybe as a way of boosting brand awareness, but will it shift any units? Either way it’s a graceful spot and avoids many of the clichés of modern car advertising and that’s always to be commended. Plus Arizona looks spectacular from the air...

TLG’s publisher Jean-Frédéric Garcia addressed delegates at the Commercial Film Workshop in Seville this week and talked about how the Spanish city could benefit from launching commercial filming incentives.

TLG’s publisher Jean-Frédéric Garcia addressed delegates at the Commercial Film Workshop in Seville this week and talked about how the Spanish city could benefit from launching commercial filming incentives. Elsewhere we talked to Swedish Location Scout Susanne Karpati about filming in Stockholm, while Location Fixer Firew Ayele spoke to us about the industry in Ethiopia.

To round off the week Richard Chan talked us through the mechanics of his business Aero Mock-Ups, which provides aeroplane interior sets for commercials and films around the world.

As always, The Location Guide’s Film-Friendly Locations database continues to grow and we’re always looking for your input. If you manage a building or a location that you think qualifies as film-friendly, or you’ve filmed somewhere recently that you think should be listed on our website, please contact Ewa.

If you’ve got some great location filming stories to share and you’d like to be part of our profile section (see here), or you have an idea for an article (see here) please contact Murray.

If you've been working on location anywhere in the world and you're looking for some press coverage, please contact Nick. We’d all be happy to hear from you.

Camera image courtesy of Rachel Tanugi Ribas.