My Favourite Frédéric Planchon Commercials
This is another in the globally popular ACES series of featuring commercial filmmakers and directors that I admire for their skills in bringing creative concepts, and storylines to enthralling life.
Frédéric Planchon
Before becoming a multi-awarded director and filmmaker of short films, commercials, music videos, and a TV series producer, Frédéric Planchon, from Lyon in France, started out as a theatre actor, followed by working as an assistant director on fifteen feature films.
Much of Frédéric Planchon’s impressive film-craft is characterised by the emotive depth he is able to bring to his character portrayals, in masterly directed storytelling scenarios of passion, humour, and visually dramatised metaphors of expression and meaning.
1. Sony PlayStation 4 Pro, Tear
Advertising Agency: adam&eveDDB, London, UK
Production Companies: Academy Films Films, London, UK, and Radioaktiv Films, Kyiv, Ukraine
Post Production and VFX Studios: The Mill, London, UK
Directed by filmmaker Frédéric Planchon, the superbly produced ‘Tear’ scenario, is about the breath-taking detail of the PS4 Pro’s ability to inspire a deeper gamer connections to some of the world’s most enthralling game epics.
Depicting a PS4 Pro player being emotionally overwhelmed by a powerful moment in a game titled ‘Death Stranding’, about a messenger delivering goods to dozens of outposts across a fractured, post-apocalyptic America, the commercial is a powerful dramatisation of Sony Entertainment’s, ‘Feel the Power of Pro’ consumer proposition.
2. Cadbury Dairy Milk, Bus
Advertising Agency: VCCP, London, UK
Production Company: Academy Films, London, UK
Production Services Company: MTP, Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Post Production and VFX Studios: Freefolk, Glasgow, Scotland, UK
I love the power filmmaking has, of evoking a wealth of emotive reactions through pure film craft and acting talent.
Directed by filmmaker Frederic Planchon, with exemplary pathos, the compassionate ‘slice-of-life scenario’, of young boy and his Mum travelling on a bus, is an insightful manifestation of Cadbury Dairy Milk’s belief, that even the smallest gesture can bring a smile to someone who might need it.
Chris Birch and Jonny Parker, executive creative directors at VCCP added: “We’ve all been there; on a bus or a train, and seen someone sad and upset. Most of the time we look away, minding our own business. But the generous hearted amongst us know better. This film tells that story”.
3. Renault Clio: The French Exchange
Advertising Agency: Publicis-Poke, London, UK
Production Company: Academy Films, London, UK
Not surprisingly perhaps, the commercial’s LGB theme received some negative viewer reactions. However, in the main, the touching love story, directed with laudable sensitivity by filmmaker Frédéric Planchon, was widely praised for its sterling portrayals.
The analogy of Renault Clio’s, ‘Thirty Years In The Making’ scenario, about the awakening of a loving relationship between two women, who grew up as best friends, plays out against a resonant soundtrack, by music arranger and producer, Luis Almau at Soundtree Music Studios, London, of ‘Wonderwall’ by Oasis, performed by London-based Hejira Band member, Rahel Debebe-Dessalegne.
4. Vodafone, The Kiss
Advertising Agency: Grey, London, UK
Production Company: Academy, London, UK
Directed by filmmaker Frédéric Planchon, the analogous ‘Kiss’ scenario, promoting Vodafone’s Red Plan offering of unlimited voice and text messages, and generous data allocations to stay connected, in the way that suits one’s lifestyle best, is a cinematic journey of a loving couple’s life together from their youth to old age.
The visually driven, time-span narrative, directed with emotive sensitivity, features a soundtrack by Italian pianist and composer, Ludovico Einaudi.
5. Dairy Milk, Mum’s Birthday
Advertising Agency: VCCP, London, UK
Production Company: Academy Films, London, UK
Post Production and VFX Studios: Freefolk, London, UK
Directed by filmmaker Frédéric Planchon, with skilled sensitivity, Cadbury’s ‘Mum’s Birthday’ commercial, is a stellar film-scenario portrayal, of emotive brand kinship, and heart-warming viewer engagement.
6. Škoda, Purr and Grrr
Advertising Agency: Fallon, London, UK
Production Company: Academy Films, London, UK
Post Production and VFX Studios: Freefolk, London, UK
Headquartered in Mladá Boleslav, The Czech Republic, Škoda Auto, with origins that go back to 1895, is one of the world’s oldest automotive manufacturers.
The launch of their all-electric Enyaq iV SUV in 2020, ushered in a bold new era for the Czech car company, with a “Driven by Something Different” advertising campaign.
Masterly directed by filmmaker Frédéric Planchon, Fallon’s imaginative film-scenario of robot siblings, to highlight the all-electric Škoda Suv’s eco-consciousness, and dynamic design duality, was brought to enchanting life, featuring gentle and caring robot “Purr”, and impassioned and creative robot ”Grrr”.
7. Perrier, Melting
Advertising Agency: Ogilvy, Paris, France
Production Company: Irène, Paris, France
Post Production and VFX Studios: La Maison, Paris, France
The extreme heat-waves experienced currently in various parts of the world, calls to mind the impactful Perrier ‘Melting’, multi-media advertising campaign, of TV, cinema, print, outdoor posters, and interactive store-window displays, by Ogilvy Paris.
The international award-winning TV and Cinema commercial that sparked off the campaign in 2009, was directed by filmmaker Frédéric Planchon in an impressively produced dramatisation of everything melting down under scorching heat in a city environment.