In 2016, Audi launched the latest model of its crossover SUV, the Audi Q7, and it wanted to create a TV commercial that differentiated it from the competition. Audi wanted to create something unique and innovative. This article will study how Audi integrated a Virtual Set Extension to create on-location visual effects that innovated the Audi Q7 Commercial.

Objective:

Audi and their creative agency, Zulu Alpha Kilo, were seeking a creative solution to shoot their upcoming promotional commercial. They wanted to film the new Audi Q7 driving on a snowy mountain, with the SUV starting to light up and transform. The idea was to have an animated version split from the real Audi Q7, drive up the mountain with cool visual effects, and then come back down to merge with the Audi Q7 again.

Looking For Creative Solutions

Go2 Production is a well-known multimedia creative production agency in North America that offers technical solutions to create immersive experiences using AV technology and 3D animation. Audi and Zulu Alpha Kilo contacted Go2 with the challenge of creating the animations and visual effects for the coming commercial.

The solution: Implementing a Virtual Set Extension

After analyzing in detail what Audi wanted to achieve in its new commercial, Go2 Productions proposed implementing a Virtual Set Extension. This technique involves adding digital elements to the filming set location and combining them in real time to blend live-action shoots with 3D animations.

To include the digital elements, Go2 proposed using projectors to display 3D animations over the SUV and the mountain. However, before coming up with the execution, they did a series of test sequences in Whistler, BC, to tweak any technical challenges. Based on the good results, they returned to the studio and started designing and animating the 16 plates required for the commercial.

Leveraging Projection Mapping :

The big day of the commercial arrived, and to make Audi’s vision live, the shoot took place high up on the summit of Fortress Mountain in Alberta, Canada, and the production took four days.

During the shoot, Go2 instructed the cameras to be placed in specific locations to play with perspective. They then used projection mapping technology to project a 3D animated Audi Q7. In this way, Go2 created the illusion of a real SUV made of light that could appear, disappear, drive up and merge with the real Audi Q7.

The commercial was shot using special high-ISO cameras with an ISO of more than 450,000 in the dead of night, which made the projections stand out. For some shots, Go2 synchronized projectors over several hundred meters to make it look like the Audi Q7 was driving up the side of a mountain. Other shots required the projectors to be mounted on a truck while Go2 filmed the projected Audi Q7 merging with the real Audi Q7.

Results:

The result was a truly unique TV commercial, bringing Audi’s vision to life. All the visual effects were captured on camera, happening live on-site using multiple projection rigs and techniques, with no post-production visual effects added to the commercial. This reduced the overall production costs and saved post-production time, allowing for a focus on other elements and on-time delivery of the commercial.

Here is the final video commercial, which shows the final result of implementing virtual set extensions.