Rhinofx's Sharabani Helms Cross Promotion for Subway and Toyota

Vico Sharabani of rhinofx, co-directed a recent :30 live action/effects spot, teaming up with co-director Alex Lamarque of Bully Pictures for Subway's new Scrabble promotion. In the promotion, Subway customers collect lettered game pieces to spell out sandwich-related words to win an array of prizes, including the Grand Prize giveaway of multiple Toyota Highlanders.

The spot opens on a Toyota hybrid zipping around the countryside, hugging the road, driving past the lens. After a series of shots emphasizing Toyota's style and design, the hills begin to rise and curl from several angles. Adding to the context, viewers can see the perfect surfer's curl reflected in the side view mirror. As the spot progresses, it feels like the hillside is actually chasing the car, while another piece of slope quickly rises in its path. Engulfing the car, the landscape transforms into Subway Scrabble wrapper, folding itself around the vehicle and guaranteeing Subway freshness and fun.

Vico notes, "It's a car commercial, and then it's not a car commercial. We had to treat the opening to mirror a cliche, with great running footage and car shots, but the spot had to be composed to tell a different story. It's not about the car after all. So many automotive spots incorporate effects, so that when the hills begin animating, it still looks like a car commercial. I loved the challenge of keeping the viewers attention, then surprising them. The tail truly wags the dog here. How we show the conceptual effects determined how we tell told story."

"Initially everyone focused on the effects, dismissing the car shots as running footage," continues rhinofx Managing Director, Rick Wagonheim. "Vico focused on the concept, wrapping a landscape around a driving vehicle, making certain the car look great so it felt like a car spot, and then suddenly surprising them. When Vico is setting the shot, selecting the angle, and composing the shot, he approaches the lens knowing exactly what the shot will look like seven weeks later, whether he's shooting a car, an actor, an element or a landscape."

With a background as a Visual Effects Creative Director and Supervisor, Vico has a long track record of creative concept development, frequently collaborating with agencies and other directors before a project is green lighted. His recent credits include Cadillac, Mercedes-Benz, ESPN, and the Weinstein Company's feature film release, The Nanny Diaries. In addition to his technical skills, his approach to designing effects is conceptual and creative, always asking, "How do the effects support the story?"

"Creating nature within a 3D environment involves a high level of complexity," notes Vico. "It's challenging to scale in CG while still maintaining credibility. We had to twist, curl, raise and fold the terrain, animating in a very unnatural way, while preserving the realistic details of the outdoors." To maintain realism, rhino artists incorporated the subtleties of changing light and shadow as the hills raise over the car, blocking the sun and showcasing the car's beauty. After all, it's a car spot that's not a car spot.

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