Award-winning bi-coastal content creation studio LOGAN has unveiled a brisk, neon-filled spot in collaboration with the Square creative team to herald the launch of their new, fully integrated point-of-sale, Square Register.
Giving a sly wink and nod to the often dramatic, elaborate product reveals from tech brands while promoting a new Silicon Valley innovation, LOGAN director Jens Gehlhaar worked directly with Square to create a campaign that feels both vintage and vivid. “It’s a suspenseful product reveal with the device coming out of black, but it’s all done practically and told literally, in a more gritty than glossy way. We’re using no metaphors, we’re actually unboxing the product and setting it up,” Gehlhaar explains. “It’s a bit of a commentary on overly dramatic product reveals and unboxing videos.”
Shot at Hubble Studios in downtown Los Angeles over the course of “one long day,” the Square Register spot showcases the unique juxtaposition of a dark, mysterious space and several bright neon signs that emphasize the stylish product’s features and functionality. According to Gehlhaar, the LOGAN team had to be agile and use some ingenuity due to the short timeframe for production as well as the variety of neon signage, which was all created digitally. “I do like building sets on stage quite a bit because I can control the geometry of the space for my framings. However, the neon signs weren’t done practically but created in CG. On the set, we used blue and red light sources off frame to get interactive light. We did a bit of previsualization to make sure the devices and signs could be framed together and held in focus.”
Following the intensive shoot and a few weeks of post-production that included modeling, look development, lighting, texturing and compositing, LOGAN Executive Producer Paul Abatemarco adds that working in close collaboration with a savvy brand like Square helped make the Register project a success. “When Square approached us and described to me what they were trying to accomplish with their project, I instantly knew that we were the right partner for them,” he recalls. “We really shine when a client needs a partner, not just a vendor, to help them manifest an idea in a visual and effective way. They brought us a script and had a vision and framework for the creative approach, and I felt like our ability to exceed their creative expectations while also being able to efficiently deliver multiple deliverables would be a goal we could achieve. For us, it wasn’t just about creating a very interesting, dynamic piece, but it was also about further proving our abilities to be a strong partner to a new client – both creatively and also from a production standpoint.”
“The whole LOGAN team made for one talented and thoughtful partner,” said Square’s Sean Conroy. “They understood our vision from the start and really went above and beyond to make it a reality. Their work in creating these neon signs (again: not real!) was astounding. It was a joy and a privilege to work with them.”
The Square Register spot marks the latest marketing campaign from LOGAN following its work with Netflix on the interactive Santa Clarita Diet effort, the Clio-winning viral video campaign for 20th Century Fox’s X-Men: Apocalypse and recent work on brand campaigns include Apple, Nike, BMW, Clinique and Cisco, among others.
Downloads:
Credits:
Production Company/Post Production: LOGAN
Director: Jens Gehlhaar
Creative Director: Alex Hanson
VFX Supervisor: Eric DeHaven
Executive Producer: Paul Abatemarco
Line Producer: Jake Blasco
Post Producer: Michael Shores
Editor: Healy Snow
About LOGAN:
LOGAN (www.logan.tv) is a Los Angeles and New York-based award-winning creative studio. Logan & Sons (www.loganandsons.com) is the live-action division of LOGAN that represents a broad spectrum of directorial talent.