Imaginary Forces

Imaginary Forces Finds Harmony Between Form and Function for Infiniti

Director Michelle Dougherty marries contemporary Japanese design philosophy with modern technology in series of innovative spots

Los Angeles, CA (Nov, 2007) In a new series of spots for the Infiniti M, Imaginary Forces’ director Michelle Dougherty integrates the contemporary design philosophy of the Japanese auto maker with the sleek modern look that IF is known for.

Two spots, titled “Driver’s Car” and “V8 All Wheel Drive,” open with shots of a sleek new Infiniti M seen driving along a brushstroke that’s derived from the initial calligraphy-like sketches executed for the car by Infiniti’s designers.  The brushstroke—which is set against an amber background that stretches to infinity—quickly transforms into a road upon which the Infiniti M gracefully demonstrates its marriage of performance and luxury via a mix of live action photography and CGI backgrounds.

Dougherty says the creatives at Infiniti’s agency, TBWA\Chiat\Day, were open to collaboration from the beginning of the project.  “Dennis Lim, the creative director, came to us with the overall concept for these spots and then gave us a lot of freedom to explore the design on it,” she says.  “The key element of the concept was performance—the environment in which the car and the brush stroke-inspired road were seen needed to underscore Infiniti’s mission and philosophy.”

Dougherty and her production team shot the black Infiniti M in live action on a sound-stage inside an enormous device called a Photobubble™, which was enlisted to reduce glare and reflection on the car without losing the vehicle’s shimmering lines. 

“The Photobubble is essentially this giant plastic bubble with air pumped in.  It gave us a controlled, clean, consistent environment in which to shoot the car,” the director explains.  Weather elements, such as rain and snow, were created with a combination of 3-D animation and live-action shots.  Motion control cameras acquired smooth, gliding shots of the car interiors.

Dougherty says the project was a technical challenge, especially in animation, but has resulted in a piece she feels accurately reflects the design, performance and manufacturing of the top-line luxury automobiles.

“The Infiniti designers put a lot of effort into making each element of each car work harmoniously,” she says.  “There’s effort and detail in everything they do, from how the car sounds to how the car looks to how the car performs.  My goal was to reflect that same attention to detail and design in the spots.”

Infiniti M Credits:
Titles: “Driver’s Car” & “V8 AWD”
Advertising Agency: TBWA\Chiat\Day
Client: Infiniti
Senior Producer: Guia Iacomin
Producer: David Roth
Creative Directors:  Dennis Lim, Jason Busa
Designed & Produced by: Imaginary Forces (IF)
Director: Michelle Dougherty
Art Director: Michelle Dougherty
Producers: Jamey Kitchens, Ila Taluban
Designers: Brett Krauss, Joan Lau
2-D/3-D Animators: Maziar Majd, Ben Lopez, Tom Conners, Gene Arvan,
Marc Matzenbacher, Kyle Cassidy, Jeff Jenkins
Editors: Danielle White
Assistant Editor: Joe Denk
Inferno Artists: Rod Basham, Andy Dill, Nick Hyland
Roto Artist: Nick Rubenstein
Music Company: Elias