Great. Greater. Greatest. Those are your viewing choices in RPA's new interactive video for the Honda Civic, which lets you toggle between a couple's three date scenarios and check out vehicle features along the way.
You have to watch it here on the Honda website.
The story in all three versions is essentially the same: A dude driving a 2016 Honda Civic sedan picks up his gal for a night on the town. They travel the same route, visit the same places and have similar experiences in each clip. The details, however, are markedly different, and the contrasts between the three dates are sometimes extremely amusing.
Some differences are subtle. For example, the sunlight goes from bright, to brighter, to brightest depending on how "great" the date is (sadly, this is not the case in real life). Other variations are more obvious. The spot recalls Honda U.K.'s famous The Other Side interactive film, though the RPA work is more cartoony.
On the "Great" date, the couple wear T-shirts and jeans, and they high-five as the woman slides into the car. "Greater" finds them more dressed up; the guy hands her flowers before they drive off. In "Greatest," they're attired like the king and queen of a sitcom prom, as our hero presents his lady-love with a fluffy pooch as a date-night present.
The greater the date, the more self-consciously zany the action becomes.
"The typical online demo video is a valuable tool for someone who is getting close to buying a vehicle and wants to get a closer look at the specifics," Jason Sperling, executive creative director at RPA, tells AdFreak. "And up to now, it's all followed a similar formula. By creating a unique piece of entertaining content that invites deeper levels of interaction, it makes it more than just a utilitarian tool for a select few. It makes it memorable, sharable and a worthwhile piece of content."
The Civic's features are well integrated into the story line, and it's a hoot to toggle between date variants during product demos. For instance, when the dude cranks up some tunes via Apple CarPlay on the "Great" date, he and his companion share a quick smile; on the "Greater" date, they righteously bop their heads to the beat. And in the "Greatest" version, a groovy '70s-style sax player appears in the back seat for a live performance.
Still, we never do make it to the date that tops them all. The "Greatest" scenario still features a Civic rather than, say, a Ferrari. (Hey, they could have at least upgraded to an Accord!)
Separately, RPA has also released this year's Happy Honda Days TV campaign. Five lovely spots were each melded from three layers—live action, miniature sets and matte paintings. Check out that work below.
CREDITS
Client: American Honda Motor Company
Project: Happy Honda Days TV
Agency:RPA
EVP, Chief Creative Officer: Joe Baratelli
SVP, Executive Creative Director: Jason Sperling
VP, Creative Director: Alicia Dotter Marder
Associate Creative Director: Jeni Stewart
Senior Art Director: Leo Borges
Sr. Copywriter: Peter Megler
Jr. Art Director: Dennis Haynes
Jr. Copywriter: Megan Lienfelder
Jr. Copywriter: David Bassine
SVP, Chief Production Officer: Gary Paticoff
VP, Executive Producer: Isadora Chesler
Senior Producer: Fran Wall
Broadcast Production Coordinator: Jeanette Howes
EVP, Management Account Director: Brett Bender
SVP, Group Account Director, HRM: Fern McCaffrey
Account Supervisor: Alison Bickel
Account Executive: Matthew Boyer
Account Assistant: Kendall Rouse
Production Company/Effects: Brand New School
Director: Ben Go
Managing Partner: Devin Brook
Executive Producer: Paul Abatemarco
Head of Production: Amy Russo
Line Producer: David Wolfson
Director of Photography: Shawn Kim
VFX Supervisor & 2D Lead: Todd Mesher
CG Supervisor: Bryant Rief
Post Producers: Sabrina Elizondo, Alex More
Matte Painter: George Fuentes
Designers: YoonSun Lee, Ben Yonda, Brandon Lee Smith, Ken Gun Lee, Matt Hollister
Asst. Editor: Austin Lewis
3D Artists: Slavik, Amy Vatanakul, Matt Bauer, Sam Baese, Ian Mankowski, Cameron Walser
Flame Artist: Elad Offer
Nuke Artists: Josh Studebaker, Lori Weiss
Compositors: Maithy Tran, Laury Santoso, Ben Hurand
Storyboard Artist: Judah Dobin
Editors: Erik Barnes, Mark Imgrund
Colorist: Loren White
Music:
South Music and Sound
Audio Post: Lime
Mixer: Dave Wagg
Assistant Mixer: Adam Primack
Executive Producer: Susie Boyajan
