About
Wild(child) Editorial's Diego Panich was recently tasked with cutting a commercial featuring Lenny Kravitz that makes viewers feel like they have an all-access pass backstage at the rocker's concert and are sharing the experience with his inner circle of friends in a world where music and fashion come together. Panich set the pace of the spot, taking his cues from the Grammy award -winning artists new track, 'Rock Star City Life,' and his signature style, which is personified by Basement’s hip urban line of men’s clothes. Director Philip Adelman’s stunning 35mm black + white footage created the documentary-like feel of the commercial.
The :30 spot opens with an aerial shot of Miami, that cuts to street level as the camera moves with the city’s traffic. The viewer rides along, following a black SUV with tinted windows up a winding ramp where Kravitz exits the vehicle and approaches a backstage door. He shakes hands with the security guard and enters the venue, exuding his signature cool, self-assured persona as he glides through a crowd of friends, band mates and his entourage.
“There’s a ‘party’ scene that features Kravitz hanging out with this hip crowd, enjoying animated exchanges and laughter. It was key to the spot and the client wanted it to have a cool rocker vibe, " notes Panich, who edited the spot on Final Cut Pro. "Director Philip Andelman’s abundance of masterful footage gave me more than what I needed to create a montage sequence that enhanced this feeling. I was able to achieve a nice balance by weaving in some quiet moments shared between Lenny and his lead guitar player, Craig Ross, which had an intimate feel and showed the bond between the friends.”
Just before the show is about to begin, Kravitz goes the wardrobe area and selects a shirt and hip black leather jacket from a rack of clothes, revealing a Basement label on the hanger. He pulls off the tee shirt he’s wearing, puts them on and heads down a corridor, followed by his band. The screams of his fans in the huge, filled to capacity venue build to a crescendo as the curtains parts and he walks onto stage. The tag, BASEMENT: LENNY KRAVITZ, Solo En Falabella, closes the spot.
Hired earlier this year by director Martin Romanella to cut Basement’s previous spot, a surreal fantasy featuring supermodel Kate Moss and a giant Rabbit, Panich proved his talent for capturing just the mood and feel that the client was going for. This time around, confident in Diego’s ability to create a spot that convey Basement’s unique brand, the agency, Dittborn & Unzueta out of Santiago de Chile, hired the editor directly for the campaign’s second spot.
“For me, the energy and vitality of the tempo and lyrics of Kravitz’s song was the dominating force of the commercial,” says Panich. “As soon as I began cutting, the beat revealed itself as the perfect pace for setting the mood and pace.”
The lyrics of “Rock Star City Life’ drive home the strong connection between the world of a superstar rocker and the role of fashion and style, bringing home the spot’s message. (‘Walks like a man, you think she's older. She understands. She ain't no joker. She's got the glam, A rock n' roller. She knows that she's got the look. And she's gonna play. She got an attitude Rock star city life! She got an attitude.)
“The song’s rocker beat and lyrics were the driving force behind the spot’s timing,” says Panich. “But as the story arched I wanted to amp up the rhythm of the spot, so I deliberately lost the synchronicity between the music and the action, and transitioned into a pace that reflected the exhilarating frenzy of the screaming audience as anticipation of the first glimpse of Lenny builds, just before he’s about to walk through the curtains onto the stage.
“I’m a musician myself, so creating a music-driven spot comes naturally for me – and getting the opportunity to work with director Philip Andelman’s footage was an editor’s dream come true,“ says Panich. “The only challenge this job presented was having to repeatedly re-sync the beat with the visuals every time I changed the order of the scenes, or created an alternate version.”
“Lenny Kravitz is a global icon who personifies the connection between rock ‘n roll and fashion,” adds Panich. “It was exciting to work on a spot that featured a singer/songwriter of his caliber, although the musician side of me couldn’t help but compare my no-frills backstage routine the that of the superstars – and found it a little disheartening," adds Panich. "None the less, cutting this spot was an amazing experience.”
Editor Diego Panich is an award-winning editor working in both the US and global markets. His credits include ‘Rabbit,’ the first spot for Basement’s campaign, featuring Kate Moss, ‘Nike Surgery, which garnered a Bronze Clio in 2008, and ‘Father + Daughter’ for MTV, which was awarded the Cannes Silver Lion. Most recently Panich lent his talents to Lipton Ice Tea’s newest global spot, 'Join The Dance,’ featuring actor Hugh Jackman, and a cast of 150, directed by Luciano Podcaminsky out of @Radical/Stink, NY.
Wild(child) Editorial (www.wildchildpost.com) is a NYC-based creative boutique headed up by editor Yvette Pineyro. Its award-winning staff of in-house editors is complimented by a select roster of global talent that offers advertising agencies and content creators the ability to connect with a diverse mix of cultures and styles. The veteran company provides commercials, as well as films, music videos, broadcast programming and emerging media, with a full range of postproduction services – from rough-cut editorial through finishing. Recent work includes spots for Nike, Verizon, Givenchy, Candies, Time Warner, Frontier Airlines, P&G, Wendy’s, USA Network. Wild(child) Editorial also attracts a steady stream of prestigious films, such as Al Pacino’s acclaimed indie film, Wilde Salome, which will be presented with the Glory Award at the 2011 Venice Film Festival, and the feature film City Island, starring Andy Garcia which won the Tribeca Audience Award.
Credits
CREDITS:
CLIENT: Falabella
Product: Basement
Title of Spot + Length: “Rock Star City Life”
Type + Length: Commercial, :30
Air Date: August 12, 2011
ADVERTISING AGENCY: Dittborn & Unzueta/Santiago de Chile
Chief Creative Director: Tomás Dittborn
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Partizan/LA
Director: Philip Andelman
DP: Melissa Larsen
Producer: Patti Getker
EDITORIAL: Diego Panich [Wild(child) Editorial/NY + USA]
MUSIC Lenny Kravitz (Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter/musician)
Track: “Rock Star City Life”
Technical Info
Diego Panich edited the 35MM B&W footage on FINAL CUT PRO
08/25/2011
00:47
