Credits
Client: Adidas
Creative Director: Nick Cline
Art director: Andrew Johns
Copywriter: Gareth Broadbent
Project Manager: Julien Laurent
Executive Producers: Lotte de Vroe & Alexandra Elder
Director: GMUNK
Production Company: Ground Control
Producer: Jeremy Barnes
Executive Producer: Michael Stanish
Post Facility: Glassworks London
VFX Producer: Abi Klimaszewski
Senior 3D Arist: Vaclav Cizkovsky
3D Artist: Florian Juri
3D Artist: Dan Yargici
3D Artist: Ciaran Moloney
3D Artist: Alastair Hearsum
3D Artist: Matt Fletcher
3D Artist: Alessandro Vastalegna
3D Artist: Kofi Opoku-Ansah
VFX Supervisor / Lead 2d Artist: James Mac
Nuke Artist: Sal Wilson
Nuke Artist: Julia Caram
Nuke Artist: Garth Reilly
Nuke Artist: Leanne Pletersky
Colourist: Matt Hare
Music / Sound Design: Keith Ruggiero
Musings / Memories
This was a fun time, when I was repping Gmunk, Nick Cline at Adidas in Amsterdam came at just the right time to create something a little out of the ordinary with one the world’s best footballers Gareth Bale. It was just right that Gmunk and I had met Nick a few weeks earlier in Amsterdam, and this project all of a sudden came in to our lives. It was early on in Ground Control’s establishment. But we somehow went from not existing to having crazy number of projects in.
We were working out of Glassworks, and while we were working on Adidas we had other clients on different floors who were competing brands. We had to create a whole new level of military like security to make sure they never crossed paths nor saw each others work. It was mind-blowingly sensitive.
Gmunk and I worked hard at the treatment, albeit, I don’t believe it was competitive. The vision was clear, and it was a piece that would put Ground Control on the map.
Shooting Gareth Bale in Madrid was hectic, but not overly stressful. The hardest part of the whole set up was working out how the most expensive footballer in the world would run on a concrete floor in foot ball boots without injuring himself. Our First AD came down with a crazy flu, so we have to quarantine him, keeping him away from the prized footballer.
We eventually found a matting that could be placed on the studio floor and keep Mr Bale safe, running at pace.
We had a camera on a segway with a stedicam. The operators where like dancing magicians. They had the movement perfected. They had obviously been super experienced.
My friend Jeremy Barnes line produced the shoot for me, making sure every detail from camera department to athlete care was perfect.
We had Gareth for 4 hours. There were something like 35 or 40 set ups. Everything was shot on a grey back, as requested by VFX. I learned then that most VFX artists hate green / blue screen – make it grey for them anytime.
Somehow, with a sick first AD, Bradley spraying water on Gareth, safety matting all sorted, we managed to get every shot in the bag. I must admit I was surprised we managed to get everything. It was hell of an achievement.
I have some gopro time lapse footage of the shoot somewhere, I need to find it and stick it up here.