Innovative Toyota and Studio One campaign blends tradition and tech in an out-of-this-world adventure
The new Toyota Starlet campaign is ready to stop traffic. In a bold move, Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM) and the Studio One team at Publicis Groupe Africa, throws the everyday out the window and blends traditional craft with generative AI elements to sweep viewers off to fantastical worlds. By leveraging generative AI as part of the process, the team was able to push the boundaries of what they’re able to create.
This playful campaign is inspired by the standpoint that growing up doesn’t mean letting go of your imagination. Rather than pushing fun aside for a strictly serious life, the campaign reminds us to embrace fun as a part of our everyday lives. And, because everyone’s idea of fun looks different, the Studio One Team wanted to show how life with a Toyota Starlet makes space for every kind of fun, whatever it may be.
Fun, fantasy, and pushing the boundaries of what you’d expect a simple car journey to be, became the focus of the campaign. The team also pushed the boundaries of what the tools at their disposal can achieve. And so, a simple drive in a Toyota Starlet quickly became a portal to countless other worlds thanks to the hatchback’s many features.
Director Kyle Lewis, from Egg Films, noted that ‘From the outset I wanted to create a striking ad that would be a beautiful car ad, even if no AI elements were added to it.’
To be able to pull off this ad, extensive pre-production was required before anything could be shot. In the script, the different worlds were linked together, with each transition being triggered by the Starlet’s features to create an exciting journey. Using a detailed storyboard, the team then planned which parts of the scenes would be created with AI effects or additions and which parts.
The footage of the Toyota Starlet, its driver and the rest of the cast were shot over two days in and around Johannesburg before the efficient post-production process began to bring it all together.
Peet Engelbrecht, the Executive Creative Director at Studio One, says, ‘At the core of this campaign is a traditional, filmic TV process, and that was the intent from the start. Adding AI tools to our toolkit simply helped us to enhance the commercial in a way that we would not otherwise have been able to do.’
Using the team’s ideas for the different fantasy worlds, the descriptions were turned into written AI prompts. These prompts were tested and refined to achieve the correct look and feel. Since you never know exactly what AI-generated images will look like – or how prompts may be interpreted – some of the outcomes were unexpected and even inspired new creative directions. The team used a variety of generative AI tools to translate the prompts into static and moving images that could then be retouched and edited.
A magical tropical island, snow-covered landscape and epic comic book Jozi are just a few of the settings that were created before moving into traditional post-production. A talented team of editing, prompting and sound experts ensured that the finished commercial would be a striking feast for the eyes.
Engelbrecht continued, ‘The hybrid production method allowed us to push the boundaries of our imaginations and our tools to create fantastical worlds without losing human storytelling or erasing our fingerprints from the work, so to speak.’
A behind the scenes video of the production process can be viewed on YouTube at this link. https://youtu.be/3CQYWzmiLJw
Toyota, Studio One and Egg Films have showcased how generative AI elements can be used as a tool within the collaborative, hands-on teamwork that it takes to create an advertising campaign. By using the strengths of all the tools at their disposal, they were able to create a large variety of assets to use across social platforms and mediums and show how you can make space for every kind of fun in the Toyota Starlet.
Tasneem Lorgat, the General Manager for Marketing and Communications at Toyota South Africa Motors (TSAM), said, ‘At Toyota, we know that stories have great power to make an impact. We believe that AI can be a used as a tool to help to tell these stories, but that human experience, imagination, craftmanship and ingenuity are irreplaceable.’
The new advertising campaign for the Toyota Starlet extends across TV, print, radio, digital out-of-home and digital channels, utilising AI as part of the creative process.
Watch the new TV commercial for the Toyota Starlet on YouTube at https://youtu.be/UhXkXTcGzqA
CLIENT | TOYOTA SA
Tasneem Lorgat – General Manager Marketing & Communications
Rethabile Bopape – Senior Marketing Manager: Advertising & Digital
Lebohang Matsoso – Marketing Manager: Advertising & Digital
AGENCY | PUBLICIS GROUPE/ STUDIO ONE
Pete Little – Chief Creative Officer
Peet Engelbrecht – Executive Creative Director
Kate De Bruyn – Creative Director
Christian Botha – Senior Art Director
Steven Jones – Senior Art Director
Nobuhle Maje – Senior Copywriter
Shiraz Mckenzie- Group Account Director
Zonke Mkhonto – Senior Integrated Producer
Auto detailing Team:
Lead Autodetailer – Anthony Clifton
Jaguar Makoga – Precision Driver
Freedom Nkuna – Precision Driver
PRODUCTION HOUSE | EGG FILMS
Colin Howard – Executive Producer
Kyle Lewis – Director
Vjorn du Toit – Producer
Julia Schnurr – Producer
KEY CREW
Director of Photography – James Adey
1st Assistant Director – Barry van Niekerk
Key Grip – Tom Wahl
Gaffer – JP du Preez
Art Director – Melissa Maxted-Henderson
Key Hair and Make Up Artist – Lisa Wasmuth
Behind the Scenes Photographer – Siya Xaba
POSTPRODUCTION TEAM | LEFT POSTPRODUCTION
Executive Producer – Jacqui Pearson
Offline Editor – Joe De Ornelas
Colourist – Jarryd Duthoit
Lead Compositor – IIhaam Mullagee
MUSIC
Music track – Woza by Toya Lazy ft K4MO
Music Producers – Nontokozo Latoya Buthelezi, Rui Jorge Marcal Viera Lopes, Kamo K4MO
Sound Engineers – Myles MacDonald & Pasja Schneider
AUDIO & FINAL MIX
Studio: Hey Papa Legend
Sound Engineers: Myles MacDonald & Pasja Schneider
