What went into the making of a TV ad campaign involving Emirates and Penélope Cruz
Academy Award-winning actor filmed in carrier’s A380 aircraft
Emirates has released a behind-the-scenes video showcasing the production required for a TV campaign shot on one of its A380 aircraft, as well as two Emirates cabin crew interviewing Penélope Cruz for a TV ad campaign in English and Spanish.
The Academy Award-winning actor and philanthropist flew from the US to Dubai for a week to film the campaign, a series of ads showing Cruz sampling all the luxuries that Emirates First and Business Class passengers experience, from a crafted beverage in the A380 Onboard Lounge to an indulgent shower, cheering for a football game on live TV, to enjoying caviar.
The new behind-the-scenes footage features two Emirates cabin crew members discovering how it all comes together, with comments about the experience from Cruz herself.
Here are some impressive facts about the filming process:
- Over 160 people were involved in the filming of these ads – 36 international crew and 125 Dubai-based crew and cast.
- Penélope Cruz was filmed inside of an Emirates A380 aircraft.
- The two cabin crew members who got to meet and interview Cruz were Doyle Kim from Australia and Alessandra Piper from the UK.
- The shoot was planned and organised and totalled 1,488 production person-hours – which equates to around 165 working days.
- Because the filming took place on a real aircraft at Dubai International Airport, all 160 people needed special permission from the UAE authorities to access the restricted and highly secure area.
- 10 large trucks were needed to carry all the catering items and filming equipment.
- Emirates built a designated green room in an aircraft hangar for cast to wait in while off-set.
- For security reasons, every piece of filming equipment had to be unloaded, scanned, checked and loaded on airside trucks, and stored in a hangar near the aircraft.
- To create ‘cinematic lighting’ inside an A380, it was essential to create lighting platforms using eight scissor lifts and boom lifts.
- Each of the new TV spots was directed and brought to life by Robert Stromberg, a double Oscar-winning Hollywood director while production house Ridley Scott Associates also supported the series of TV spots, and Framestore – the multi-award-winning creative studio for special effects.
Featured image: (L-R) Alessandra Piper and Doyle Kim. Image. Emirates
Last Updated on 1 year by Arnold Pinto
