Gene Kelly is singin' and dancin' in new Golf campaign

by Jennifer Whitehead,, Brand Republic 26-Jan-05, 15:45

LONDON - Gene Kelly is the latest film star to appear in an advertisement from beyond the grave, in the new spot for Volkswagen Golf GTI using his famous scene from the classic musical 'Singin' in the Rain'.

The ad, created by DDB London, gives the scene a modern twist by using body doubles spliced with original footage to make it appear as if Kelly is breakdancing.

The spot opens with Kelly walking down the street in the rain, as he does in the original movie, dancing up and down the kerb with his umbrella. But then he does the unthinkable and starts performing modern body-popping moves. It ends with the line "The new Gold GTI. The original, updated."

The ad was made by dressing dancers in the same suits as Kelly and then using make-up and CGI techniques to produce Kelly's face on the actors. It was shot on a specially constructed set at Shepperton Studios. The music is also from the original soundtrack and has been updated by dance duo Mint Royale for a contemporary film.

Martin Loraine, creative director at DDB London, said: "We looked for things that were icons. We thought about the Golf GTI when it came out. There are not many cars that invent a genre, which is what we thought was the true thing about the GTI, not that it was just a fast car or a nice car, it was an original, which was quite rare."

The campaign was written by Loraine and art directed by Steve Jones. It was directed by Jake Knight and Ryoko Tanaka, who work under the name NE-O. Their short film 'salaryman6' has won numerous awards at the Soho Short Film Festival and the London Film Festival.

'Singin' in the Rain' will be Volkswagen's first interactive ad, with the interactive environment launching in late February. Designed and produced by Tribal DDB, it is designed to enable interested viewers to fully experience and interact with the Golf GTI, in addition to learning more about the ad.

Content includes a video of the car in action, behind-the-scenes footage of the making of the ad, and the 'Singing in the Rain' club-mix track by Mint Royale. People will also be able to request a brochure or a test drive.

Other stars to have their classic movie roles rehashed as ads include Steve McQueen, whose famous car chase from 'Bullitt' was used in an ad for Ford Puma, and Louis Armstrong, who had a scene from the film 'High Society' used in a Diet Coke commercial, along with Humphrey Bogart and the very-much alive Elton John.

The new Golf ad breaks on January 27.

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