Mercedes-Benz
Whenever Stian Smestad calls, we know we’re in for an exciting ride, and this pitch for Mercedes-Benz was no exception. Working with such an exacting, premium brand always raises the bar, but the real challenge was capturing Stian's infectious, high-energy vision within a very unforgiving setting. Specifically, we faced the difficulty of bringing out the absolute best in visuals shot within a harsh blizzard environment, where maintaining visual depth, clarity, and excitement can be incredibly tough amid all the whiteout conditions.
To tackle this, we leaned heavily into visual curation, researching atmospheric, dark, snowy landscape references captured from exciting and unexpected perspectives to bring contrast to the storm. We then channelled this into a premium, slick design aesthetic that felt inherently Mercedes. Instead of heavy text, we focused on creating image-led layouts that utilised dramatic, full-screen backgrounds, giving Stian's ideas the cinematic scale and momentum they needed to call attention.
Beyond the imagery, we paid careful attention to the overall tone of the treatment deck. We paired minimalist, sharp typography with punch-out quotes to ensure Stian's voice cut cleanly through the storm’s visual chaos. The moving references throughout the deck were carefully considered to mirror the fast, rhythmic pace of the edit, reiterating that even on paper, the approach felt dynamic and refined, with the client able to feel the biting chill of the wind and the raw power of the vehicle on every single page.
It took a lot of hard work from everyone involved, but we absolutely loved seeing how Stian, the production crew, and the post-production teams brought the agency’s original idea to life in what ultimately turned out to be a magnificent whirlwind of a project. Seeing the final commercial air with all that raw energy intact made every detail worth it.