Start Your Engines! Seat Belt Required for High Octane Indy 500 Ad with Takuma Sato
The greatest spectacle in racing, the Indianapolis 500, was accompanied by a thrilling and entertaining spot from Array Sports and a wealth of Midwest talent. In the driver’s seat for this surprise-and-delight story was two-time Indy 500 champ Takuma Sato, providing people with rides to work that they will never forget.
Hold onto your seats and fire up this high-octane commercial for PeopleReady starring Takuma Sato, then we will chat with Array Sports President Tim Winski…
Editor’s Note: Takuma Sato was the first Asian driver to win the Indy 500, and the twentieth driver to have multiple Indy 500 wins.
“It had to be a story about people, rather than about a car,” Array Sports President Tim Winski told SCREEN. “And specifically about people getting jobs, and getting to work. With our brilliant and charismatic Indy 500 Champ, it would be easy to lean into stunt driving and the thrill seeking aspect. Our approach was to focus on the joy of the passengers reactions, to put the focus back on the subjects who were getting to work in a fun and unusual way.”
In the director’s chair for this spot was Detroit filmmaker Anthony Garth. “Anthony was the perfect choice for us, and we’re looking forward to working with him again,” Winski told SCREEN. “He’d done a lot of automotive-themed work, which we knew would be key, but more importantly he’s a great storyteller in short form. His past work included a number of White Stripes videos and other celebrity work, which convinced us that he could tell stories in a condensed fashion, and work effectively with Takuma Sato, our athlete subject. What was most impressive is how Anthony works with everyone on set, solves problems, and gets the best out of everyone around him.”
Up next for Array Sports is a content series for the agency’s IndyCar team partner, Rahal Letterman Lanigan, that will include household name brands. And yes, it’s that Letterman, as David Letterman is co-owner of RLL with Indycar racing legends Mike Lanigan and Bobby Rahal.
Credits:
Client: PeopleReady, Caroline Sabetti SVP Marketing & Communications
Agency: Array Sports (Chicago)
Production Company: We the People (Detroit)
Director: Anthony Garth
Creative Director: Allen Richardson
Creative Team: Allen Richardson, Tim Winski
Producer: Jessi Dana
Production Assistant: Morgan Voss
Executive Producer: Janelle Barnes
Line Producer: Greg Malone
Actors: Takuma Sato, Dominique Moon, Daniel Martin, Joshua Scantland
Precision Driver: Gabby Chavez
Music c/o Asche & Spencer
VO: Brian LaFontaine
Mix & Sound Design: Coupe Studios
Post Production: Hiatus Post
About Post Author
