In an early brief, Brother outlined a fashion show concept that showcased a designer working with the new machine for a runway show. We took this initial idea and developed it internally, using our team’s storytelling experience to build out the narrative and add depth. Our focus was on creating an emotive storyline that would inspire and make the audience feel that the Innov-is F580  machine could change their lives.

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For this video, we wanted to hit on the idea of the “artist at work,” highlighting the feeling an artist gets when they get into a flow state of creativity. We wanted to tie the designer to the machine and show how the new features allow him to create without barriers. We felt everything in the video–from the music, to the pacing–had to feel fluid, it needed to build as the artist got deeper into his work. We drew up a storyboard following the narrative arc of the piece, as well as a shooting script to direct the finer details.

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With sign off from the Brother team, we began piecing together the project, starting with locations and talent. We created a number of moodboards identifying what we wanted the set/location to look like, which helped the team align on the vision for the project and allowed us to communicate this clearly with Brother. The video was shot in two different locations across Manchester:

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- Un.titled Studio: A large studio space we used for the runway show;

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- Creme Creative: A smaller studio space we used for the designer’s studio.

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We selected a number of models who we believed best fit the brief, and put them forward to Brother to sign off on. When casting, we kept the European market in mind and aimed for diversity in our choices. Raph Dillan was brought onboard as the designer and also as an ambassador for the Brother brand. Throughout this process, our team worked closely with Brother to ensure the project stayed on-brand and close to the brief.

Production of the F-Combo video took place over two days with our core team present (Director, Producers, Videographer, Photographer), as well as a Make-Up Artist, the Brother team, our three leading models and a number of extras. Crew calls were scheduled throughout the day.

For the runway set, a 1 metre wide by 10 metre long stage was built for the catwalk. A truss holding 10x 650W Arri lights was setup above the centre to light the stage. A large curtain separated the backstage from the runway. The backstage area was used for a number of scenes, including Raph sewing with the machine. Areas backstage were lit with 3x Aputure 300Ds with a variety of gels and modifiers. We made heavy use of haze in this space to add depth.

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For the designer’s studio set, we used mainly natural light to light the scene, with some additional Aputure 300Ds as key lights and a large foam board as a negative fill.

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We used colour to define each scene, contrasting the cool, white tones of the studio with the dark, warm glow of the backstage area. This was further juxtaposed with the sharp, clean light from the runway, which highlighted the actors and their outfits.

The project was shot in 5K on our two RED Scarlet-W cameras, enabling us to capture every detail with brilliant clarity and colour. We shot at 48fps, giving us both beautiful slow motion footage, as well as the flexibility to speed up the clips to 24fps in post if required. We shot dual camera to get as much coverage as possible.

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As our main objective was to highlight the new machines, we hired in a probe lens (Laoua 24mm f/14 macro) to capture the sewing and embroidery work up close. This allowed us to put the camera in spaces it would not normally fit, while capturing the intricacies of the machine.

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With our carefully planned script and storyboard, we created an advert that is both polished in its finish as well as creative. The video was edited by our in-house team, who took care of sound mixing, colour grading, and visual FX.

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Alongside the two-minute advert, we cut together seven social clips which were optimised for use on platforms like Instagram and Tik Tok. We also delivered a large album of photos which were used in promotional material for the new machine.