Fit for the future

Understanding

Empathise
Coop Rechtsschutz (engl.: Coop Legal Protection) is a leading provider of insurance solutions. The most important requirements for the image trailer were that it should fit into the established brand image and enhance the website as a moving element. The employees were to play the main role in the film: the client had a kind of cinematic report in mind.

Define
The first ideas flew back and forth and it quickly became clear: this was still too little for us. We were inspired by the two-year theme of Coop Rechtsschutz: “Fit for the future”. We didn’t just want to make moving images, we wanted to get the team moving.

Explore

Ideate
We already had a rough picture in mind: jump and run, adventure game – the next level. From the start, we took the project in hand with a game development mindset. Character design, settings, core mechanics and environment were just a few of the terms that were on our minds. We wanted to send our client on an adventure and make the everyday heroes visible. In order to depict the client’s strong team play, we came up with a special idea after a lengthy headache: Imagine changing the game character with every step.

To do this, we had to pre-define a set of moves, just like game developers do: Special moves (like cartwheels, pike rolls…) and basic moves (jumping, running, walking), but also individual talents (like juggling, unicycling, playing guitar) should have room. From the beginning, we wanted to create space for improvisation on the set. A playful approach to the production. A game within the game.

But now every Mario also needs a Bowser and a princess to save: the story event. What kind of final boss suited a legal protection company? What kind of obstacles should our everyday heroes overcome together? We developed an adventurous short story along the mission statement lines: the team deftly dodges wildly flying paragraphs, leaps over obstacles and fends off dastardly paper planes. As a legal expenses insurer, Coop Rechtsschutz is good at solving cases as effectively as possible. Ideally, not in court at all, but early on through skilful mediation. Thus our final boss was born, an inflated paper monster that our heroes skillfully put a stop to. The umbrella as a visual metaphor for the service of Coop Rechtsschutz is ceremoniously handed over to the client (the princess). All’s well that ends well.

Prototype
After a short research we didn’t find any comparable projects. So we jumped through the agency ourselves with pike rolls, did tumbling and fended off imaginary arrows. All, of course, to test the processes and implement the first prototypes.

Realise

Shooting day
Then the time had finally come: we set off for the Aeschbachhalle to carry out a unique shooting day on the event stage. The 20 employees brought a lot of personality and their talents to the former industrial hall. Between flying juggling clubs and scratchy electric guitar riffs, we filmed the people individually against a neutral background. They had to walk, run, duck and jump. But they also had to balance over tree trunks, jump into the next level or fend off a paper aeroplane. Our everyday heroes improvised like experienced film stars directly in front of the camera and had a lot of fun. Then, when we staged a L’Oréal-ready “blowing hair” scene with the leaf blower, we almost couldn’t believe we got away with it. After 5 hours, 15 minutes per person, we wrapped the thing up.

Editing and keying
Mapping the landscape based on the step lengths in the approved rough cut. The Coop Rechtsschutz image film from A to Z: 82 keyed clips with recorded movements of different team members.

Colour world

Illustration

Character Design Paper Monster

Implement

We created three language versions for the website as well as another zoomed-out version with a larger field of view so that the film would work in a wide variety of image formats. Our job was done. The whole job was an adventure, like the film itself. With leaf blowers, tumbling and long nights. But it had been worth it. The client was satisfied and had a lot of fun. We were able to strengthen team play and employer branding. An image building in the sense of Coop Rechts­schutz: simply different.