606 Takes To film Rube Goldberg-like car ad

wagdog writes "Many have no doubt seen the Rube Goldberg-like multistep mechanical chain reaction TV advert for the Honda Accord. Many thought this was yet another example of the pervasive use of computer graphics in TV commercials. Amazingly the entire delicate set up of car parts that constitute the facinating sequence is almost 100% realtime live action requiring an astounding 606 takes to get right . There is one cheat however -- can you spot it?"

Comments

For comparison

[ih8apple]

The record number of takes for a single shot in any movie is 125 in The Shining.

Re:For comparison

[JDevers]

Stanley Kubrick ordered more than 120 takes in the scene where the camera simply slowly zooms in on Scatman Crothers as he "shines" in his bedroom. Kubrick originally wanted approximately 70 takes of the scene where Hollaran gets killed by Jack Torrance, but Jack Nicholson talked Kubrick into going easy on the 70 year-old Crothers and stopping after 40. At one point during the filming, Crothers became so exasperated with Kubrick's notorious, compulsive style of excessive retakes that he broke down and cried, asking "What do you want, Mr. Kubrick?" This is from http://us.imdb.com/Trivia?0081505 from another who loves The Shining =)

New world record?

[Jon Abbott]

I know that as of 2001, the world's record for the most retakes of a particular scene was held by Stanley Kubrick -- 160 retakes of one scene in The Shining. If car commercial film retakes count for this as well, these guys have set a new world record by far!

Rube Goldberg?

[chrisseaton]

I wasn't familiar with Rube Goldberg's work before this, but it looks like a carbon copy of Heath Robinson's style. Anyone agree with me here?

Re:Goldberg and Heath Robinson

[ianscot]

Sort of, but not a carbon copy exactly. Rube Goldberg is seen by some people as a sort of "American version" of Robinson -- news programs here might say "Our tax system is a Rube Golbergian mess" where those in the U.K. would invoke Robinson. They were contemporaries, but Goldberg lived longer.

I'd say Robinson was more about social commentary than Goldberg. His typical drawing would be an overall look at a machine, sure, but there was usually something dilapidated about the workings of it, and there was something sort of comic-tragic about the people in the figure -- they're seriously working to maintain the thing despite its ludicrously overcomplex design, and it's running down despite them.

Goldberg is more of an engineer's taste -- he was an engineer to start with, wasn't he? -- and the idea is really to play with the idea of the machine to make it as ridiculous as possible. His machines aren't attended by a bunch of sadly intent factory workers, they're what my Great Uncle would call "flights of fancy." You hear about contests in the U.S., for fun, to build elaborate "Rube Goldberg contraptions" to perform simple actions.

Heath Robinson would have appreciated Metropolis more when it came out.

For contrast

[Sentry21]

Contrast this with Russian Ark. You really have to watch the trailer for an idea of its scale and majesty, but for those of you without Quicktime:

• 2000 actors
• 300 years of Russian history
• 33 rooms of the Hermitage Museum
• 3 live orchestras
• 1
  single
  continuous
  shot
• (voiceover) "Not only is Russian Ark the longest shot in film history, it is also the first feature film ever created in a single take."

--Dan

Re:Great advert

[Richard_at_work]

If the shock spring was finely balanced, then the slightest vibration would have set it rolling, so the thumping of several speakers, at tremendous bass, would be sure to have an affect

The windshield has rain sensors which automatically trigger the wipers, which walk off. Simple yet amazingly effective.