Changan Deepal S07 Thailand // AI Automotive Commercial

Описание: Deepal S07 Official Ad

*Short summary*:
Official ad for the S07 model launch of Deepal in Australia and a subsequent version modified for Thailand
Took around 5 weeks from start to finish for the initial version, with an additional 2 weeks for the Thai version shared here
genAI models did not know this new model, so I had to train the model on the car exterior/interior
4 different edits/versions were made including a 5:1 aspect ratio version for the release event in October
Coming soon will be a Behind-the-Scenes video discussing more of the technical details of the project

Before I talk about the project itself, I would first like to thank to i-dac Bangkok’s Bryant Chou, Shuo Jiang and Maher Hayfa for trusting me with this project - they had the vision from the start, were quite clear in their creative and brief, and did an awesome job exploring the possibilities of genAI together.

The Key for Production-ready AI: Training
At the release of Midjourney in 2022, I thought if AI tools cannot have consistent characters and custom objects, their real-world usability for commercials would be limited. Back then, these were great tools to explore or imagine anything - that’s why in these two years we’ve seen literally everything from porcelain croissants to dancing spaghetti figures. But when it comes to commercials with a product, those tools were falling short, especially if considering that requirements are much higher when including an agency and client.

I really felt that every company wanted to try AI but the first question was always “Can we have our product in there?”
Even just a few months ago, after my spec ad went viral, people were asking if they could use genAI with their product. But the simple explanation was that if the AI model doesn’t know that specific object, it’s not possible to generate a commercial featuring that object. But things are changing with AI training, and changing very fast.

The Deepal S07 project
And look where we are now. I’m happy to release to the public the subsequent Thai version of the video that was originally screened at the Changan launch event at Bondi Beach on the 15th of October -   / 1069677838020270   - available online here   / 17juwjeyyt  

Yes, every single shot is genAI, no real field production was done. The car exteriors, the interiors, and also the driver, had to be trained separately with different settings, and these trained stills were used in Runway to create the video clips which made up the final edit. In the soon to be released behind the scenes video I will share more about the scale of the project and some details.

My experience in a real-world job working with genAI is that the flexibility it gives is just simply amazing, and we are only at the beginning. So far what I see is that breaking the linear workflow of Pre-Production - Shooting - Post-Production is the thing that excites me the most. With traditional production methods, you shoot what you planned during pre-production, and then you edit what you shot. But now you can have an idea just before edit lock, generate it with AI, and still make it into the final video.
One example is shown in this time-slice effect - I came up with the idea after I finished the original edit - http://hellolaco.io/files/s07_timesli.... Specifically for this shot, I needed to generate a new image on the salt flat landscape, but had to have a very long timelapse from sunset to midnight. Now just imagine this scenario with the traditional method when you mention to the production company that you would like to bring the car back to the salt flat for a day of shooting. The amount of resource savings (time, money, energy) and flexibility is amazing.
The other big benefit is the added creativity through different techniques. For example, in this video the agency and I were able to make the logo of the car brand take the shape of a waterfall, a coral reef or a pink lake - almost like hidden easter eggs in the ad. So while these shots were pleasing to the client’s eye, they also fit the sceneries of the neighbouring clips.

Conclusion
Finally, I am excited for us to see more real products in genAI renders. They are getting more and more accurate and realistic. And as video models progress to offer something similar consistently, the road for purely AI commercials will be paved and here to stay. That is my belief!

Client: Changan
Client Lead: Richie Zhao - Marketing Manager (AU version), Punyavee (Anne) Thanachockjirapat - Brand Director (TH version)

Agency: i-DAC (Bangkok) Co., Ltd
Chief Content Officer: Bryant Chou
Chief Sales Officer: JongShan Fan
Account Director: Shuo Jiang
Account Manager: Anira Traisintanarat
Account Executive: Tadsawan D

Production House: EQ (Exotic Quixotic)
Creative Producer: Maher Hayfa

Director, AI artist, post production: László Gaál