Reel Ad of the Week

“Kia-ck ass” summer ‘The Features Film’ opens

By Colin Costello
July 20, 2020

(David&Goliath and Kia give us a “Kia-ck ass spot for RAW)

It’s been quite the year for movies or the lack of them. With Warner Bros’ Tenet being pushed back to an unnamed date and with chatter of theaters not reopening until mid-2021, audiences are in dire need of a good ol’ fashioned action blockbuster. Thank god for the creative team David&Goliath and Kia Motors America (KMA).

From the producers who introduced the world to dancing hamsters comes an epic adventure, titled The Features Film, presents automotive content in a whole new genre and includes a virtual who’s-who of Kia’s A-list automotive talent sharing lead actor duties. This is our Reel Ad of the Week and it just doesn’t kick ass. It “kia-cks” ass.

Inspired by noir thrillers from Hollywood’s golden age (of which I am a fan) not to mention recent films like Baby Driver, The Features Film he story follows a getaway driver who wants to escape a career in crime. And maybe take a suitcase or two of cash on his way out the door. But, he’s not alone. Instead he’s joined by a romantic co-lead who’s also eager to leave her criminal past in the rear view mirror. Together, they mastermind an escape.

Using every feature-laden Kia they can get their hands on to outwit an endless array of desperate thugs and a menacing crime boss.

The story unfolds across one night, as The Driver enlists eight “A-List” Kia models – Forte, Soul, Stinger, Niro EV, Niro HEV, Seltos, Sportage and Sorento – to help him break free from the seedy underworld and turn his life around. Watch below:

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“Working on car advertising for the past 20+ years, when we think about creating ads, the convention has always been to highlight car features in a way that tells a compelling story,” noted David Angelo, founder and creative chairman of David&Goliath. “In many cases, the car feature becomes so dominating that it overshadows the story and diminishes the impact of the concept. So we turned this convention on its head. And created an entire idea where not one, but 13 features would be ‘featured,’ in a highly watchable film that not only demonstrates capability, but also makes them the captivating lead ‘actors’ of the film.”

The film is divided into a series of 13 individual :15-second pre-roll videos and is also available as a six-minute longform film that seamlessly takes the viewer on this cinematic journey. In addition, a :30 trailer and :60-second teaser are available.

Russell Wager, director, marketing operations, Kia Motors America, adds, “We’ll miss going to the movies this Summer and catching the latest Hollywood blockbusters, so Kia took this as an opportunity to provide a similar viewing experience, but with a plot twist you never saw coming.” “With many automakers offering the same or similar vehicle options, The Features Film is a unique, entertaining and fun way to differentiate ourselves and reach consumers directly with highly creative content.”

By taking this unexpected approach, Kia made the feature-demo videos more engaging and highly watchable – yet still hard working enough to educate potential shoppers.

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The effort, directed by Slice’s Ozan Biron, radically shifts the paradigm of what car feature videos can be. David&Goliath has elevated the expected demonstrations by placing vehicle features at the heart of a high-octane action film, evoking actual emotion. And that’s why we like it, making it RAW.

CREDITS

CLIENT: Kia Motors America (KMA)

AGENCY: David&Goliath