How R/GA Used AI to Make an ‘Impossible’ Ad

Earlier this yr, R/GA acquired a frightening job: create an advert that might have been unattainable to make with out generative synthetic intelligence (AI).The problem got here from Google, which wished to indicate off the capabilities of its generative video mannequin, Veo. Including to the stress, the tech big gave R/GA simply 4 weeks to make the advert.“It was barely terrifying,” mentioned Nicholas Pringle, chief inventive officer, EMEA at R/GA.The end result, unveiled in June, was “From the Mountains to the Metropolis,” an experimental spot created with Veo and that includes luxurious style model Moncler. The quick movie sparked dialog on social media and at Cannes Lions earlier this yr, the place Google confirmed it to a bunch of inventive leaders. Whereas the platform had limitations, Pringle mentioned it compelled his group to develop a brand new approach of working and confirmed how far AI has superior in a short while. ADWEEK spoke to R/GA about how utilizing the generative software modified the inventive course of.Embracing randomnessFilmmaking is often a linear course of—from writing a script and making a storyboard to taking pictures, enhancing, and post-production. “At no level would you need to return a step, as a result of it’s cost-prohibitive,” Pringle mentioned.However with AI, the method turned rather more fluid, he noticed. Staying versatile was important, as a result of when creatives prompted Veo for every scene, it didn’t all the time produce what that they had envisioned. It might be “irritating” when a particular scene couldn’t be generated, Pringle famous. For instance, Veo did not render a scene during which a person zipped up a tent. However at different occasions, he known as the software “superb,” producing surprising outcomes that have been woven into the narrative, such because the ice sculptures that seem within the closing advert.“In that approach, AI turns into like a creator, as a result of generally the randomness of the know-how presents you with one thing you hadn’t anticipated,” Pringle mentioned.Filmmaking with AI permits extra “real-time course,” mentioned Sadie Thoma, director of Google Advertisements advertising and marketing. “It opens up the aperture for creativity, since you don’t need to shoot precisely what’s in your storyboard.”However that randomness and fluidity could be difficult with a shopper like Moncler, which has excessive requirements as a luxurious model, Pringle mentioned, including that Moncler was keen about experimenting with the tech nonetheless. Creating with Veo additionally modified the shopper approval course of, as a result of “you’re expressing your concept via a scene that’s transferring and residing, so there’s much less of a ‘ta-da’ second,” he defined. “It’s a must to have a transparent imaginative and prescient.”Constructing a brand new workflow—and coping with limitationsAdopting AI for this mission pushed R/GA to develop a brand new inside system for collaboration. The company constructed an app known as Shot Circulation—constructed with Google’s AI assistant, Gemini—which served as “a shared workspace the place we might deconstruct each aspect of a scene,” mentioned Pringle.As group members prompted their variations of Veo from totally different workplaces, Shopflow helped streamline international collaboration and ship extra constant outcomes, he added.Regardless of these speedy developments, AI instruments nonetheless have notable limitations for creatives. Pringle pointed to character consistency as the largest problem. He famous that in R/GA’s Moncler advert, characters subtly shift in look from scene to scene. Visible glitches just like the distorted tent zipper additionally persist. Tech giants like Google have but to completely remedy these points.Authorized issues pose one other hurdle. “There’s a giant limitation across the authorized framework of utilizing AI commercially,” Pringle mentioned, noting that manufacturers and businesses are nonetheless studying methods to keep away from copyright dangers. People + machinesVeo might have accelerated R/GA’s inventive course of, but it surely’s no substitute for human creativity, mentioned Pringle. Whereas the video was AI-generated, the rating was not, composed by musician Tom Gallo. And the script, prompts, and visible course got here from creatives, who introduced their style, expertise, and storytelling instincts to the mission.“The mix of all these issues made it really feel just like the imaginative and prescient of individuals, not only a machine,” Pringle mentioned. “There’s a software that permits us to create, but it surely requires human ingenuity, style, tactical prompting, and understanding methods to leverage that know-how.”For creatives hesitant to discover AI, Pringle suggested: “Get into these instruments and begin enjoying round with them, irrespective of how idly. Simply try to make your very first thing.”