It´s a wrap – Dogs, Cars and Rock´n´Roll
A cool, new look required for a very traditional, prestigious German bank "Sparkasse". Picture the scene, two pretty girls on their first road trip pull up at a Hill Billy gas station in their Thelma and Louise like red sporty, cabriolet. It´s the middle of dusty, windswept nowhere. A nice looking hitch hiker catches their eye but they are unaware of his secret companion...a large bear like dog appears and jumps into the rear seats and off they go!
A challenge certainly, to bring this altogether for this fun cinema spot, but let´s face it we love challenges at Blackstone….
In the Canaries you can find everything! A relatively small archipelago in the middle of the Atlantic but we really have everything here, if you know where to look that is. 
There was work to do, least of all the design and construction of a gas station including pumps. The car was really not a problem and we were spoilt for choice but a genuine 1963 beautiful bright red Deville Cadillac in super condition with white leather interior was the one for us. The final choice of car was really dictated by the final choice of dog. Selected in a very interesting dog casting, Lady and Rex, two of six champion Irish wolfhounds owned and bred in Tenerife. The Cadillac not only had the right image but most importantly, just about enough space for such a big dog. The remaining question; could they, would they run towards the car, jump into it, and immediately turn and sit and face the models all on their own in one take? The first stage of training was at home, and our dog trainer tutored Lady and Rex over small jumps, gradually increasing the height to that of the car door, over a metre! Daily videos showed the rapid progress and how happily the dogs managed this task proving these were the four-legged stars we were looking for.
Next stage was to train with the Cadillac, how to protect the car? How to be sure the dogs would be safe and comfortable in a moving open topped car? Like any task set us, the solutions were found as always; the car protected with same colour padding, rear seat replaced with a specially constructed non slip platform and doggie shoes to protect their feet and of course the valuable car.
Step three, on set, - made a little harder by a freakishly furious wind, whipping up the ground to sand storm levels, but creating the perfect back drop. Rex won the day, playing his part to perfection, on cue running up and leaping into the back seat and, once he had found that he could fit all his 88 kilos in, sat proudly and, often as not, made himself very comfortable thank you! 1st shooting day and that wind was still with us, Curious passers-by were surprised by glimpses of the scene. Initially by the sudden appearance of a full sized gas station, then by the huge, red retro car filled to over flowing by an enormous bear like dog made them look twice. 
Teide National Park, with stunning bright sunshine, the perfect location for days 2 and 3. The car safely on the trailer with side platforms, traffic control was the next important step.
Cutting traffic through the only road in Teide National Park is a challenge in itself but our location team ably controlled the multiple sections of two to three kilometres each, providing added entertainment to the many travellers and tour buses patiently waiting for a good few minutes in the queues!
For the finale and keeping in mind our policy of safety first, Rex´s owner squeezed down behind the front seats and held him whilst the car was on the move. By this time however Rex was taking everything in his stride and just loving his salmon flavoured treats.
At the end of the day, and after completing the campaign photo shoot as well, we could safely say another ´mission impossible´ completed in style.
