How to Create Premium Ads on a Budget! BTS of Creative Advertising

By Lizanne J Lyngdoh

Entering the universe of construction, there is a lot more that goes on behind the scenes than what meets the eye. It is like a whole mini-verse, with separate businesses within construction. Destiny worked its magic as Zooq Films was contacted by members of Contrackt App, co-founded by Mrs. Nanda B. Shivakumar, which is a platform that represents the world of construction. Zooq was hired for a project– creating three ad films for the app. The app allows the citizens of the construction world to interact with one another. It is also an Amazon for all things construction like materials, machines, resources etc, also allowing people nearby to rent machines.

Advertisements play an important role in the promotion of a business or a product– providing necessary information about products that help the audience engage with the brand. Zooq Films did just that by creating three ad films for Contrackt App in three different languages, Kannada, Tamil & Telugu, each with a different storyline.

Through a brainstorming session, the teams came up with brilliant ideas for these advertisements, and after long discussions, a bulb lit up on top of their heads and they narrowed down their options to a total of three ideas. These ideas included storylines centralizing machine owners, women empowerment, and sellers. The process of reaching a verdict on which ideas to bring to life was, as described by Zooq’s creative producer, Fouqia Wajid, a decision “we made on our trip back to Bangalore after the recce in Chikkabaplapur, in the car”. Spontaneity at its very best! When running through many ideas, it is important to be open minded and ready to consider suggestions as this paves a way for amazing ideas, like the plots of these ad films! When the decisions that were made were given the green light by all the members of the two teams, it was time to get to the actual work. In other words, the fun part.

The Contrackt App team put their trust in the members of the Zooq Films team for a smooth sailing production and so, the procedure commenced.
Coming to the advertisements, the storylines that made the cut, directed by Rizwan Khan & Fouqia Wajid, were about:

A mechanic who was clearly tired, sweaty, and busy with his work when suddenly, a clean and tidy, simple man from the rural areas asks him what he is doing. The mechanic then explains that he is actually the owner of the machine. He goes on to say that he has no clue as to how he is going to utilise these machines when he is not in the process of any construction. This simple, tidy man then gives him the solution by suggesting to the machine owner to rent his machines on the Contrackt App, and get regular income.
This kind of advertisement, though simple and common, caters to the target audience, therefore making it an advertisement with huge potential.

A woman contractor who is initially seen as weak but later on, as the plot unfolds, shines as a hero. At the beginning of the scene, we see that her employers are constantly bugging her with complaints about machines not working, scarce material supply, workers not performing etc. It is total chaos at this point. The woman contractor tackles all these complaints by promising that she will eventually fix them and also, solve their problems. In this scene, a lot of noise is being played in the background to create the feeling of a busy, chaotic environment. Her father comes in and asks her how she is going to keep her promises. He even doubts her by saying that she should have just listened to him and gotten an office job instead. Like a total boss lady, she simply smiles at him and asks him not to worry as there is a simple solution to everything with Contrackt App.
This advertisement adds a touch of uniqueness and inclusivity as it promotes woman empowerment especially in a field of work that is typically dominated by men.

A young hardworking supplier of materials in a very big setting with many big machines. While he is working, another man comes in, clearly full of jealousy, and asks him how to be successful by supplying materials to leading clients. He expresses his frustration by telling him that he does not know how to do it. The supplier then says that it is possible to get nation wide projects through the app.
This advertisement is also a common one with a very short plot as it is only a 30 second ad. But it caters to the target audience very well.

To be able to bring these ideas to life, however, locations to set the scene were needed. For this, recce or location scouting was done. The crews went on a small trip to Chikkaballapur to find locations that would be suitable for the ads. Upon coming across a few, proper examination of the locations were done– this process includes checking the angles, the surroundings etc. The teams finalized the positions and setting during the recce itself as it would make it easier for them when it was time to start filming. Because of the teams’ quick working and thinking, all of this could be finished in two days! Fun fact, it was on their way back from this trip that the ideas for the plots were born!

An obstacle was holding the process back however, which was a low budget. With a low budget, hiring people for the roles in the advertisements became difficult. To counter this problem, the first solution that was laid out on the table was to hire real life construction workers to shoot a sort of testimonial video. This would save money while also being advertisements of their truest, most natural form. As brilliant an idea as this was, it posed to be a problem as the advertisement could not convey its full message about the Contrackt App without a little exaggeration here and there. Somehow reaching a middle ground, it was decided to make the best out of hired cast members who were trained by Mr. Deevas Gupta. Mr. Gupta was also kind enough to hold auditions for these roles.

Rehearsals started to progress and were successful. The journey to Chikkaballapur, where the advertisements were shot, was an excellent one and after 2 days of shooting three advertisements, it was time to return and get started on the post-production process.

Saving the best and the hardest part for last, the editing of the whole process was done by Bala Murugan. He ever so patiently sat down and reviewed all the clips carefully before editing and giving us clips that are pleasing to the eye. All the hard work contributed by everyone would not have been fruitful had it not been for our Assistant Cameramen, Sudhakar, Murali Krishnan, Moulish.

Zooq Films hired the famous Pradeep Badekilla to perform the Kannada language voice over. In addition to the animation, the advertisements were dubbed in two more languages, Tamil and Telugu by Shreyas Hegde. Dubbing the ads was an innovative, fun, and creative process and it involved a lot of team effort which made it a success! An original track for the advertisements was created by Aravind from Chennai.

All in all, the experience of producing the ad films with Contrackt App was an amazing one for Zooq Films. With everybody’s hard work, determination, and dedication the creation of these advertisements was successful, which surely will help in the promotion of this brilliant app.
If you want tips to shoot in challenging situations, always feel free to connect with the Zooq team at zooqfilms@gmail.com

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Lizanne J Lyngdoh

Born and brought up in the Abode of Clouds, Meghalaya, in the capital city, Shillong, 20 year old Lizanne J Lyngdoh, commonly known as Liz, is a student of literature with a keen interest in creative arts. Even as a mere teenager, she would always look forward to the daily English lessons as it was the time when she could shine her brightest. Growing up, photography became one of her interests, besides painting, writing, and makeup, and therefore sparked in her a passion for creating art.

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How to Create Premium Ads on a Budget! BTS of Creative Advertising