With a new Porsche 911 of course comes a new TV spot to advertise the latest and greatest from Stuttgart.
Not for nothing is the video called “Compete” as the best really do compete against the best in the film. Muhammad Ali, the greatest boxer of all-time, will faces off against none other than himself in the ring thanks to some very clever editing.
Likewise Maria Sharapova only has to fear herself on the court, chess world champion Magnus Carlsen knows the moves his opponent Magnus Carlsen is likely to make, and the new 911 will meet the 911 on the road. The message Porsche is trying to convey in the new commercial is, only the best have a chance against the best. Only a Porsche 911 can beat a Porsche 911.
While countless manufacturers pour resources into development while benchmarking against the 911, a legend in its own right, the same amount of effort went into producing the unique advertisement worthy of the iconic sports car.
The work involved in producing the commercial, which screens on television in almost 20 countries around the world after Christmas, was enormous.
Filmed on two continents, with the sequences with Maria Sharapova were shot in Los Angeles, while the face of the young Ali was shaped in New York.
The body-double for Ali was trained over five weeks by Darrell Foster, the same trainer who got US actor Will Smith in shape for the film “Ali”. Ali’s face was later digitally reworked and integrated into the video. The boxing legend himself approved the film script. Back-drops were filmed in Budapest while the clip was put together by director Mark Jenkinson together with the US agency, Cramer-Krasselt.