Written by on Apr 28, 2015. Posted in Production News

MJZ pairs model with talking horse in US Virgin Islands filming for DirecTV

MJZ filmed on location in the US Virgin Islands for a new campaign for the American satellite service provider DirecTV. The spots feature US model Hannah Davis on a tropical beach, while her New Zealand-accented talking horse ruminates on his success.

The production team considered filming locations in Puerto Rico and also St Croix in the US Virgin Islands, but in the end settled on the island of St Thomas.

“Getting the beach to be empty was the biggest challenge,” explains Lindsay Myers, a producer with agency Grey New York.

“Thankfully, the nicest-looking beach for our needs was smaller and we were granted permission to control it. We also had to control boat traffic, which was the second challenge. Then we had to deal with wind, wave-crashing sounds, sand flies and sporadic rain, but we knew to expect this when coming to an island.”

The team cleaned the sand on their beach and also added greenery and small palm trees as set dressing.

“MJZ hired a local producer/location manager, Todd Hecht, who sourced local crew and equipment but most of our crew and equipment had to come from the US,” Myers adds.

“The US Virgin Islands film commissioner Steve Bornn was also involved and facilitated customs and USDA (US Department of Agriculture) clearances, as well as location permits.”

The British Virgin Islands are part of the same archipelago and last year hosted a high-profile campaign for Johnnie Walker Blue Label that featured British star Jude Law and Italian actor Giancarlo Giannini.

Credits:
Client: DirecTV
Agency: Grey New York
Production Company: MJZ
Line Producer: Todd Hecht