Matt Hodgson | Director • Writer

by Matt Hodgson—Director/Writer

“Endless Summer” — Part 5

Once we had decided to shoot Lagoon’s “Endless Summer” campaign on Widescreen SUPER 8mm the next hurdle was to find the right music. My goal was to shoot the campaign like a music video—meaning that I wanted the music playing on location as we shot each scene, so that our ensemble of actors would be reacting to the energy of the song while they told the story of a cool new surf-themed coaster coming to Lagoon. Finding the right tune and having it for the shoot was critical… and it had to be perfect. I wanted a song that had a quintessential 60’s surf vibe, that was somehow authentic to the Lagoon experience, all while being super hip and relevant for 2011. No tall order right?

I remember diving into iTunes in search of the perfect song and emerging many hours later having discovered the Drums and their smash hit, “Let’s Go Surfing.” When I first heard “Let’s Go Surfing” I couldn’t believe it. It was as if someone had looked at my storyboards and written a song specifically for my campaign. Better still I was completely blown away by their sound—it seemed timeless and familiar, but with a fresh vibe and a cool edge, it couldn’t have been more perfect.

I remember listening to the song over and over again and then writing this incredible vision of sun, surf and Lagoon into an introduction e-mail to the Drums management.

Within a few days of my e-mail, Jeff Miller (executive producer) at Vineyard Productions was following up with calls to the Drums management, and before long we were in negotiations. Everyone associated with the Drums was super cool to work with and willing to do whatever they could to make our campaign a success.

I’m still stunned that this all happened, and even more stunned that it came together in such a short amount of time. Thanks to everyone at Vineyard Productions and the Drums for your extraordinary effort on our behalf. Sometimes things are just meant to happen and this was definitely one of those times.

SHOOTING SUPER 8mm, LISTENING TO THE DRUMS

With the contract in the works we began shooting and everything went as I had anticipated. Playing “Let’s Go Surfing” as we shot each scene was key to capturing the reactions and energy we wanted from our actors. Even behind the lens, the combination of the music and the energy from the actors was motivating us to be more spontaneous in our shooting.

After three days on location at Lagoon and a day on the beach in So-Cal, the music and reactions were still just as fresh as they were when we started shooting. The combination of the Drums “Let’s Go Surfing,” our amazing actors and shooting widescreen SUPER 8mm allowed us to capture some of the most captivating, engaging, genuinely fun and totally memorable imagery that we have ever captured for Lagoon and Coca-Cola—honestly, I couldn’t be happier.

THE DRUMS @ URBAN LOUNGE

As luck would have it, the Drums were finishing a show in LA and were headed to Salt Lake City at the same time we were finishing our final shoot day on the beach, so Matthew Williams (Cinematographer) and I returned to Salt Lake to meet the band in person and hear them perform live at the Urban Lounge.

The Drums appeared with Surfer Blood (who were also very cool) and totally brought the house down with their LIVE version of “Let’s Go Surfing”— Jonathan Pierce (Lead Vocal), Jacob Graham (Guitar) and Connor Harwick (Drums) were sensational! Their vibe was infective, the standing room only crowd was into them from the first note—the energy in the Urban Lounge was insane. If you ever get a chance to see the Drums LIVE… do it! If not, go to iTunes now and check them out—their vibe, their lyrics and their tunes… rock!

Following the Drums performance we hooked up with Jacob Graham and he was totally excited that the Drums were going to be a part of Lagoon’s 2011 Campaign. We walked away from the Urban Lounge that night knowing that we had amazing footage in the can and a super cool smash hit by the Drums to go along with it. Lagoon’s 2011 “Endless Summer” campaign was going to be unforgettable.

To checkout the Drums visit… www.thedrums.com  or visit iTunes.

• All Photos Courtesy of The Drums

Visit  www.matthodgsondirects.com  to see the entire 2011 Lagoon Coca-Cola “Endless Summer” Campaign.