Honda’s orbs of oddness

Often the most successful ads involve a canny conflation of two seemingly disparate entities – such as the patience of a surfer waiting for a perfect wave and the mindfullness of a Guinness drinker waiting for the perfect pint. 

In this simple but elegant spot for Honda – who are official performance partners of the Rugby Football Union – the brand’s fascination with oddly-shaped engineering problems aligns nicely with the game's irregular oval ball.  

Created in-house, and helmed through RadicalMedia by up-and-coming director Freddie Leyden, the mission was to demonstrate the somewhat chaotic and unpredictable nature of ‘the odd shaped ball’. It doesn’t bounce straight or roll predictably – you never know what it’ll do next. But challenging oneself with unusually shaped problems leads to arriving at more interesting solutions.

Everything was filmed in-camera by DP David Bird and Leyden, who’s known for his use of analogue camera techniques. The team dropped hundreds of rugby balls from precisely the same location, yet no two bounces were ever the same. Shout out to Zelig, for the awesome audio. 

Freddie Leyden “This was a dream brief. I’ve always loved Honda’s commercials—they have a sense of engineered brilliance—so getting the chance to create something in that spirit was beyond exciting. Mastering the practical elements was key; we experimented endlessly with the rugby ball, built the set, and dropped all the balls for real, which was pure magic.”