Dropbox Blends Humanity and Technology in McLaren Campaign Starring Lando Norris

Dropbox, an Official Technology Partner of the McLaren Formula 1 Team, shows fans how one of the world’s most extreme teams in business pursues speed and excellence. In Formula 1, once all the cars cross the finish line, and the black-and-white chequered flag is waved, a new race begins off track. The McLaren Formula 1 Team collects up to 200 million data points each race, which it then analyses to optimise its performance in the next race. In this race, success isn’t measured in laps and points but in split-second decisions that could make or break race day.

Dropbox gives this elusive behind-the-scenes work its due in “The Race Between Races,” a short film debuting September 23rd with additional content airing September 30th. Creative film studio Farm League joined early in the process to develop and produce the project, with director David Findlay at the helm. 

Using a fast-paced style befitting a sport that sees drivers reach speeds of 200+ miles/hr, “The Race Between Races” takes viewers through a typical race week for the team. The film blends grounded human moments and textural ambience from the 2024 Miami Grand Prix and McLaren HQ with engaging interviews from a variety of key McLaren team members to create an immersive experience for viewers.

“We’re racing 24 times a year, all over the world,” McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown explained. “Every race week, we are debriefing and at the same time we’re preparing for the next race.”

The urgency increases when there’s back-to-back races. Then, The McLaren F1 Team only has four days to share and analyse an avalanche of content off track to make data-driven decisions. This intense sprint is just as critical to McLaren’s success as Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri’s driving, though it’s not the story in the spotlight after a win.

When Oscar asks Lando who he “reckon[s] has the toughest job on the team,” they both agree: “Not us.” F1 fans soon understand why, as “The Race Between Races” swings the spotlight over to the work The McLaren F1 Team does across engineering, IT, marketing, race strategy, manufacturing, and more—a group of approximately 1,200 people.

The campaign is running now on TV, digital and social channels. Creative agency Farm League and media agency Gale collaborated on the campaign.