Leo Burnett Detroit Compares Cars to Baseball in New Chevy Campaign

One at Optimus Director Jimmy Matlosz directed two spots for Chevy highlighting the automotive company’s role as the official vehicle of Major League Baseball. Matlosz, who works extensively with athletes in all realms of the sports world, collaborated with Leo Burnett Detroit to cast real baseball players versus actors to ensure the authenticity of the spots, which will run strategically on networks airing MLB games throughout the 2015 season.

The two spots, “Slide” and “Catcher’s Mask,” focus on the intense moments in baseball that put fans on the edge of their seats. “Slide” required a player who could slide gracefully on his left hip and do it with a smile.  In “Catcher’s Mask,” the strength of the catcher’s facemask is matched to that of the truck’s grill. Filmed at 2,500 frames per second, a technical challenge of “Catcher’s Mask” was finding a pitcher who could release the ball in the exact same spot each time and a batter who could foul tip the ball, as well. This allowed for exact focus and the close up shot that Matlosz envisioned for the spot.

Says Matlosz, “The process of arranging these spots was almost like putting a team together. We couldn’t have created the finished work so seamlessly without the collaborative relationship with Leo Burnett Detroit and the athletes we cast. The shoot was incredibly rewarding, and the finished work reflects the power that is the Chevy truck.”