Rocket Mortgage Explores Homeownership Fantasies in Optimistic Series of Spots
Boutique commercial production company Native Content was recently tapped by Rocket Mortgage’s in-house creative team to collaborate on the brand’s new 4-spot 'More Than a House' campaign. Directed by Native’s Sorrel Brae, the spots humorously blend the real world with fantasy worlds to show the inner dreams of new homeowners.
“We had a fabulous collaboration with the creative team at Rocket Mortgage, building from the optimism and positivity of their mortgage process, compared to the exhaustion of the traditional mortgage process,” shared Sorrel. “To capture that mindset, we created these dreamlike vignettes showing different homeowners and these heightened fantasy versions of their domains, from the pool being an oasis to the lawn being a fairway. The whole production process was a pleasure from start to finish, and it was great fun to explore this high-concept humor where everything was a bit surreal.”
Currently airing on broadcast and online, each spot illustrates different families enjoying the much-anticipated perks of their new homes. One spot highlights a busy mom finding respite in her bathtub paradise, another features a dad lounging in the oasis of his backyard pool, one more shows a man dreaming of perfecting his golf swing in the backyard, and a final spot shows the point of view of the family dog as he explores his new personal playground.
Each story deftly builds in natural moments of transition between the real and fantasy worlds, such as dolphins in the open ocean shifting to a child wearing a fin toy in the pool.
The Native team embarked on ambitious shoots across two days each in California and Florida, wrangling a variety of animals and kids and managing aggressive location changes all while chasing the optimal daylight. Brae and DP’s Masanobu Takayanagi and Rob Hauer embraced a cinematic look, using vintage anamorphic lenses and long, controlled camera moves for the fantasy worlds, and crisp spherical lenses with a more handheld and quick comedic feel for the real worlds. The subtle shift in aspect ratios helps underscore the transition for viewers.
