According to Audi product placement boss Kai Mensing, the German carmaker loves to be in the middle of an action packed movie, although they never look to force things when it comes to adapting to various story lines.
During a recent interview with Audi Soul, Mensing touched on several topics regarding product placement, from what it’s like on set, to how concept cars fit in with certain movies.
Asked about how product placement works and whether Audi contacts the studios or vice versa, the exec said:
“There is no standard process. Sometimes we contact the studio, sometimes it is the other way around. We also get calls from agencies and contacts from the film industry or sometimes even directors or members of the cast who know us. We usually read the script, and we check whether the offer matches our strategy and communication goals. If that is the case, we support the project with cars, parts and technical expertise. We will make sure the studio has all the resources it needs.”
“We certainly don’t want to adapt any scenes to our own needs,” said Mensing when asked how much say his company has regarding the storyline or the context in which the cars are shown.
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“Our goal is the organic, authentic integration of our brand and our products in entertainment for the general public, so we don’t force things. We adapt to the story. If the script requires a sporty car, we deliver an Audi R8, or one of the RS models, for example.”
So if you’re asking yourself how come Tony Stark ended up driving an R8, well, it was because the script required that he drove something sporty and expensive, but also because of the type of movie Iron Man turned out to be.
“Of course action films are a very rewarding genre because we can integrate the cars in a more dynamic way. That is preferable to static placements,” added Mensing.
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His favorite scene with an Audi in it meanwhile was also from a Marvel movie, specifically Captain America: Civil War – the famous tunnel chase scene between Winter Soldier, Black Panther, Captain America (in an Audi SQ7) and Falcon.
“Creating that scene was extremely challenging because we had to work with lots and lots of cars in a tunnel for several weeks. Particularly, the challenging stunt at the end of the scene required meticulous preparation by the stunt crew and our technical experts.”
He also says that the Audi e-tron GT concept driven by Tony Stark in Avengers: Endgame is the most impressive concept car ever used on film, as a personal opinion.
Audi also shared a list of movies that it’s vehicles have taken part in over the years:
- 1982 – Audi 5000 in “E.T., the Extra-Terrestrial”
- 1998 – Audi S8 in “Ronin”
- 1999 – Audi A4 sedan in “The Insider”
- 2003 – Audi TT Roadster in “Legally Blonde 2: Red White & Blonde”
- 2006 – Audi A3 Sportback in “Superman Returns”
- 2007 – Audi A5 in “The Bourne Ultimatum”
- 2008 – Audi R8, S5 and Audi Q7 in “Iron Man”
- 2008 – Audi A3 Sportback and S8 in “Taken”
- 2010 – Audi A5 Sportback in “The American”
- 2013 – Audi R8 Spyder and A8 in “The Wolverine”
- 2014 – Audi A5 Convertible and S6 in “Transformers: Age of Extinction”
- 2015 – Audi A4 allroad, A3, A4 Convertible, Audi Q7, S7, S8 and R8 Spyder in “Fifty Shades of Grey”
- 2017 – Audi A8 in “Spider-Man: Homecoming”
- 2017 – Audi A3 and Audi Q7 in “Fifty Shades Darker”
- 2018 – Audi Q5, Q7, RS 7 and R8 in “Fifty Shades Freed”
- 2019 – Audi e-tron Sportback concept car and e-tron GT concept car in “Avengers: Endgame”
- 2019 – Audi e-tron SUV, A7 and Audi Q8 in “Spider-Man: Far From Home”
- 2019 – Audi RSQ e-tron concept car in “Spies in Disguise”
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