Award-winning director and photographer Stewart Cohen recently worked on a nostalgic and visually rich spot for United Supermarkets, a Texas-based grocery brand celebrating its 100th anniversary. In a conversation with AdChat DFW, Cohen shares how SC Pictures recreated multiple eras organically, without relying heavily on CGI, to tell a truly authentic Texas story.
AdChat DFW: Can you walk us through the spot you did for United Supermarkets?
Stewart Cohen: Sure! This was done with Deutser out of Houston, and their client was United Supermarkets, a Texas-based company celebrating its 100th anniversary. They wanted to do a spot that showcased the brand throughout the years, and their one big request was to keep everything organic. They didn’t want a lot of CGI. They wanted the transitions between eras to be as seamless and natural as possible.
AdChat DFW: How did you choose which time periods to shoot?
Stewart Cohen: They had a rough idea of which decades they wanted to represent, so our job was to bring that vision to life. We started scouting locations that would require as little production design as possible. The first two vignettes were shot in Old City Park, where we found two historic buildings that worked for the really old stores, and then we figured out the transitions between eras—using things like a door closing or someone walking across the screen.
We then found two other grocery stores in the Dallas area that we used, one for the 1950s and one for the 1970s. The ’70s vignette is my favorite. Everything in those scenes was authentic: the cars, the people, the signage in the windows. The only visual effect we used was to replace the modern store signs with United’s branding above the doors. Everything else was practically done.
AdChat DFW: That’s amazing. Who helped you source all those vintage cars?
Stewart Cohen: Jeff Milburn. He’s a local car guy and has been a great resource for us. We used era-specific cars for every vignette.
AdChat DFW: And the final scene? The one that looks the most modern?
Stewart Cohen: That was shot at United’s flagship store in Amarillo. It was the perfect setting to wrap up the story.
AdChat DFW: You really told the story well, it came together beautifully.
Stewart Cohen: Thank you. Our art department was fantastic. They sourced all the props, signage, and visual references. We tried to stay true to each period.
AdChat DFW: Did you use a local casting company?
Stewart Cohen: No, we did all the casting ourselves, in-house. And, we produced two more spots mirroring the same time transitions, only inside of the stores.
AdChat DFW: These spots are so fun, it looks as if you time traveled. The historical accuracy, the transitions, all of it…it’s so well done. Thanks for sharing the behind-the-scenes, Stewart!
Stewart Cohen: Thanks. I really appreciate that.
Watch spots…
Credits:
Agency: Deutser
Production Company: SC Pictures
CD: Diane Pittman
Production Designer: Tim Thomason
