Apparently, when you're asked to shoot four commercials on three continents in just over a week, the first thing you do is rent your own private jet. It worked for Young & Rubicam, New York who, along with director Joe Pytka, took a round-the-world journey in a Gulfstream IV to create Chevron's Will You Join Us? campaign.

"It would have taken three times longer without it," says Pytka. "You can bypass a lot of travel restrictions, speed through customs. You save a day for every day you work." Especially when your ports of call include Shanghai and Guilin in China, Jaipur in India, Rome, Paris, New York, LA and the Mojave Desert.

The spots, "Wind", "Carriages", "Manhole" and "Bicycles", are meant to provoke thought about the dwindling state of oil reserves and increasing energy needs with a series of whimsical images: the Eiffel Tower as a wind turbine; self-propelled baby carriages speeding over the roads of the world; a Chinese man adding to a giant Seussian pile of discarded bicycles after unloading one from his new car; and two men measuring how much oil is left in the world by lowering a dipstick into the desert.

Many of the specifics of the shoots, and indeed the moods of the pieces, were determined on the fly, literally. "The plane became something of a workstation; we'd hammer things out in the air," says Pytka, adding that as a result, the process was very collaborative. The spots evolved to the point that "no one man can take credit," at least for the creative end.

If anyone were to take credit for the practical side of the ledger, it should be Pytka's producer Linda Masse, who arranged everything from permits and gear to crew and specifics of the locations, all while in the air.

"Linda was doing the heavy lifting," says Y&R EVP, director of broadcast production Rich Rosenthal of his stratospheric experience. "From my point of view, the production went like clockwork. Linda might say different but that's simply a testament to her."

Granted, Paris, and to a lesser extent Guilin, were the only cities requiring full-blown productions, and Pytka is notorious for using minimal gear, being his own DP and shooting fast and furiously.

Probably the least complex spot to shoot was "Carriages", which required a series of about 20 backgrounds with moving baby buggies inserted during post. "The stops in India, Rome, Shanghai and New York were just for that spot," says Rosenthal. "We spent about a half day in each place." Background plates were also shot in the other locations while filming the other spots. "I'd shoot an easy one - just a still - and a hard one, where the camera moves," says Pytka, of the mattes for "Carriages". "The Mill deserves the credit for that spot. It takes more than just adjusting for light and shadows with technology to pull it off; you need an artist's eye."

The Paris-shot "Wind" was the most complex, not least because the French are so fond of red tape. "Paris is fraught with peril," says Pytka. "There are so many permits needed." Despite this, the production carried on and indeed found its groove in the City of Lights. With its addition of a runaway bowler hat, the proper level of whimsy was found for the campaign: the problem now was that "Manhole", which was shot first, no longer fit the mold. "The first time, we shot it dead serious," says Pytka of the spot, which shows an oil worker traveling to the center of the earth with a dipstick. The thought was that the powerful message - the oil supply is fast disappearing - would drive the spot, but in the end it needed to be turned into more of a "fable".

A quick jaunt back to the Mojave for the addition of a crossword-puzzling man waiting on his partner did the trick, turning the spot into an effective, if not-so-subtle, David Lean spoof.

Calling the re-shoot "simple", Pytka credits the plane for the flexibility. "It's like being on the road with a football team: there is a clear sense of the goal, [and] a minimum amount of distraction."

"Bicycles" ride cut short?

The fourth spot in the series, "Bicycles" - which shows a Chinese everyman junking his bike for a gas-burning car amid the stunning and verdant outcroppings of Guilin - may never get broadcast. Before its airdate, the Chinese tried to buy US-owned oil giant Unocal causing a nervous stir in America. In the end, Chevron bought the company, keeping control in US hands. But the commercial's message, implying that Chevron will find some way of serving China's growing oil needs, is at odds with the reality of out-bidding them for Unocal. The moral of the story? No amount of problem-solving focus afforded by a private jet can anticipate the impact of what Rudyard Kipling called "The Great Game". - JL

Good To Know

What to bring: Pytka's Aaton 35 camera, lenses and film.
Skeleton crew. That's about it.
Where to eat: Chez L'Ami Louis, one of the oldest bistros in Paris.
Global bureaucracy: In China, once you have a permit from the government, you can do whatever you need within reason and with the permission of the government officer assigned to the shoot. For example, the crew spontaneously stopped traffic on a highway for a shot. In India you have to deal with the Maharajahs (akin to a mayor) for each area. Good local production contacts are essential. Tap into what Pytka calls the "world filmmaking community".
Crews: A little cheaper in China and India, but they are incredibly hard workers.
Gulfstream IV specs: A favorite of the CIA, the G4 can fly 4100 nautical miles on one tank of gas. That's Chicago to Berlin (or Guantanamo to Damascus) non-stop.

Young & Rubicam> www.yr.com
Chevron> www.willyoujoinus.com