Given the concealing power of shades, you'd think that a sunwear brand would be the last to encourage its wearers to eschew the incognito. But that's the basis of Ray-Ban's "Never Hide" campaign - a global effort, and the largest in its 70-year history, comprising print, interactive, outdoor, cinema and TV ads.

Leading Cutwater, San Francisco's TV effort is "Reflections". Helmed by Michael Haussman of HSI Productions, Los Angeles, the spot is a black-and-white ode to the intrepid. Giving the appearance of a single, long take, viewers watch a series of Ray-Ban wearers engaging in bold activities such as crowd-surfing, bungee jumping and skinny-dipping.

Targeting Ray-Ban's global market, shooting in Buenos Aires, Argentina was the logical choice to capture the creative's worldly feel.

"The Argentine population really represents, in terms of casting, an interesting mélange of people that works well for global brands," says Cutwater's head of production, Jennifer Golub. The favorable exchange rate on the shoot's limited budget and the fact that Haussman was already there shooting another spot also influenced the choice.

It also helped that Haussman and HSI were well versed with shooting in the city and had a solid relationship with local production service company Film Planet.

"Because South America has become such an important option as far as the variety of the locations and the cost of talent, having one company that we trust has been crucial for us," says HSI EP Kerstin Emhoff.

That reliability came into play during a sequence of particularly difficult shots. Each scene in the spot begins with a close-up on a Ray-Ban wearer and then pans out to full-screen view before moving to the next scene using another Ray-Ban wearer's sunglasses as a transitioning device.

According to Haussman, the mechanics of these shots weren't something that local crews were necessarily familiar with, but they adapted nonetheless.

"[We] did long takes that start close on someone's eye and then pull out, and every time the camera is moving slightly differently," explains Haussman. "So sometimes we had a periscope on top of a techno crane that's pulling out. Another time, we couldn't be on a techno crane because the camera was doing a half-circle and then pulling back, so we had a periscope on a steadicam. Playing with these weird tools isn't necessarily comfortable in any country."

Having to work within a tight three-day timeframe with a small budget, Haussman found it helpful that he was able to shoot most of the scenes in one location.

The spot features six different locales - concert venue, school window, street scene, tattoo parlor, outdoor pool and bridge - but Haussman and crew were able to build the tattoo parlor in the same space as the venue, which proved cost-efficient. The window at a Tudor-style rowing club was substituted for the school window and the bridge shot was completed using green screen.

Thanks to the influx of foreign productions coming into the city, Film Planet EP Karin Stuckenschmidt says that the availability of equipment to meet foreign requests is relatively good, with most sourced locally. However, a Revolution Lens System, necessary for the transition shots, had to be brought in from Brazil as the only one available in Buenos Aires was booked. Also, a waterproof sock that was fitted to the lens for the underwater pool shots was flown in from Los Angeles.

Cast and crew were sourced locally, aside from DP Paul Cameron and VFX supervisor Les Umberger of R!OT, Santa Monica who traveled from the US, and Haussman's regular AD, who resides in Spain but works extensively in South America.

With so much available in Argentina, it's paradoxical that one of the most traditional aspects of the shoot - shooting in black and white - posed a problem.

"We did a test and the lab was just not set up to do black and white," says Haussman. "Nor was it willing to go that extra step; that's becoming the same everywhere in the world now. No one does black and white. So we had to shoot everything in color and then take it there. But in doing that we pushed everything two stops and had to use different stock."

All concerned largely had praise for shooting in Buenos Aires - Emhoff likened it to the way London companies view South Africa: easy to access, with good talent and cost-efficient.

But one particularly harrowing situation had everyone on edge.

"Our motor home got hijacked by two guys with guns," reveals Emhoff. "They held up the stylist and her assistant, kidnapped them in the motor home, drove them to another town, robbed them and were going to take all the wardrobe for the shoot. But she begged them to leave her the wardrobe because of the horrible position that would leave her in. They agreed and just left them and the motor home in some random city. But I couldn't believe that she begged them to leave the wardrobe!"

GOOD TO KNOW
Exchange Rate: 1 USD = 3.07 Argentine Pesos

Shoe Crazy: Renowned as the "Manolo Blahniks of tango," the limited-edition tango shoes at Comme il Faut (Arenales 1239, Puerta 3) had the PAs running back and forth to fill orders for the stiletto-crazy ladies at HSI. Approx. $80 a pair.
Good Eats: Located on the famous Avenida de Mayo, the 150-year-old Café Tortoni was host to patrons like Albert Einstein and Federico Garcia Lorca. Try the crustless flat sandwiches or play a game of pool.
Accomodation: A four- or five-star hotel averages $250 to $450 per night.