Shortly after Tom Brady pushed the New England Patriots to a comeback win in Super Bowl LI, the commercial break featured a 90-second documentary from Hyundai Motor America that had been filmed during the game.
In the documentary, three soldiers who had been deployed to Zagan, Poland were led away from a large group of troops watching the Super Bowl and entered nondescript structures. They were about to be reunited with their families.
Cpl. Trista Strauch, Spc. Erik Guerrero and Sgt. Richard Morrill entered 360-degree immersive pods and were surprised to suddenly have a virtual seat alongside family members who were actually inside a suite at NRG Stadium in Houston. The soldiers were able to see and interact with family on another continent in real-time thanks to satellite video and audio streams. It took three broadcast systems to create high-resolution spherical videos for the pod.
It was all part of what Hyundai called Operation Better.
“Hyundai has always had a strong relationship with the U.S. Armed Forces, and we wanted to give those who make the love and passion for football possible a unique and better experience,” Hyundai Motor America chief marketing officer Dean Evans said in a statement. “‘Better’ is our driving force and this campaign is an act of that brand philosophy. Using the latest innovations in video technology we will give our troops an experience they will never forget and one that viewers won’t want to miss.”
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Hyundai teamed up with marketing agency partner INNOCEAN Worldwide Americas and director Peter Berg, who filmed, edited and produced the commercial. The footage from Zagan and Houston was edited and produced in a production trailer outside the stadium during the game.
“I’m incredibly proud to be partnering with the Hyundai and INNOCEAN teams to bring the troops a better Super Bowl experience through cutting-edge technology,” Berg said in a statement. “Editing the piece during the game itself is going to be intense, but we will have an incredible team in place on multiple continents to pull off this feat.”
Hyundai is in its second year as an official NFL sponsor and is the official car and SUV of the league.