Making Of: Canoo // Skateboard
THE CONCEPT
The Canoo project was an opportunity to capture a foundational shift in thinking, one made tangible in a single, radical piece of technology. A company led by industry legends poised to redefine the EV space, they entrusted us with a unique challenge: to film the very soul of their company, a drivable platform with no top half.
The "Skateboard" is a testament to obsessive engineering. The creative challenge was equally ambitious. How do you tell the story of something that is both a finished product and a blank slate?
“Canoo is a director’s unicorn client: they placed total creative trust into our hands and encouraged risks that other clients might not be comfortable with. The pressure was on.”
This trust became the bedrock of the project.
THE CRAFT
The narrative was built around a single, powerful through-line: the journey from the spark of an obsessive idea to its triumphant realization. We designed two contrasting worlds to tell this story. The first, set in Canoo's headquarters, was a world of focused creation: A space of cool, blue-toned light where the work happens. The second was the vast, open expanse of the desert: A stage for the Skateboard’s powerful release.
DP Jared Fadel was instrumental in shaping this vision. His meticulous lighting design gave the warehouse an almost surreal quality, transforming a workspace into a stage for innovation. The choice of Panavision E-Series Anamorphic lenses was deliberate, lending a cinematic scope and character to every frame that was essential for capturing the larger-than-life nature of the idea itself.
Agency Shot List — Warehouse
Production Stills — Warehouse
Agency Shot List — Desert
Production Stills — Desert
When we took to the desert - we knew we had to make an epic arrival. A dry Lakebed was the perfect setting. It allowed us to demonstrate the skateboard's performance on an open course. The acceleration is immense, and the car needed room to run. Sticking with the creative boards from client, we went with a minimal color palette really emphasizing the neutral tones.
THE CRAFT
The narrative was built around a single, powerful through-line: the journey from the spark of an obsessive idea to its triumphant realization. We designed two contrasting worlds to tell this story. The first, set in Canoo's headquarters, was a world of focused creation: A space of cool, blue-toned light where the work happens. The second was the vast, open expanse of the desert: A stage for the Skateboard’s powerful release.
DP Jared Fadel was instrumental in shaping this vision. His meticulous lighting design gave the warehouse an almost surreal quality, transforming a workspace into a stage for innovation. The choice of Panavision E-Series Anamorphic lenses was deliberate, lending a cinematic scope and character to every frame that was essential for capturing the larger-than-life nature of the idea itself.
Cody's Plan
THE MOMENT
In the early hours of the desert shoot, art mirrored reality. As the Canoo team unloaded the Skateboard for its first true run, the set was charged with an electric, contagious energy. Watching their creation rip across the dry lakebed was a moment of pure exaltation and countless high-fives and hugs.
That feeling, the raw energy of a dream made real, is the heart of the driving footage. It’s not something that can be manufactured. It can only be captured when you are present to the moment.
THE RESULT
Handled entirely in-house, the final edit by Nate Cali is a cinematic :90 film that gives the anamorphic visuals the space they deserve. The color grade, a collaboration with Parker Jarvie at Company 3, enhances the two distinct worlds while maintaining a cohesive, elevated feel.
The final film transcends product demonstration to tell a story of what happens when visionary technology meets absolute creative trust. It’s a physical document of an obsessive idea brought to life, and we are proud to have been there to help write a page of that history.
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