Ram
What happens when a winter storm freezes your entire production?
LISTEN TO ARTICLE
0:00/1:34
"Society was one step ahead at every stage, leading with poise and professionalism. I can’t recommend them enough."
-Adam Battista
Executive Producer, Highdive Advertising
Landing RAM's national “Truck Month” campaign was thrilling - three dynamic spots showcasing amazing trucks, storied locations, and thoughtful creative from HighDive. With two full units of production and camera teams planned, it was exactly the kind of large-scale automotive work we love. But what began as an exciting creative challenge would ultimately test our dedication to true partnership in ways we never expected. With directors Aaron and Winston Tao leading our A-Unit and Harry Calbom heading our B-Unit, we had assembled the perfect team to capture RAM's power and versatility across various terrains and scenarios.
One week before our scheduled shoot in Austin, Texas, an historic winter storm hit the state. What began as concerning weather conditions quickly escalated into a full-blown emergency as the state's power grid failed, shutting down essential services and infrastructure. During our tech scout, the production team found themselves in an increasingly dangerous situation - no power, no food services, and treacherous road conditions that had people hiking through snow just to reach basic supplies. The challenges were staggering. County authorities revoked all filming permits while city officials restricted road access to emergency vehicles only. The Austin airport closure stranded incoming talent and crew, while local COVID testing labs lost power, making our safety protocols impossible to maintain. Essential production vendors went dark, and even if they hadn't, the dangerous road conditions made it impossible for crew and talent to safely reach our locations. What had started as a weather delay had cascaded into a complete operational shutdown.
Our team ran many contingency scenarios: relocating the entire production, scaling back creative approaches, and analyzing postponement costs. With media slots to fill and significant pre-production already completed, we needed a solution that balanced creative goals, safety requirements, script budget parameters, and urgency. Rather than capitalizing on this event to charge for a full restart plus overages - as many production companies would have done - we negotiated zero-cost postponements with nearly all vendors and crew members. When a second delay became necessary due to the federal disaster declaration, we maintained this partner-first approach, working to minimize additional expenses while ensuring the creative vision remained intact. But our commitment to partnership extended far beyond the production phase. When RAM moved to file an unprecedented force majeure insurance claim, they turned to us for support. For nine months, Society took the lead with the insurance carrier - without charging for our time - documenting every aspect of the crisis response and undergoing detailed audits. This dedication paid off: our client recovered every penny of additional costs incurred due to the emergency.
This kind of financial advocacy is rare in the production world. Most companies would have seen the crisis as an opportunity to maximize additional billings. Instead, we viewed it as a chance to demonstrate what true partnership means - not just delivering excellent creative work, but ensuring our client's business interests were protected every step of the way. When production finally moved forward, we delivered all three spots, on budget, with the original creative ambition intact. But the real success was measured in the strength of trust built through crisis. By combining thorough contingency planning with a genuine commitment to partnership, we transformed what could have been a financial disaster into a testament to the power of putting relationships first.
Treatment
BY THE NUMBERS
BROADCAST SPOTS: 3 HERO VEHICLES: 9 CAMERA UNITS: 2 POWER OUTAGE ZONE: 268,000 MILES DURATION OF NATIONAL EMERGENCY: 8 DAYS SHOOT POSTPONEMENTS: 2 PAGES OF INSURANCE CLAIM: 57 COSTS TO CLIENT NOT PAID BY INSURANCE: $0
BUDGET: EMAIL US
Ram
What happens when a winter storm freezes your entire production?
LISTEN TO ARTICLE
0:00/1:34
"Society was one step ahead at every stage, leading with poise and professionalism. I can’t recommend them enough."
-Adam Battista
Executive Producer, Highdive Advertising
Landing RAM's national “Truck Month” campaign was thrilling - three dynamic spots showcasing amazing trucks, storied locations, and thoughtful creative from HighDive. With two full units of production and camera teams planned, it was exactly the kind of large-scale automotive work we love. But what began as an exciting creative challenge would ultimately test our dedication to true partnership in ways we never expected. With directors Aaron and Winston Tao leading our A-Unit and Harry Calbom heading our B-Unit, we had assembled the perfect team to capture RAM's power and versatility across various terrains and scenarios.
One week before our scheduled shoot in Austin, Texas, an historic winter storm hit the state. What began as concerning weather conditions quickly escalated into a full-blown emergency as the state's power grid failed, shutting down essential services and infrastructure. During our tech scout, the production team found themselves in an increasingly dangerous situation - no power, no food services, and treacherous road conditions that had people hiking through snow just to reach basic supplies. The challenges were staggering. County authorities revoked all filming permits while city officials restricted road access to emergency vehicles only. The Austin airport closure stranded incoming talent and crew, while local COVID testing labs lost power, making our safety protocols impossible to maintain. Essential production vendors went dark, and even if they hadn't, the dangerous road conditions made it impossible for crew and talent to safely reach our locations. What had started as a weather delay had cascaded into a complete operational shutdown.
Our team ran many contingency scenarios: relocating the entire production, scaling back creative approaches, and analyzing postponement costs. With media slots to fill and significant pre-production already completed, we needed a solution that balanced creative goals, safety requirements, script budget parameters, and urgency. Rather than capitalizing on this event to charge for a full restart plus overages - as many production companies would have done - we negotiated zero-cost postponements with nearly all vendors and crew members. When a second delay became necessary due to the federal disaster declaration, we maintained this partner-first approach, working to minimize additional expenses while ensuring the creative vision remained intact. But our commitment to partnership extended far beyond the production phase. When RAM moved to file an unprecedented force majeure insurance claim, they turned to us for support. For nine months, Society took the lead with the insurance carrier - without charging for our time - documenting every aspect of the crisis response and undergoing detailed audits. This dedication paid off: our client recovered every penny of additional costs incurred due to the emergency.
This kind of financial advocacy is rare in the production world. Most companies would have seen the crisis as an opportunity to maximize additional billings. Instead, we viewed it as a chance to demonstrate what true partnership means - not just delivering excellent creative work, but ensuring our client's business interests were protected every step of the way. When production finally moved forward, we delivered all three spots, on budget, with the original creative ambition intact. But the real success was measured in the strength of trust built through crisis. By combining thorough contingency planning with a genuine commitment to partnership, we transformed what could have been a financial disaster into a testament to the power of putting relationships first.
Treatment
BY THE NUMBERS
BROADCAST SPOTS: 3 HERO VEHICLES: 9 CAMERA UNITS: 2 POWER OUTAGE ZONE: 268,000 MILES DURATION OF NATIONAL EMERGENCY: 8 DAYS SHOOT POSTPONEMENTS: 2 PAGES OF INSURANCE CLAIM: 57 COSTS TO CLIENT NOT PAID BY INSURANCE: $0
BUDGET: EMAIL US