Formula E has launched a new brand campaign film entitled ‘Progress is Unstoppable’ reflecting the momentum building for what is widely regarded as the most exciting season of electric racing yet in the ABB FIA Formula E World Championship.
The dramatic new short film focuses on the GEN3 race car – the fastest, lightest, most powerful and most efficient electric race car ever built – creatively championing the extreme capabilities of a car developed at the intersection of cutting-edge technology, high performance and sustainability.
The first six races of Season 9 and the GEN3 era have seen five different drivers emerge on top of the podium following dramatic, unpredictable and highly-competitive racing. The GEN3 has also delivered the fastest lap ever in Formula E’s 106-race history in Cape Town while the most recent race, the 2023 Julius Baer São Paulo E-Prix, was a thriller for fans and TV viewers around the world with 114 overtakes and 11 lead changes.
The short film has been released in the build-up to the 2023 SABIC Berlin E-Prix this weekend (Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 April). Berlin is the only city to host a race in every Formula E season to date and the double-header of races marks the halfway point of an action-packed Season 9.
Formula E has partnered with Uncommon Creative Studio on the project which is the third creative endeavour together and the most ambitious to date. Directed by Sam Walker, the film ‘Progress is Unstoppable’ is visually unexpected and impactful, championing Formula E’s unbridled forward-facing mindset and mantra.
Henry Chilcott, Chief Marketing Officer, Formula E said:
“Six races into Season 9 and the debut of the all new GEN3 race car, we’re fast building a reputation for delivering the most exciting motor racing on the planet. For our third campaign with Uncommon we wanted to create something as uncompromising, unexpected and exciting as our racing. ‘Progress is Unstoppable’ is both a bold act and an attitude, designed to show the disruptive power of our sport and fight for the attention of new fans with something they’ll never have seen before.”
The short film will form part of a wider visual campaign that will run through the second half of Season 9 which will climax with the 2023 Hankook London E-Prix double-header on Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 July at ExCeL London on motorsport’s only indoor/outdoor race track. Tickets are on sale now.
‘Progress Is Unstoppable’ synopsis:
The opening scene focuses on a white bird fluttering around a cage. It then cuts abruptly to a driver sitting and waiting patiently on a bench with focus and conviction in his eyes. He moves with conviction into the seat of his GEN3 car as his surroundings reveal themselves as the inside of a plane. As the huge cargo doors open, the piercing light of the sky pours in, leaving the audience with one question: is he really going to do what we think he is?
The imagery shows a driver accelerating out the back of the plane with fierce determination – the shrill of the electric motor cutting through the suspense. We see the driver pushing himself, his car and the sport to the limit as the car plummets through the atmosphere with conviction and grace; an image of extraordinary power against a backdrop of clean air and blue skies.
As the action builds and the car accelerates, the driver ejects himself and parachutes to safety. The film follows the car as it continues to accelerate, the camera focusing on the technical and artistic engineering of the car as it reaches terminal velocity, closer and closer to the ground until at the last moment the shot cuts back to see the caged birds set free and the title ‘Progress is Unstoppable.’
