SOUND OF HONDA / AYRTON SENNA 1989

Silver Spike

Case Film

Presentation Board

TitleSOUND OF HONDA / AYRTON SENNA 1989
BrandHONDA MOTOR CO
Product / ServiceINTERNAVI
CategoryA08. Digital Design
EntrantDENTSU Tokyo, JAPAN
Entrant Company DENTSU Tokyo, JAPAN
Advertising Agency DENTSU Tokyo, JAPAN
Production Company DENTSU CREATIVE X Tokyo, JAPAN

Credits

Name Company Position
Kaoru Sugano Dentsu Inc. Creative Director/Creative Technologist/Creative Planner
Sotaro Yasumochi/Nadya Kirillova Dentsu Inc. Copywriter/Creative Planner
Yu Orai Dentsu Inc. Art Director/Creative Planner
Kyoko Yonezawa Dentsu Inc. Creative Technologist/Creative Planner
Taeji Sawai Qosmo Inc. Sound Director
Tomoyuki Kawamura Studio MUU2 Sound Designer
Misa Ueda Dentsu Inc. Promoter
Takao Kaburaki/Takuma Sato/Sungwon Kim/Takashi Hirano Dentsu Inc. Account Director
Masafumi Fujioka/Ryoko Toyama Dentsu Creative X Inc. Producer
Kenya Miyashita/Hinako Hirata Dentsu Creative X Inc. Production Manager
Haruhiko Ishikawa Shipoo Inc. Digital Producer
Kosai Sekine/Daito Manabe/Toshiyuki Nagashima/Takcom/Tadashi Tsushima Freelance/Rhizomatiks co.ltd./METAPHOR Inc./P.i.c.s.management/Fuzz/Inc. Director/Artist _ Programmer/Web Director/Cg Director/Technical Director
Senzo Ueno Freelance Director of Photography
Yosuke Kai Freelance Lighting Director
Daito Manabe/Hidenori Chiba/Satoru Higa/Tomoaki Yanagisawa/Muryo Honma/Hiroyuki Rhizomatiks co.ltd. Led Installation
Mitsuru Tajika/Erito Ayaki/Masaaki Azuma Freelance/TRY AUDIO CO./LTD Sound Engineer/Mixing Engineer
Kentaro Yasui/Tatsuya Tsunoda/Takato Kanehara/Kotaro Yamaguchi Fuzz/Inc./Fuzz/Inc./METAPHOR Inc./Freelance Webgl Developer/Webgl Developer/Web Designer/Designer
Daito Manabe/Satoru Higa/Ichitaro Masuda/Yosuke Seki/Kentaro Yasui/Tatsuya Tsuno Rhizomatiks co.ltd./Fuzz/Inc./Qosmo Inc./Studio MUU2 Programmer
Sakura Seya/Tomohiro Endo meganefilm/DIGITAL GARDEN INC. Editor
Ken Imamura/Akihiro Mikawa/Hiroaki Sawato Honda Motor Co. Ltd. Client Supervisor
Rhizomatiks co.,ltd. Additional company
Qosmo Inc. Additional company

Brief Explanation

Telemetry is not an easy or interesting topic to communicate. We needed to find a way to grasp the attention of the audience and make them feel excitement of this technology. To do so, we focused on a single sheet of paper. On it was driving data of the world's fastest lap set by Ayrton Senna set while qualifying for 1989 Japanese Grand Prix. On board his machine was Honda's telemetry system that recorded acceleration and engine data. Using this data and the latest technology, we re-enacted that lap with engine sounds and LEDs on 5,807-meter long Suzuka circuit.

The Brief

Internavi is a car navigation system provided by Honda that designs driving experiences with the power of real-time driving data collected from vehicles. Its roots go back to the 1980s when Honda introduced telemetry system to Formula One and stormed the world. Honda has been testing and perfecting this system in racing cars ever since and today it supports not only F1 drivers but also everyday drivers around the world. Despite this fact, the origin and core technology of Internavi’s navigation is still not widely known. Our mission was to tell the possibilities of this technology.

How the final design was conceived

Driving data brings back Senna's fastest lap from 24 years ago. To resurrect the emotions from years ago hidden in peopls’ memory using data, we focused on sound and light. First, the engine sound of Senna's F1 machine McLaren Honda MP4/5 was re-created by combining Senna's driving data from 1989 with various engine tones recorded today. Then, hundreds of networked speakers were placed along the race line of Suzuka circuit bringing back the dynamic sound of MP4/5. LED lights synchronized with Senna’s location and the dynamic sound down to the millisecond. People could feel Senna race through Suzuka once again.

Indication of how successful the outcome was in the market

Right after its launch, this project was covered by media from Japan, Brazil, Europe, US and other regions despite zero PR/Media budget. Becoming most watched YouTube video by an automobile company in Japan’s history and most watched viral video two weeks in a row worldwide. We received countless comments filled with emotions from viewers all over the world for Honda and Senna.