BMW’s Octowaltz reimagines luxury car ads beyond the fast lane

Bavarian Motor Works (BMW), a name synonymous with the pleasure of driving, has launched a new ad campaign titled ‘Octowaltz: Heart of Joy’.

Collaborating with the Hamburg-based agency Jung von Matt, this campaign uses the waltzing Okto the Octopus as a metaphor for BMW’s new ‘Heart of Joy’ control unit.

The BMW ‘Heart of Joy’ is a new centralised computer designed for the brand's upcoming Neue Klasse electric vehicles. 

It can be classified as the brain of the car and integrates several critical functions, such as acceleration, braking, steering, and energy recuperation, previously managed by separate systems.

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It combines the drivetrain (what makes the car go) and driving dynamics (how the going feels) into one integrated system, making one's ride smoother and safer.

This metaphorical campaign, a departure from the typical speeding car commercials, effectively conveys the technological advancement of the Bavarian car company.

The ad's central plot centres on a thought experiment, where an octopus replaces its naturally occurring decentralised nervous system with a centralised one, thereby unleashing the magic of an underwater waltz. 

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The animation for the ‘Octowaltz’ ad film was brought to life by the UK-based Untold Studios for CGI and VFX, with production support from Parasol Island in Germany under the creative direction of Jung von Matt Hamburg.

Lending authenticity to this little aquatic evolution is the distinctive narration done in classic David Attenborough style, making it look like a documentary on natural history. 

Okto the Octopus is a poetic parallel to the complex technological advancement in the luxury automotive industry. 

In an interesting aquatic twist of fate, the last time an octopus courted the limelight was also in Germany.

In 2010, Paul the Octopus garnered international recognition for accurately predicting the results of the FIFA World Cup from a tank in a German aquarium.

Sometimes, the most unsuspecting creatures can capture the public's imagination, either through sports or waltz.