BTS videos are a great way to see how the pros do it and inspire you to try their techniques in your own videos. In this clip, we watch how Ludus Films uses unique camera movements, stunning set design, and creative editing techniques to produce a visually captivating video ad for Starbucks.

When Starbucks asked them to use Rose Petals in the ad, they were able to use real rose petals and flowers and VFX to integrate the flower throughout the video. What’s unique is how they take us on a journey from the Starbucks store to their in-house studio, which is a great way to capture organic footage from the store and VFX assets to edit into the video.

Using a gimbal to capture smooth camera movements, they were able to keep the flow of the video moving. With post zooms and slow motion, there’s a surreal feeling to the video. I’ve used a turntable before to rotate objects while keeping the camera steady so you can see a 360 view of the subject without moving. Ludus Films using the same technique to add more movement to the visuals.

They did an amazing job of throwing rose petals in the air and capture it in slow motion so they could “cut out” and mask the individual petals in post so they can control the falling petals entering and exiting the scenes. They may have used macro lenses and even a probe lens to capture super close up shots of the coffee beans, petals, and milk entering the coffee so we can get up close and personal with the scene.

Overall, Ludus Films does an excellent job taking Starbucks’ creative brief and transforming it into a creative video piece!