Image: Stunt athlete, Noon, discussing strategy prior to his first jump off the 4′ x 8′ wedge ramp. Noon was hired, specifically for this scene, by the head stunt coordinator, Andy, only having a few hours to practice on our skates. There were about seven cameras trained on this shot.

Behind the Scenes (Video): Audi S4 “Urban Carver” Commercial
StreetSki worked with Audi to transform the streets of San Francisco into an urban ski slope. All the skiing and stunts were performed on our patented skates. The snow skis were added later, in post production, to create the dramatic effect of a skier on asphalt.

Transcripts and quotes from video:

This is where one of the most spectacular commercials in Audi history is being made… the principal player, not a car but a man in a red suit.

“The idea for the commercial came from the Audi engineers who said it actually feels like ski carving, this new quattro feeling, but then we didn’t just want to show carving on the ski slopes, because that would be boring. We were looking for a spectacular realization for the image.”
—-Andre Kemper, Director Advertising Agency Kempertrautman

San Fransisco: Steeper streets cannot be found anywhere else in the Western Hemisphere and there is no better place to stage the new quattro driving experience. The streets become the slopes for the Urban Carver.

“What appeals to me about scripts, the ones I really get enthusiastic about is when the idea, the core idea, is quite simple. It’s a skier going downhill and he kinda represents a car and I just thought that was really exciting, and I could see in my mind already lots of subtle shots that would be interesting.”
—-Daniel Kleinman, Director

“We want to create images that are spectacular that have never been seen before and that would really captivate the television audience. And that is why it is important to us that this commercial is produced as authentically as possible and that the most necessary corrections are made afterwards in post production.”
—-Tobias Seitz, Project Manager International Advertising, Audi AG

The secret is not disclosed until the end of the commercial. Ski carving, the new quattro feeling! Now in the Audi S4.

Audi S4 “Urban Carver” Commercial (Video)
Feels like ski carving, the spectacular Audi S4 TV commercial reveals the new quattro feeling.

Credits: Released: March 2009; Client/Advertiser: Audi; Courtesy of Audi TV; Brand name: Audi S4; Agency: Kempertrautmann; Director: Daniel Kleinman; Producer: Johnnie Frankel; Prod CO. Germany: Markenfilm GmbH; Prod CO. LA: Epoch Films; Prod CO. UK: Rattling Stick; Key Performer: StreetSki, LLC; Award: CLIO Awards 2009 TV Silver