In honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, Advance Auto Parts is looking for Asian American and Pacific Islander filmmakers, animators, creators, and visionaries to produce short form social videos that reflect either an original story about what you love about the automotive industry or an informative story about a notable historical figure of Asian descent in the automotive industry.
Advance Auto Parts is looking for Asian American and Pacific Islanders filmmakers, animators, creators, and visionaries to step up and seize the opportunity to share unique automotive experiences, stories, and characters, in a fun and entertaining video.
This month, we’re spotlighting Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) voices and history, and we’re looking Asian American filmmakers, animators, and storytellers to help share videos - up to 60 seconds - of positive experiences they or other AAPI members of their community have had within the automotive industry. We're open to authentic retellings of real, uplifting stories, but we're also open to original narratives, or something else more interpretive. This could mean anything from describing the quirks of working on your first car to creating an informative/honorable video of other influential Asian Americans such as NASCAR pioneer Hideo Fukuyama.
If you’re wondering where to start, think about others in your community that you admire who work in or own car shops, the first time your check engine light turned on and how you dealt with it, or how despite all the elements against you, you managed to change a tire out in the middle of nowhere, miles from any help. Think about your community, your family, your unique perspective, and create something that feels like a reflection of you and your style. These are not ads and we’re looking to highlight you as an artist. You can also reference one of the historical Asian American inventors that Advance has highlighted in their articles which you can read and choose from in the Background. Feel free to reference AAPI Heritage Month, but know that your video does NOT directly have to tie in to or reference AAPI Heritage Month.
We are primarily looking for animated executions with a voiceover component, given the time constraints, but we are open to seeing how you could bring this to life in an organic, TikTok style live action video if you feel you could tell a more compelling story that way. You could create a massive mural and capture content while creating it, build out a historical figure made out of car parts, or create a 3D rendering of a car or car parts, we are open to all executions here, so get creative! You may have a lot of ideas for how you might want to tackle this, so for your pitch, we'd recommend submitting several different ideas for your video. If Advance likes where your head's at and you're greenlit, we'll work with you to develop ONE of your ideas during the pre-production process.
For any questions or other project updates, check out the Project Forum.
DELIVERABLES: There are 2 total video assets.
TIMELINE: HERE.
EXPOSURE:
TARGET AUDIENCE:
TONE: Fun, inspiring, uplifting, celebratory, respectful
EXECUTIONAL MANDATORIES:
By participating in this project, creators acknowledge that the Sponsor is under no obligation to greenlight a bid. Though most projects on our platform do move forward with a greenlit bid, we will notify you in the event the Sponsor decides not to fund any bids via the project forum. Regardless of the result, all submissions will be reviewed and evaluated by the Sponsor and the project team.
Shooting live action or stop motion? Our priority is ensuring everyone's safety, so please review our COVID-19 Production Safety Guide and check federal, state, and local rules before and during your shoot to make sure your on-set protocols are up to date. We're working hard to keep people working during this extraordinary time, and you should ensure your submission is executable within the anticipated timeline and budget, while also ensuring everyone's safety.
REFERENCE ARTICLES FOR HISTORICAL AAPI FIGURES IN THE AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY:
REFERENCE VIDEOS FOR INSPIRATION OR TONE: In the past, Advance has had creators produce videos that were specifically about different communities, as well as the history and future of Advance Auto Parts. For this project, we would love to see videos similar to these in style and tone, but with a focus on AAPI History and original stories.
In order to be considered for this project, you must include the below materials in your pitch submission. For examples of effective pitches, check out this gallery.
The most compelling pitch will be greenlit, and the responsible creator will then receive an email from Tongal producers detailing next steps. All submitters will also receive an automated email notification that a selection has been announced. To ensure you’re receiving project updates, review your email settings to check that you haven’t unsubscribed.
Creators who’ve been selected will receive funding upon completing the Winner Affidavit and the IP Assignment. Payment of the pitch funds is subject to a payment schedule determined by Tongal. Please see the full payment schedule.
PRE-PRODUCTION REQUIREMENTS: Prior to shooting, filmmakers must receive the below approvals from the Sponsor.
For your convenience, we’ve provided some helpful templates to use at your discretion. They include templates for creating a treatment, production budget, storyboards, shot list, call sheet, and a music cue sheet. Additionally, there are templates that will help you clearly present cast, location, and wardrobe options to the Sponsor. They can all be accessed here.
BUILDING YOUR TEAM: Tongal supports inclusivity in all of our productions and strongly encourages you to hire diverse talent for your team. To find staff & crew in your area, check out these resources and partners.
REVISION REQUIREMENTS & RESOURCES: Once the Video Phase has closed, the greenlit submitters will enter the Revisions Phase. Filmmakers will perform reasonable edits on their videos according to the Sponsor’s feedback. Check out our Filmmaker Resource Portal to access helpful post-production resources like Text-Safe Guides for different platforms, Project File Organization Tutorial, Export Presets, and Captioning services.
MUSIC: If you use any music from a library for your content, you MUST use one of Tongal's three music providers - Jingle Punks, Universal Production Music and Epidemic Sound. Music from these providers is available to registered Tongal members at no charge solely for their incorporation into submissions to this project, and will not require a Music Release Form. To learn more about using each of these music providers, click on any of the providers’ names above.
If you choose to use custom or original music, you must fill out and submit our Music Release Form. Please ensure your composer reviews and signs this form BEFORE beginning their work.
STOCK FOOTAGE: Tongal has partnered with the stock footage library STORYBLOCKS, which can be used to source video clips, photography, and After Effects templates for your video submission to this project. Video or photo content from Storyblocks is available at no charge, solely for incorporation into submissions on this project, and content will not require a separate Release Form. If identifiable people or intellectual property appears in a video clip or photo, you may only utilize assets that are clearly marked “Model released: Yes” or “Property release: Yes” on the clip description pages. You may not use any audio.
If you intend to use Storyblocks, inform your Tongal producer beforehand, and an account will be created for you to access the library and its features. Once your video submissions are approved by the Sponsor, you must provide a complete list of all Storyblocks content that you used via our template HERE.
ASSET DELIVERY REQUIREMENTS & RESOURCES: You must also provide all project files, editing sequences and a 1080p .mov master file, using a ProRes, Animation, or Uncompressed Codec in order to submit final payment. You are responsible for the costs associated the hard drive and shipping.
To ensure a smoother delivery, please review the Export Presets, Specifications, and Project File Organization Tutorial in our Filmmaker Resource Portal.