Dictionary Films and Director Ben Hansford Capture KitchenAid Lovefest with Grammy Winner Sam Nelson Harris and WOW Studios

Oct. 14, 2024

Over the past several weeks, fans of KitchenAid’s extraordinary dishwashers – and those of Sam Nelson Harris, the Grammy-winning artist and lead singer for the X Ambassadors – have all had serious cause for celebration. Director Ben Hansford and the team from Cutters Studios’ integrated production arm Dictionary Films are very proud to detail their craftsmanship in bringing the unlikely artistic collaboration to life in partnership with Whirlpool Corporation and WoW studios.

As reported globally, this story starts with the relaunch of the KitchenAid 360° Max Jets™ Third Rack Dishwasher, and a quest to write the ultimate love song using actual consumer reviews. Creatively serving this mission led Whirlpool’s in-house agency WoW Studios to develop a set of demo tracks with bicoastal Barking Owl Music. That’s where Dictionary Films came in.

According to Dictionary’s Managing Director Brian Smego, receiving the demo tracks led him straight to Hansford, who is well known for bringing ambitious scripts to life in cost-effective yet visually stunning ways.

Smego began:

“This was such an exciting client brief with so much potential. Ben and I immediately started thinking about all the classic boy band videos from the early 2000’s. As it turns out, Ben has a very strong relationship with Sam Nelson Harris. Outside of his success with the X Ambassadors, Sam is an amazing producer. With his experience, performance skills and vocal style, he really elevated the already amazing demo track from Barking Owl and the agency.”

 

Smego credits the agency for the brilliant idea of treating the love ballad as seriously as possible … and Hansford for his creative vision and bringing Harris onboard. Wow Studios’ approval allowed Hansford to run wild in designing a music video for the ages.

Racks on Racks on Racks … on a Virtual Reality Stage

Hansford’s unbridled enthusiasm for the project shines through in his lovelorn director’s treatment.

He wrote:

“People love this dishwasher so much they go out of their way to write sonnets to it. This is truly THE dishwasher to love. But you know what people also love? People love Sam Harris.” Continuing, he colorfully explained that Sam cannot love people back, due to being in love with a dishwasher. To successfully complete the journey of heart and give the torrid affair the treatment it deserved, Hansford made the case for adding the arresting narrative and cinematic touches of the world’s best music videos. “Master prime lenses and rich saturated hues will make the video feel modern and fresh,” he promised. “The XR walls will be layered with the premium visuals of gorgeous worlds you only wish you could visit.”

 

In the finished, two-minute music video cut by Emily Tolan of Cutters, featuring spectacular graphics from Flavor and color by Brian Higgins, Harris’s cruise through a house party leads straight to the main attraction, KitchenAid’s dishwasher. Transfixed as its door opens, revealing dish-laden racks in a flood of mist and light, Harris is instantly smitten.

He sang citing GermanIris’s actual 5-star product review:

“I love the racks. Racks on racks on racks on racks on racks.”

 

Smego ventured:

“Given that this is a song about a consumer who's madly in love with a dishwasher. We knew there had to be scenes where our hero was transported inside. Addressing this and our need to have multiple looks to cut between led us to Smash Virtual’s XR stage here in Chicago.”

 

With Flavor’s artists creating a kaleidoscope of 2D motion graphics backgrounds showing plates, silverware and water effects, the virtual production approach also involved turning the trillion-polygon KitchenAid CAD schematics into an Unreal Engine dishwasher discotheque. By Smego’s account, this gave them the freedom to accurately control lighting, washer-arm speeds, and humidity settings.

Leveraging these technologies seamlessly with Director of Photography Bjorn Amundson – and world-class production design and performances – Harris addresses GermanIris’s favorite features with heartfelt affections, accompanied by a team of dancers. Trapped inside the dazzling waterworks, his love and happiness crescendo.

Smego added:

“We were thrilled to partner with WoW Studios and take the lead on this amazing project, which was a Cutters Studios production from start to finish. Every element of the company was involved, from Flavor’s expertise spanning pre-production, design, animation, VFX supervision, final color and finishing, through Cutters’ legendary editorial mastery, and Another Country’s final mix.”

 

The team from WoW Studios was led by Chief Creative Officer Luis Ramirez, and Creative Directors Sarah Uchison and Emily Walton and partnered closely with KitchenAid brand leads Anthony Pastrick and Jeremy Jefferson. Along with Executive Producer Keith Jamerson. Dictionary’s credits also include Producer Kevin Schoeder, Production Designer John Peplinski, and Art Director Caton Volk. Complete project credits are available upon request.