When KDF, a graphics shop based in Rockleigh, N.J., was asked to do a vehicle wrap for an upcoming new Morgan Spurlock film documentary, they had no idea what they were getting into. The shop wrapped a Mini Cooper using a Mutoh ValuJet 2606 printer and Avery SuperCast 1005 EZ RS vinyl with the Avery DOL 1360 3D Cast Gloss Cold Overlam.
The film—called POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold— explores the ubiquitous use of product placement in Hollywood movies. In the film Spurlock travels cross-country in the promotionally wrapped Mini Cooper looking for additional sponsors for his movie. The gimmick? The film was financed exclusively by—you guessed it—product placement. The Mini Cooper was updated with new graphics four or five times during the shooting of the film as new sponsors were added.
Last year, Stephen Hoey, president of KDF, was contacted by New York City-based production company Warrior Poets with a request to do the wrap on the cheap because of budget restraints. Hoey offered Warrior Poets a trade-off—KDF would wrap the Mini Cooper free of charge if KDF also got to appear in the movie. Morgan’s camp agreed and filmed the KDF crew doing the wrap.
Shortly before the film’s release, KDF was asked to produce three 3D lenticular posters and two large-scale 3D lenticular lobby displays that would be exhibited at major theaters where the film was being released. KDF produced the lenticulars using an Océ Arizona 350 XT UV-curing flatbed to direct print images onto Microlens 3D20 lenticular lenses. In keeping with the film’s product placement theme, KDF included a large marquee at the bottom of each lenticular claiming credit for the 3D design.