Overview
Directed and creative directed the 60th anniversary film for Juan Valdez, the globally recognized icon of Café de Colombia. This experimental film celebrating six decades of the brand was submitted to Cannes and represents the only project I've executed and directed in Colombia, my birth country. I had the honor to direct Mr. Juan Valdez himself (RIP), connecting my Colombian heritage with my professional creative practice.
The Challenge
It's a fact that sound can influence taste buds. Understanding how sound can be used to influence tasting experience became the backbone of this project. Commissioned by McCann Erickson Colombia, researcher Felipe Reinoso from Universidad de los Andes, along with music producers, composed "Beyond Taste," a musical piece rich in sounds and frequency ranges designed specifically to enhance coffee tasting. The ask: make this invisible sound visible. The challenge required bridging multiple disciplines: neuroscience (Bouba Kiki effect), music composition (psychoacoustic principles), cultural heritage (Colombian coffee regions), and visual design (translating sound to image).
The Approach
Working closely with Felipe Reinoso, I learned the fundamental principles used when composing the song. The Bouba Kiki effect demonstrates that to the human brain, certain sounds translate into organic shapes with lush hues (enhancing sweet notes), while other sounds translate into sharper geometric shapes with earthy tones (enhancing bitter notes). Diving into The Invisible Realm, I looked for ways to deconstruct and reconfigure familiar elements from Colombian coffee regions. An ode to Colombian coffee and magical realism, this film turns landscapes and familiar elements (coffee berries, flowers, tropical fauna) into colorful mandalas. The challenge was to steer away from making a narrative piece that would compete with the music, instead creating a contemplative film that would appeal to the senses, amplifying the song's effect during tasting.
The Result
Created a contemplative visual experience that translated psychoacoustic principles into visual form, honoring Colombian coffee culture through the lens of magical realism. The film was submitted to Cannes, representing Colombia's creative community on the international stage. More than accolades, this project demonstrated the ability to translate complex scientific concepts into emotionally resonant visual storytelling while honoring cultural heritage.
Strategic Context
This project's cross-disciplinary approach (neuroscience to visual form) mirrors the challenge of AI creative leadership: translating technical capabilities into emotionally resonant creative work. The best AI production isn't about technical spectacle but using new tools to create work that connects with human experience.
Credits
Client: Café de Colombia
Agency: McCann Erickson Colombia
Production Company: Craft
Live Action Director: Felipe Posada
Post Production, Motion Graphics, Design Direction: Felipe Posada
Sound Researcher: Felipe Reinoso
Music Producers: Miguel De Narvaez, Juan Fernando Fonseca
Agency: McCann Erickson Colombia
Production Company: Craft
Live Action Director: Felipe Posada
Post Production, Motion Graphics, Design Direction: Felipe Posada
Sound Researcher: Felipe Reinoso
Music Producers: Miguel De Narvaez, Juan Fernando Fonseca
Diving into The Invisible Realm, Posada looked for ways to deconstruct and reconfigure familiar elements from the Colombian coffee regions.
An ode to Colombian Coffee and magical realism, this film evokes emotions by turning landscapes and familiar elements such as coffee berries, flowers and tropical fauna into colorful mandalas. It invites the user to follow the sound through a vibrant universe of kaleidoscopic configurations.
"The challenge was to steer away from making a narrative piece that would compete with the music. Instead, our goal was to create a contemplative film that would appeal to the senses therefore amplifying the song's effect during the tasting experience." - Felipe Posada.
Posada also took cues from Reinoso who explained the fundamental principles used when composing the song such as the Bouba Kiki effect: to the human brain, certan sounds and melodies translate into organic shapes with lushy hues (enhancing the Sweet notes) - as in first part of the song. Other sounds translate into sharper more rigid geometric shapes with earthy tones (enhancing the Bitter notes) - as in the second part of the song.
As the film's architect, Posada had the humbling opportunity to direct Mr. Juan Valdez. "If Yoda and Obi Wan Kenobi had a son...said the director who - as a Colombian himself - was briefly starstruck when meeting the legendary character. A few black coffees later, we were all Jedis.
Enjoy this film. Don't forget to turn on the sound and have a nice cup of Colombian coffee by your side when you do.