(from Audi Press Release)
The futuristic film car Audi RSQ was presented to the public for the
first time on April 7, 2004 at the New York International Automobile
Show. Audi tackles its most ambitious product placement project ever:
For the epic event motion picture „I, ROBOT“, Audi Design developed the
spectacular vehicle, which helps leading actor Will Smith - a homicide
detective in the year 2035 - solve a mystery that could have grave
consequences for the human race. Fox releases "I, ROBOT“ in the U.S. on
July 16; the film arrives in Germany in August.
In the near future, technology and robots are a trusted part of everyday
life. In „I, ROBOT“, that trust is broken and one man, alone against the
system, sees it coming. The film employs spectacular visual effects
innovations beyond any ever put on screen, to bring a world of robots to
life. The film is directed
by Alex Proyas (Dark City, The Crow) and is set in a world created by
famed science fiction writer Isaac Asimov in his short story collection
“I, ROBOT“.
For the first time ever, Audi developed a car specifically for a major
Hollywood motion picture. Audi engineers created a car for „I, ROBOT’s”
incredible world of 2035.
The resulting Audi RSQ sport coupe is a visionary interpretation of
Audi’s typical design language. The most important thing was that
despite its extreme character the car should still be recognized as an
Audi. The cinemagoer will therefore see the new Audi front-end with the
typical single-frame grille in the movie.
The RSQ includes special features suggested by movie director Alex
Proyas. The mid-engined sports car operated by the story’s police
department, races through the Chicago of the future not on wheels but on
spheres. Its two doors are rear-hinged to the C-posts of the body and
open according to the butterfly principle.
In addition to the RSQ concept car, Audi supplied further
volume-production cars which appear - in disguised shapes - in the
movie’s traffic scenes. Audi also supplied the interior mock-up used for
interior car scenes.
With this project Audi opens up a new chapter in product placement.
Previously, the brand with the four rings has always supplied
volume-production cars to movie productions. In individual cases, such
as “Mission: Impossible II,” these cars were even used in movies before
their market launch. With „I, ROBOT“ and the systematic development of a
“car of the future,” Audi goes far beyond its previous product placement
activities.
Audi has been participating as an automobile partner in major movie
productions for several years. In addition to John Frankenheimer’s
action classic “Ronin” with Jean Reno and Robert de Niro (1998), the
brand with the four rings played the automobile lead in "The Insider"
(1999) featuring Academy Award Winner Russell Crowe, “Mission Impossible
II” (starring Tom Cruise, 2000), “The Mothman Prophecies” (starring
Richard Gere, 2002), “About a Boy” (starring Hugh Grant, 2002) and Reese
Witherspoon’s “Legally Blond 2“ (2003).
