The Red Bull Racing team has released an advertising spot called Castle to Castle, in which a Formula 1 car races through iconic places in Czechia and Slovakia.
Although there was some criticism during the filming in the center of Prague, the company approached the commercial not only as a tool for its publicity but also as the promotion of Czech and Slovak cultural wealth.
In April of this year, the Red Bull Formula 1 car engine roared in the center of Prague. At that time, part of the public and some Czech filmmakers drew attention to the possible damage to the historic Charles bridge, but above all, to what was seen as the controversial decision to allow the bridge to be rented out for commercial purposes.
“It was a standard request, just like when some films are made, such as Spiderman, Anthropoid, and others,” commented Prague 1 councilor Richard Bureš.
“Even though the F1 car cruises the historic pavement near Prague Castle or swirls the sand in the protected Lednice-Valtice area, the filmmakers have left no trace but an indelible tribute to the rich cultural heritage of the Czech and Slovak Republics,” reads the company’s press release.
The result of non-traditional filming arrived in the form of more than seven minutes of Czech-Slovak action. In addition to the F1 car, attractively captured tourist locales in Czechia and Slovakia also play the main role of the commercial. Moreover, at a time when tourism in both countries is recovering from the crushing blow of the coronavirus pandemic, some see the commercial as a potential boon for the travel sector.
The F1 car also drives, for example, around the revolving statue of Franz Kafka by David Černý, Prague Castle, the Moravian vineyards, the Lednice-Valtice area, but also monuments and landscapes in Slovakia. The backdrop for the breathtaking shots was provided by the Tatras or the center of Bratislava.
At that location, F1 pilot David Coulthard, the winner of thirteen F1 grand prizes, meets the Czech aerobatic pilot Martin Šonka.
“Having a flying plane just a few feet above your head was an exceptional opportunity that you won’t experience just like this,” says Coulthard.
“It has its pitfalls, and it’s really not easy,” adds Šonka.
“The moment we were directly above each other, we didn’t see much of each other. We could only see the other one in the periphery because we both had a limited view,” says the Czech aerobatic pilot, adding that he had to look ahead during the flight to be able to estimate altitude.
Coulthard could not lift his head because of his helmet and headgear. He could only compare the distance between the car and the plane on the mirror attached to the steering wheel.
Title image: Red Bull Formula 1 on the Charles bridge in Prague (Red Bull Racing Honda/Twitter)
