With five spots and a complex story to tell, Rakish teamed up with The Lift and our family at Yanga Casting in Mexico City to spread the word on the importance of healthcare networks with Cigna Insurance. Representing the medical care industry where interpersonal connections of all kinds are present, bringing diversity to the forefront was essential. We aimed to craft a visual world where everyone could see themselves reflected, with diversity in occupation, backgrounds, locations, and everything in between.

“Our clients know Mexico is the place to be,” explains Pepe Aguirre, The Lift’s Producer on this project. “In an area as large as Mexico City, you find everything.” We were able to establish narratives in hospitals, construction sites, office spaces, bustling city streets, and more just for these five spots alone – each captured naturally and effortlessly, as if they could be anywhere in the world. “For this project, we worked at an active construction site in Ecatepec, on the outskirts of Mexico City,” Pepe continues. “We had scouted the location 15 days before the shoot and the scene had changed as the construction continued. Luckily, after negotiations, we were able to return the site to how we found it, including the team’s real machinery which gave a very realistic touch to the spot.” When working across several locations, some on opposite sides of the city, communication is key. Working with directors TWIN, our producers managed a wide-spread team in a pyramid-like structure that delegated work evenly and efficiently. Bringing large scale dreams to life with the intimate touch of a tight knit community is what makes our work unique.

In keeping our teams close, we worked with our family at Yanga Casting to bring in the perfect team of talent. “The idea behind the casting on this project was to find not actors per se, but real people who felt comfortable in front of the camera or actors who were very natural in their performance,” explains Casting Director Blanca Peña. “Casting so many characters is always a challenge but when you see the end result you realize how worthwhile it is and how many talented, interesting, and diverse people we have in Mexico.” Diversity comes naturally when casting in Mexico where all walks of life can be found. Yanga Casting tunes into the talent’s star quality as well, making our spots particularly impactful as they receive guidance from the team. Taking into account the vision of the directors and the brand profile, Yanga looks not only at the physicality of their talent, but also their essence and the emotion that can be captured on screen. “The selection process is always complicated,” Blanca continues. “There are profiles that may be a perfect fit in terms of looks, but they may lack the acting range or comfort required in front of the camera for the project. That’s where we try to guide them in their acting and make decisions.”

Bridging strong casting and harmonious locations, our work with Rakish and Cigna is some of our strongest yet. Scroll below to watch the spots now to see these elements in action.