Lacoste built large-scale set in Kiev studio

Fashion brand Lacoste constructed a collapsing building on a Kiev sound stage to shoot a new commercial campaign.

Crocodile Inside features a city apartment block collapsing as a representation of the emotional stress of an argument between a young woman and her partner.

Produced by Iconoclast, the short film was made through a combination of physical set-building, digital effects and wire stunt work.

The commercial was shot at Film UA, a studio complex that offers eight sound stages in Kiev.

“Kiev offered the best production value and also we have great partners there we knew could help us to pull out this crazy shoot,” said producer Charlotte Marmion, in comments to KFTV.

Crocodile Inside was serviced in Ukraine by Limelite.

“Ukraine always had great camera department professionals as well, some with more than 20 years of experience,” said Karina Kostyna, a managing partner with Limelite, in comments to KFTV.

“The fact that infamous Filmotechnic, with two SCI-TECH awards (technical Oscars) is based in Kyiv says it all.”

Ukraine is tackling an international image problem stemming from long-term instability in the east of the country since Russia seized the Crimean peninsula in 2014.

Ongoing security concerns were considered serious enough to contribute to Sky choosing Lithuania as its main filming location for Chernobyl, but Kostyna tells KFTV that Kiev is unaffected and remains firmly open for business.

See KFTV's production guide for more on filming in Ukraine.

Main page image: Lacoste/Iconoclast