■ “It’s been a while since I did the kabedon, but I haven’t done it in a few years, so it felt really fresh!” (Aiba Masaki)
Aqura Home’s new TV commercial “Kabedon” (15 seconds, 30 seconds), featuring Aiba Masaki as the commercial character, will be aired nationwide (excluding some areas) from September 12th.
The new TV commercial is a dramatized story of the manager of Acura Home, played by Aiba, struggling to create the ideal home for his customers. A big wall stands between a couple. “Why…! Why is there a wall between us…?!” laments the wife, and the husband leans against the wall listlessly. Aiba calls out to him, “Don’t give up!” The scene changes and Aiba returns to the store, where he declares with a serious look, “I’m going to build a house without walls or pillars!” and suddenly does a wall-bang on a junior employee. The junior is taken aback, but this wall-bang is Aiba’s idea to remove unnecessary partition walls and make the room look bigger. Saying, “We can get rid of walls,” Aiba uses his whole body to remove unnecessary walls and pillars one after another, and even pushes up the ceiling, creating an overwhelmingly spacious living room with a structure that is lean and efficient. At the end, everyone raised their hands high up to the ceiling, which was high enough for a giraffe to live in, and not only Manager Aiba but the couple and their children ran around with smiles on their faces, too, with happy expressions on their faces.
Be sure to check out the heartwarming story and powerful production that were born from Manager Aiba’s passionate desire to help customers realize their dream home.
■ Even during the heat, the manager’s smile was just as bright as last year’s
The shoot took place on a scorching hot day with temperatures exceeding 36 degrees Celsius. Despite the conditions, Aiba kept a smile on his face as he continued filming. He and the staff seemed to enjoy talking about their summer memories, talking about whether they prefer rhinoceros beetles or stag beetles, sunflowers or morning glories, and the shaved ice they had this year. By the way, when it comes to shaved ice, he says he prefers the old-fashioned firm kind rather than the fluffy kind that’s popular these days. As this was his second time filming a commercial for Acura Home, the shoot proceeded in a relaxed atmosphere.
■ I was excited to see the wall-don scene for the first time in a while
During the filming of the kabedon scene, a highlight of the commercial and the first for Aiba in a long time, there was a slightly tense atmosphere on set. He stares intently at the wall behind his junior, creating the atmosphere of a confession to his junior, his expression as if he was thinking only about removing the wall while putting the customer first and then doing the kabedon, and the scene where an idea strikes him and he does the kabedon innocently, and even with just one kabedon, he responds with superb expressiveness to the various requests of the director. During filming, there was also a scene where Aiba was seen showing concern for his co-star playing the junior with his characteristic kindness, asking, “Sorry for doing it so many times, are you okay?”
■ When removing the wall, use your body dynamically to express it.
The scene where the walls and pillars are removed and the ceiling is raised is even more dynamic. Aiba expresses with powerful movements and a strong voice, “This wall! This pillar!” At the end, he uses the muscles of his entire upper body with a tense expression, making it look like he is really lifting the ceiling. The scene conveys the passion of Manager Aiba.
■ Comment from Masaki Aiba
Q. Please tell us your impressions of filming the Acura Home commercial.
Aiba: Since it was my second time, I knew a lot of the staff, and they really livened things up with multiple-choice quizzes when shooting the graphics. It was a fun, friendly shoot!Q. What did you think about the scene where you came up with an idea to solve the couple’s problems?
Aiba: I didn’t intend to do a kabedon, but it ended up being a kabedon. It’s been a while since I last did it, but I hadn’t done it in a few years, so it felt fresh!Q. What is your ideal way of spending time in the spacious space created by Aqura Home’s home-building services, where you don’t have to compromise?
Aiba: With a place this big, you can have a home party, and you could even live with a giraffe… I think you can do anything, but it’s also nice to “do nothing.” I think it’s really nice to enjoy this space, read a book, drink coffee, and have this view as a part of your life. I don’t think there are many people who can put a fairly large tree in their house.Q. As the store manager, you have been known to speak to your juniors in a powerful way. Do you have any recent stories of someone helping you out with their words?
Aiba: “You can’t do big things right away, but do small things with great love,” Mother Teresa said. These words really saved me. I learned that it’s important not to aim for big things all of a sudden, but to steadily do small things. By the way, I learned this from reading a book (laughs).Q. Please give a message to viewers who will watch the new TV commercial.
Aiba: I’m Masaki Aiba, the store manager, and I’ll be appearing in the Aqura Home commercial. This time, I’ll be showing off the wall-don technique for the first time in a while, so that you can see the spacious space that can be created with Aqura Home. I hope you’ll take a look! Don’t give up on your dream home!
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