S7 Airlines: Upside Down & Inside Out
S7 Airlines wanted to shed its image as a traditional domestic carrier and establish itself as an innovative, global brand. Tutkovbudkov was tasked with creating a high-impact campaign that would resonate with a tech-savvy, international audience. The goal was to associate the brand with the wonder of flight and the spirit of dreaming big, moving beyond standard airline marketing tropes.
Creative Idea
Filmed a gravity-defying music video in a zero-gravity aircraft to dramatize the joy of flight.
S7 Airlines partnered with OK Go to film the first music video in total weightlessness, proving that 'gravity is just a habit' and positioning the airline as an innovative brand that supports the dreams of those who want to fly.
Fifty Eight Puke Events and One Perfect Take
The Math of Weightlessness
To achieve the illusion of a single continuous shot, the production utilized an Ilyushin Il-76 MDK aircraft flying in parabolic arcs. Each arc provided only 27 seconds of weightlessness, followed by a five - minute climb where the crew had to remain perfectly still to allow for "morph" transitions in post - production. Because the musical segments were 21 seconds long, the band performed the track at 28.47% slower speed (72 BPM) to ensure the choreography synced perfectly when the footage was sped up to the original 92.5 BPM.
Heavy Props and Motion Sickness
The creative team discovered that light objects like feathers looked too "normal" in zero gravity. To emphasize the lack of weight, they used heavy laptops and tablets, which looked more jarring when floating. The physical toll was immense; the cast and crew recorded exactly 58 "puke events" during the 21 flights required to capture the footage. On the final scheduled flight, a paint balloon exploded directly onto the camera lens, ruining a perfect take and forcing one last emergency flight to secure the closing shot.
A Strategic Platform Pivot
In a major industry shift, the campaign bypassed YouTube for its first 48 hours, launching as a Facebook Exclusive. This move leveraged Facebook’s emerging native video algorithm, resulting in 30 million views in four days and 50 million views within two weeks. Beyond the 1 billion earned media impressions, the collaboration successfully repositioned S7 Airlines from a traditional domestic carrier into an innovative brand. Lead singer Damian Kulash and his sister Trish Sie directed the project, supported by TutkovBudkov and actual S7 aerialist acrobats.
Creative Strategy Deconstructed
Company
Specialized aircraft and cosmonaut training facilities capable of facilitating zero-gravity flight maneuvers.
Category
Airlines typically focus on safety, comfort, and destination imagery in predictable, functional advertising.
Customer
Modern travelers seek inspiration and brands that represent innovation, creativity, and the literal magic of flight.
Culture
The viral music video era demanded high-concept, shareable spectacles that blurred the lines between entertainment and branding.
Company
Specialized aircraft and cosmonaut training facilities capable of facilitating zero-gravity flight maneuvers.
Category
Airlines typically focus on safety, comfort, and destination imagery in predictable, functional advertising.
Strategy:
Partner with cultural innovators to transform functional infrastructure into a platform for impossible creative feats.
Customer
Modern travelers seek inspiration and brands that represent innovation, creativity, and the literal magic of flight.
Culture
The viral music video era demanded high-concept, shareable spectacles that blurred the lines between entertainment and branding.
Strategy:
Partner with cultural innovators to transform functional infrastructure into a platform for impossible creative feats.
Results
The campaign achieved massive global scale, generating over 1 billion earned media impressions. Within the first 4 days, the video reached 30 million views, growing to 50 million views on Facebook within just two weeks. It became OK Go’s fastest-growing video to date. Beyond digital reach, S7 Airlines reported a significant shift in brand perception, successfully repositioning from a 'traditional carrier' to an 'innovative, dream-supporting brand.' The project was highly decorated, winning 3 Cannes Lions (Silver in Entertainment for Music, Silver in Film, and Bronze in Film Craft), a Gold Clio Music award, a D&AD Wood Pencil, and a 2017 Grammy nomination for Best Music Video.
1B+
Earned media impressions
50M
Facebook views in 14 days
58
Recorded puke events during production
Strategy Technique
Borrow Equity
S7 Airlines leveraged OK Go's reputation for viral, gravity-defying music videos to transform its image from a traditional Russian carrier into a globally recognized, innovative brand through shared creative ambition.
Explore Technique
Creative Technique
Unexpected environment
By moving a high-energy pop performance into the zero-gravity environment of a parabolic flight, the campaign shattered visual expectations and created a mesmerizing spectacle that perfectly aligned with the airline's core service.
Explore Technique
Craft Breakdown
This campaign is a masterclass in physical production and mathematical precision, executing a seamless 'single-take' illusion within the constraints of parabolic flight.
Filmed entirely in zero gravity aboard an Ilyushin Il-76 MDK, utilizing complex parabolic arcs to capture weightless motion.
Used 'morph' transitions to stitch together eight separate 27-second weightless periods into a single continuous shot.
Strategically bypassed YouTube for a 48-hour Facebook Exclusive launch to exploit native video algorithms for viral growth.
Selected heavy props like laptops and tablets over light objects to visually emphasize the physics of the environment.
The magic lies in the intersection of extreme physical performance and mathematical timing, where the song was slowed by 28.47% to perfectly align musical phrases with the duration of weightless parabolas.
