Behind the scenes of our global hunt for OTTO’s young drumming star

When this unusual request landed in our inbox, we couldn’t resist saying yes! Online German retailer OTTO is known for its humorous Shopping Festival ads, and their newest instalment, “Mia feiert das OTTO Shopping Festival,” is no less entertaining. However rather than being asked to deliver the perfect music composition to place in the spot, our project brief took on an entirely different dynamic.

We were tasked with finding a young female musician with exceptional drumming skills to star as Mia in the ad’s narrative. Although taking on the responsibilities of a talent agent brought up its own set of challenges, we were one familiar ground once again when the  project began to parallel the type of research we regularly undertake in our role as music specialists.

We conducted a global search for the best drummer, and found our star in Chita, a young musician from Tokyo. With a tight timeline looming, Chita was flown with her family to Bucharest, Romania, the day after she was confirmed for the role, to begin filming. We were on set to act as a liaison between the director, producer and talent, and to ensure that the shoot went smoothly.

We think the final result speaks for itself. Chita’s calm demeanour and fierce skills in the hide-hitting department – whether she’s playing the pots & pans or a full kit – add to the ad’s unexpected charm!

Watch the complete film, below.