# Anthony Brooks Volkswagen Commercial



## rubixwiz031 (Jun 27, 2012)

I just saw this: 
[youtubehd]rCiZNN3sGNk[/youtubehd]

It's nice to see cubers getting some publicity.


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## PandaCuber (Jun 27, 2012)

it seems to me like he did solve it, but they made it look like he couldn't finish it in time. Nice commercial anyway.


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## antoineccantin (Jun 27, 2012)

Awesomness!


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## MiPiCubed (Jun 27, 2012)

So cool, can't wait to see this on tv, but they didn't even show him finish :/


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## Andreaillest (Jun 27, 2012)

Laughing so hard at Anthony's srs face. XD
So proud. :')


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## rubixwiz031 (Jun 27, 2012)

I think I saw a G-Perm  ahahah


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## Sa967St (Jun 27, 2012)

That was awesome. 


edit: So...is anyone going to reconstruct his solve?


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## JasonK (Jun 27, 2012)

Amazing


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## Slowpoke22 (Jun 27, 2012)

This is the best commercial I've ever seen


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## teller (Jun 27, 2012)

Yay Anthony!


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## drewsopchak (Jun 27, 2012)

Cool! interesting that they picked OH.


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## Brest (Jun 27, 2012)

Awesome!


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## A Leman (Jun 27, 2012)

drewsopchak said:


> Cool! interesting that they picked OH.



If they didn't pick OH, He would solve the cube before the driver could buckle his seat belt.


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## Ickathu (Jun 27, 2012)

A Leman said:


> If they didn't pick OH, He would solve the cube before the driver could buckle his seat belt.



^^ this

It was awesome, but I think that, yeah, they made it so the car would win. Maybe not, but I don't think that driving in a fast car would make a 20 second average get a >35 second solve.


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## waffle=ijm (Jun 27, 2012)

he's such a cutie <3


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## insane569 (Jun 27, 2012)

Now thats cool.


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## Carson (Jun 27, 2012)

My guess is that solve was incredibly hard considering how much he was being thrown around. Maybe Anthony will chime in and give us the play by play.


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## Me (Jun 27, 2012)

Carson said:


> My guess is that solve was incredibly hard considering how much he was being thrown around. Maybe Anthony will chime in and give us the play by play.


Yeah I'm a little interested how it was all done too, (how many takes?) there has to be a good story here.


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## cmhardw (Jun 27, 2012)

Very cool video! I'm also glad that cubing is getting more publicity. Awesome Anthony, very cool commercial! Looks like it was a lot of fun to be in!


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## KingTim96 (Jun 27, 2012)

lol well at the end there one screen shot shows him doing a pll, then the next one is him looking like he is oing more f2l. maybe they cut the video up to make it seem like he lost, then added cubing sound effects at the end. lol i dont really care. but just a thought.


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## Slowpoke22 (Jun 27, 2012)

KingTim96 said:


> lol well at the end there one screen shot shows him doing a pll, then the next one is him looking like he is oing more f2l. maybe they cut the video up to make it seem like he lost, then added cubing sound effects at the end. lol i dont really care. but just a thought.



Yeah, I'm certain that regardless of whether Anthony beat the driver's lap time he had to agree in advance to allow VolksWagon to manipulate the results to demonstrate how amazingly fast/efficient their car is. Of course they wouldn't make a commercial and allow him to win - that would defeat the purpose of their advertisement. From VolksWagon's perspective, Anthony was only there to demonstrate some perceived comparison of speed, and it may be the case the entire thing was only simulated. My guess is they just had him do a OH solve while hauling ass in the car, and they used that footage to their advantage. However, in the case that this was in fact a legit lap/cube solve race, I'm curious to know if Anthony actually did finish his solve before the lap ended. I'd also like to know if he's even allowed to discuss it, or if he had to sign some sort of NDA. Hmmmm


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## Mike Hughey (Jun 27, 2012)

I love the way the commercial totally captures Anthony's true personality. "Can we go again?"


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## Carson (Jun 27, 2012)

Mike Hughey said:


> I love the way the commercial totally captures Anthony's true personality. "Can we go again?"



Which is in stark contrast to the personality he portrays at the very beginning of the video.


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## IamWEB (Jun 27, 2012)

Carson said:


> Which is in stark contrast to the personality he portrays at the very beginning of the video.



Underlying message that the VolksWagon brings out a man's fun side. Or something like that.

Go Anthony!


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## Godmil (Jun 27, 2012)

That was sooo awesome!


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## god of rubic 2 (Jun 27, 2012)

Wow, lol, really looked like he was just doing random moves..


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## CuberMan (Jun 27, 2012)

lol it seems like Anthony faked losing, but this is so awesome!


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## Ickenicke (Jun 27, 2012)

nice!


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## drewsopchak (Jun 27, 2012)

A Leman said:


> If they didn't pick OH, He would solve the cube before the driver could buckle his seat belt.



No, They can cut the commercial and have him start late... plus, how long is a "lap"


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## CubeRoots (Jun 28, 2012)

he had no inspection, too

and a storebought it seems


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## MalusDB (Jun 28, 2012)

CubeRoots said:


> and a storebought it seems


If it was a storebought it must have had a decent amount of breaking in. Turning one out of the box OH is a dreadful experience from my... well experience.


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## rubixwiz031 (Jun 28, 2012)

I think its just a zhanchi with a rubiks logo


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## wasianrubiks (Jun 28, 2012)

Tht was epic haha


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## Anthony (Jun 28, 2012)

drewsopchak said:


> Cool! interesting that they picked OH.





Carson said:


> My guess is that solve was incredibly hard considering how much he was being thrown around. Maybe Anthony will chime in and give us the play by play.





Me said:


> Yeah I'm a little interested how it was all done too, (how many takes?) there has to be a good story here.





cmhardw said:


> Very cool video! I'm also glad that cubing is getting more publicity. Awesome Anthony, very cool commercial! Looks like it was a lot of fun to be in!





Slowpoke22 said:


> Yeah, I'm certain that regardless of whether Anthony beat the driver's lap time he had to agree in advance to allow VolksWagon to manipulate the results to demonstrate how amazingly fast/efficient their car is. Of course they wouldn't make a commercial and allow him to win - that would defeat the purpose of their advertisement. From VolksWagon's perspective, Anthony was only there to demonstrate some perceived comparison of speed, and it may be the case the entire thing was only simulated. My guess is they just had him do a OH solve while hauling ass in the car, and they used that footage to their advantage. However, in the case that this was in fact a legit lap/cube solve race, I'm curious to know if Anthony actually did finish his solve before the lap ended. I'd also like to know if he's even allowed to discuss it, or if he had to sign some sort of NDA. Hmmmm



Here's a condensed version of the story:

I was contacted by Volkswagen two weeks before filming in May. At first, I was a bit skeptical because of how little information was given, but after speaking to a representative on the phone I realized how awesome an opportunity this was and began rescheduling my final exams. Completely worth it. I was flown out to LA and, for a few short days, got to experience what I imagine it would be like to be a movie star. It was surreal. 

The art direction crew which was responsible for all four commercials initially brainstormed dozens of potential acts that could work with this idea. Eventually, they settled on bringing in a guitarist, beat boxer, fast talker and Rubik's Cube solver. And no, they did not bring me in because they thought I was the OH world record holder - nor did I claim to be. The head of the art direction staff informed me that she spent several days watching YouTube videos and searching the internet to make sure she chose the "right group of people." I was told that I was selected for being "one of the fastest in the nation as well as seeming to have a personality and 'look' that would be perfect for the job." I'm well aware that I'm only ranked 89th officially in the world at OH solving and that Feliks and Michal are much, much faster at OH than I am, but thanks to those of you who felt the need to clarify in the video's comments lol.

I can't publicly disclose certain details, but I will say that I did much more than OH in that car and I was a bit surprised by the end result. I think it's quite cool, but it's definitely not the direction we seemed to be headed in based on our on-set discussions and talk on the phone afterwards.

In the end, I'm extremely impressed by our sport's tremendous growth over the four years I've been around and I'm proud to have had the opportunity to represent the community on such a large scale. I have plenty of truly awesome stories to tell and I'm sure many of you will hear them soon.

See you in Vegas.


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## Godmil (Jun 28, 2012)

Anthony said:


> ... I was a bit surprised by the end result. I think it's quite cool, but it's definitely not the direction we seemed to be headed in based on our on-set discussions and talk on the phone afterwards.



Whatever the initial plans the end result is amazing. You come across really well, and I can see it being a nice boost to the overall image of cubing. Well done.


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## rubixwiz031 (Jun 28, 2012)

Anthony, PLEASE tell us- did you fake the solve????? We are all dying to know.


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## aronpm (Jun 28, 2012)

rubixwiz031 said:


> We are all dying to know.



Are we? I just thought the ad was awesome.


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## Mollerz (Jun 28, 2012)

What a great advertisement! I love the "Can we go again!?" at the end.


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## Dene (Jun 28, 2012)

That was freaking awesome Anthony! Loved the seriousness at the start  . You look like an android or something XD


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## tasguitar7 (Jun 29, 2012)

Well, looking at the video, Anthony picks up the cube at 23 seconds and the clicking at the end stops at 54 seconds. This would be a solve time of 31 seconds, well above Anthony's average. This makes it seem as if he would have had to have faked the solve in order to allow the car to win. However, it appears that he did not get inspection time. How big of an impact this would have is unknown (to me), but also probably not the 12 seconds necessary to allow the car to win.


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## BlueDevil (Jun 29, 2012)

tasguitar7 said:


> Well, looking at the video, Anthony picks up the cube at 23 seconds and the clicking at the end stops at 54 seconds. This would be a solve time of 31 seconds, well above Anthony's average. This makes it seem as if he would have had to have faked the solve in order to allow the car to win. However, it appears that he did not get inspection time. How big of an impact this would have is unknown (to me), but also probably not the 12 seconds necessary to allow the car to win.



Well he not only had no inspection, but he was being thrown around while trying to solve a cube one-handed. I've been solving a cube on the bus when it goes on a bumpy road, and it makes it a little more difficult to solve it. 31 seconds is not too bad of a time based on those factors -- but we really have no idea how long the lap was.

I think that it could have been a real solve.


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## RaresB (Jun 29, 2012)

tasguitar7 said:


> Well, looking at the video, Anthony picks up the cube at 23 seconds and the clicking at the end stops at 54 seconds. This would be a solve time of 31 seconds, well above Anthony's average. This makes it seem as if he would have had to have faked the solve in order to allow the car to win. However, it appears that he did not get inspection time. How big of an impact this would have is unknown (to me), but also probably not the 12 seconds necessary to allow the car to win.



you didnt take into consideration the fact that he is being thrown around in the car which makes it harder

EDIT : Ninja`d


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## tasguitar7 (Jun 29, 2012)

BlueDevil said:


> he was being thrown around while trying to solve a cube one-handed. .



I guess I hadn't considered that.
He probably isn't allowed to disclose whether it was real or not. I suppose the community may never know. All of what I said earlier also assumes that the "lap" was one continuous stream. It is possible they just filmed the car driving with Anthony cubing inside for a while and edited into a lap vs solve effect.


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## IamWEB (Jun 29, 2012)

At the very least, you can see him progressing through the Fridrich steps as the commercial goes on (at least for the most part).

Seems legit.


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## JasonK (Jun 29, 2012)

Why do so many people care if he "faked" the solve? Do you understand how TV works? It's an awesome ad and a great step for speedcubing - but in the end it's designed to sell a product


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## tasguitar7 (Jun 29, 2012)

WTF2L? said:


> Why do so many people care if he "faked" the solve? Do you understand how TV works? It's an awesome ad and a great step for speedcubing - but in the end it's designed to sell a product



Well, we are just trying to figure out whether it was a legitimate solve or not; regardless, it is awesome that a cuber got the opportunity to do something like this and it is something for the community to be proud of.


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## PhillipEspinoza (Jun 29, 2012)

Anthony said:


> The head of the art direction staff informed me that she spent several days watching YouTube videos and searching the internet to make sure she chose the "right group of people." I was told that I was selected for being "one of the fastest in the nation as well as seeming to have a personality and 'look' that would be perfect for the job."



Im guessing they didn't want anyone too young because that would take away the 'legitimacy' of speedcubing and someone who didn't look "personality-less". It's interesting how they determined that but I'm not surprised why they picked you, I think you fit their requirements, at least the ones I'm postulating that they had. To me it's kinda racist in a way cuz heaven forbid they get a personality-less Asian *sarcasm* who can only solve the cube and doesn't talk much or a nerdy cuber. I could be wrong. 

Either way I thought it was a funny and legit looking commercial. It's things like this that make all the time spent practicing worth the effort. It's one thing winning a competition, but another thing being on national television in a badass commercial lol.


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## IamWEB (Jun 29, 2012)

PhillipEspinoza said:


> It's one thing winning a competition, but another thing being on national television in a badass commercial lol.



If there was a book made as a guide for speedcubers everywhere, this quote would be probably be at the end of Chapter WIN.



Spoiler



Chapter WIN


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## Escher (Jun 29, 2012)

PhillipEspinoza said:


> Im guessing they didn't want anyone too young because that would take away the 'legitimacy' of speedcubing and someone who didn't look "personality-less". It's interesting how they determined that but I'm not surprised why they picked you, I think you fit their requirements, at least the ones I'm postulating that they had. To me it's kinda racist in a way cuz heaven forbid they get a personality-less Asian *sarcasm* who can only solve the cube and doesn't talk much or a nerdy cuber. I could be wrong.
> 
> Either way I thought it was a funny and legit looking commercial. It's things like this that make all the time spent practicing worth the effort. It's one thing winning a competition, but another thing being on national television in a badass commercial lol.



It's mostly because he's hawt (and fast) :3


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## Stefan (Jun 29, 2012)

PhillipEspinoza said:


> To me it's kinda racist in a way cuz heaven forbid they get a *personality-less* Asian *sarcasm* who can only solve the cube and *doesn't talk much* or a *nerdy *cuber.



I'm confused.

Are you saying all Asians are personality-less nerds who don't talk much?
Are you saying that Anthony is a personality-less nerd who doesn't talk much?

Cause otherwise, I don't see why you'd think the Asian-ness is what made them pick Anthony instead of a personality-less Asian nerd who doesn't talk much.


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## MTGjumper (Jun 29, 2012)

I think Phillip was saying that Volkswagon didn't want to use a person who fitted the stereotype of cuber (i.e., an Asian person or someone that looked like a nerd), but rather someone who looked badass, like Anthony.


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## Stefan (Jun 29, 2012)

MTGjumper said:


> I think Phillip was saying that Volkswagon didn't want to use a person who fitted the stereotype of cuber (i.e., an Asian person or someone that looked like a nerd), but rather someone who looked badass, like Anthony.



"Asian *or* nerd"? He said "kinda racist", so unless nerds are a race, I think he meant that as another attribute of his hypothetical Asian. And suggested that being Asian was why that Asian wouldn't be used, while I think the other attributes are a much better explanation and there is no evidence for it being racism. Also, discriminating by how badass you are isn't racism, it's maybe "badassism".


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## applemobile (Jun 29, 2012)

Stop being pedantic. What he said made perfect sense.


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## rubixwiz031 (Jul 1, 2012)

Stefan said:


> I'm confused.
> 
> Are you saying all Asians are personality-less nerds who don't talk much?
> Are you saying that Anthony is a personality-less nerd who doesn't talk much?
> ...


That is one of the funniest things that I have seen all day. Thank you, Stefan.


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## IanTheCuber (Jul 3, 2012)

Epic! I think Rowe Hessler and Feliks should do something like this.


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## somerandomkidmike (Jul 3, 2012)

I have a sudden urge to buy a Volkswagen. Well, I guess I won't be eating for 3 months if I want to get a down payment...


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## Uka36 (Jul 3, 2012)

Wow, I'm so glad they made this commercial!


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## RaresB (Jul 3, 2012)

Nice commercial, awesome to see cubing and VW, VW is awesome gonna keep the '10 passat for a while i hope


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