Take 5 Oil Change Charlotte Shoots
- Devin Forbus
- Apr 15
- 2 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
PROJECT OVERVIEW
CLIENT: Take 5 Oil Change
PRODUCTION TYPE: 4 Days of Various Video Shoots
DELIVERABLES: General BROLL Coverage, Field Interviews, Standard Interviews
“How’s Everybody Doing?”
Fall 2024 saw us traveling along the east coast to film material that would be used for Take 5 Oil Change’s annual rally conference. Charlotte, NC is home to Take 5’s parent company, Driven Brands, and our primary task was to film a series of interviews headed by Take 5’s president, Mo, that would be featured throughout the 2025 rally.
ThE BREAKDOWN
On November 17th, 2024, we touched down in Panthers nation. Charlotte is a compact, bustling town with plenty of restaurants, bars, and oddity shops to keep one entertained. We had to drive outside of the city limits to film some of the shops that Mo and company wanted to showcase, roughly three in total. Each had their quirks.
It was at our first shop that we met one of our favorite managers: Kevin. No last name necessary. The man is as legendary as Prince. If only he looked like him, he’d make doves cry. We filmed his shop for a few hours, highlighting specific features of Take 5 like their supplies, differential service, and grey shirt goodbyes. This was the same for the other shops, with the only exception being some interviews we held.
Each shop presented their own set of challenges, whether that be noise control (one was perfectly positioned on a busy highway), lulls with no customers to film, or employees hopped up on Monster energy drinks. They made for fun characters, but we weren’t filming a movie. This is real life, yah dig?
The essential element of this trip was going to Driven Brands headquarters to film Mo in his zone. We scaled the building to the highest room in the tallest tower, and shot two-person interviews in a conference room we rearranged to give us the best image. Our set-up was fairly simple: one aperture 300x (with light dome), two cameras, and a boom mic. It gave us the shadows we needed and created a professional feel. Mo didn’t waste any time, blazing through roughly eight interviews in thirty minutes. His favorite question? “How are you doing?” Hauling the gear and setting up became the longest part of the shoot, which is rare.
With all of the footage gathered, we reported back to DFC HQ to piece together videos that would be screened in the January rally conference, after grabing a bite to eat at a local BBQ joint.
Partnership
Having served Take 5 for over a year now, we’ve become something of a family. Our primary contact Dave will often add notes and offer suggestions for our videos as we film them, becoming a third brain in the filmmaking process. During our down time, we would grab food with him and his wife, Erin, swapping our own life stories and sharing good laughs. The highlight of the trip was exploring Charlotte after hours with Erin, which consisted of pubs, Insomnia cookies, and peering into art exhibits. It’s never a dull moment with this group.
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