The car industry's love-in with Hollywood looks set to continue after BMW signed top movie directors John Woo and Tony Scott to create a series of short films featuring its cars.
Scott, the director behind Thelma And Louise and Top Gun, and Woo, who made Face/Off and Mission: Impossible 2, will direct the British actor Clive Owen in films promoting BMW.
The car giant is hoping to capitalise on the success of The Hire, a series of short films shot by Ang Lee (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) and Guy Ritchie (Lock, Stock And Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch), which ran on its website last year.
More than 6 million people logged on to BMW's site to watch the films, which featured big-name stars including Madonna and Mickey Rourke and attracted acres of publicity for BMW.
Shooting on three action films has now begun and consumers will be able to watch them in October on www.bmwfilms.com.
The move highlights the increasingly close relationship between adland and Hollywood as advertisers and their agencies seek to attract the attention of increasingly media savvy consumers.
Last month Mercedes released an ad in the form of trailer for a non-existant film, starring Benicio Del Toro, to promote the launch of its Mercedes SL.
Jaguar recently announced sales of its cars had almost doubled in the US after the success of Austin Powers: Goldmember, in which the hero drives a Union Jack-painted XK8 Jaguar called the "Shaguar".
