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The BMW film series The Hire was a series of eight short films (each about eight minutes long) produced for the Internet in the summers of 2001 and 2002. The films were directed by popular Hollywood and international directors. All starred Clive Owen as "The Driver". Each film's story highlighted the performance aspects of various BMW automobiles. The 'first season' films, as well as the Ben Younger-directed interludes, were executive-produced by David Fincher, the 'second season' three films were executive-produced by Ridley Scott. BMW AG (an acronym for Bayerische Motoren Werke Aktiengesellschaft, or in English, Bavarian Motor Works Corporation), is an independent German company and manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles. ...
This article is about the year 2001. ...
For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ...
Clive Owen (born October 3, 1964), is a critically acclaimed English actor, now a regular performer in Hollywood and independent American films. ...
Ben Younger (born 10 July, 1972 in Brooklyn, New York) is a Jewish-American screenwriter and film director. ...
David Leo Fincher (born August 28, 1962) is an American music video and film director known for his dark and stylish portraits of the human experience. ...
Sir Ridley Scott (born November 30, 1937 in South Shields) is an influential English film director and producer. ...
These films are credited with launching the marketing technique of Branded content. Branded Content is essentially a supercharged version of product placement inside entertainment produced and paid for by the advertiser. ...
History
The series proved to be immensely popular, and BMW produced a free DVD of the series, including extra features, which was available to BMW owners through the owner's circle on the company's website. At first, the DVD was not even marketed. A few copies were distributed to some BMW dealerships and automobile magazines, but they were in limited supply. Many dealerships had no idea that BMW had even made promotional films. To request a DVD from BMW's site, one had to visit the help center of the BMW Films site and email one's mailing address to the webmaster. Copies were slow to arrive at first, and as the method of obtaining the disc was spread solely by word of mouth, copies were highly prized. Discs were sold for large sums on eBay. Later, BMW sold the DVD directly through their website and a telephone number. DVD (sometimes called Digital Versatile Disc, or Digital Video Disc) is an optical disc storage media format that can be used for data storage, including movies with high video and sound quality. ...
eBay headquarters in San Jose eBay North First Street satellite office campus (home to PayPal) eBay Inc. ...
The first few pressings of the disc included the first season's five films and the interludes, but subsequent pressings did not include The Follow because of rights issues (it is rumored that Forest Whitaker approved the film only for Internet distribution, not for any other venue). Forest Steven Whitaker (born July 15, 1961) is an American actor (film, stage and television), producer and director. ...
After the films' success, BMW produced three more films in 2002, this time executive produced by brothers Ridley and Tony Scott, and called them "Season 2". All three featured BMW's newly introduced Z4 roadster, and Clive Owen returned as The Driver. For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ...
Sir Ridley Scott (born November 30, 1937 in South Shields) is an influential English film director and producer. ...
See also Tony Scott for the American clarinet jazz musician. ...
The BMW Z4 is a 2-door, rear wheel drive sports car. ...
1923 Ford Model T roadster 1950 Jaguar XK120 roadster This article is about the roadster car body style. ...
BMW sold a second DVD compilation of all eight films in 2002, including The Follow but without the interludes, for a nominal shipping fee (which was identical for any shipping address worldwide) via the BMW Films website. The films are no longer available (the distribution ended October 21st, 2005), However they are still viewable by the website YouTube. For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ...
Dark Horse Comics published a 4-issue comic book series based on the main character of the films, two of which were written by Bruce Campbell. Dark Horse Comics logo Dark Horse Comics is one of the largest independent comic book publishers in the United States, behind dominant publishers Marvel Comics and DC Comics. ...
Bruce Lorne Campbell (born June 22, 1958, Royal Oak, Michigan) is an American actor of Irish-Scottish descent. ...
"Season 2" was also available for free on the 'Moviedrome' section of the DVD packaged with the 41st issue of the Playstation 2 review magazine PSW.
Details
Season 1 The first five BMW films:
Ambush The Driver escorts an elderly diamond buyer and outruns a pursuing van. John Michael Frankenheimer (February 19, 1930 – July 6, 2002) was an American film director. ...
2001 BMW 750iL The BMW 7-Series is a luxury saloon (sedan) made by BMW. It replaced the New Six models in 1977. ...
Chosen The Driver protects a holy Asian child, a cat-and-mouse game ensues between them and numerous henchmen. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...
The BMW 5-Series is a series of medium size automobiles manufactured by BMW in Germany. ...
The Follow The Driver is hired by a paranoid film celebrity to spy on his wife. Wong Kar-wai, (Traditional Chinese: 王家衛; Simplified Chinese: 王家å«; pinyin: Wáng JiÄwèi; Cantonese Yale: Wòhng Gà Waih; born July 17, 1958) is a Hong Kong based film director known for his unique visual style of romantic art films. ...
The BMW 3-Series is a line of compact sedans manufactured by BMW since May, 1975. ...
The BMW Z3 was the first modern mass-market roadster produced by BMW, as well as the first BMW model assembled in the United States. ...
Star The Driver is called by a producer to teach an obnoxious celebrity a lesson. Guy Ritchie 2001 Guy Ritchie (born September 10, 1968) is an English film director. ...
Madonna Louise Ciccone (born August 16, 1958), better known worldwide as simply Madonna, is an iconic American pop singer, songwriter, musician, record and film producer, dancer, actress, author and a fashion icon whose level of fame and success has earned her superstar status for more than two decades. ...
The BMW M5 is the high-performance version of the BMW 5-Series automobile made by BMW Motorsport. ...
Powder Keg The Driver is drafted by the UN to rescue a wounded war photographer, stranded in a Latin American conflict zone. Alejandro González Iñárritu Alejandro González Iñárritu (born 15 August 1963 in Mexico City) is a Mexican film director. ...
The BMW X5 is a mid-size luxury crossover SUV sold by BMW since 2000. ...
Season 2
Hostage The Driver is hired to rescue a hostage, locked in a car trunk. John Woo (Chinese: ; pinyin: Wú Yǔsēn) (born 1 May 1946) is a Chinese film director and producer known especially for his Heroic bloodshed movies, which often include balletic violence, he is very talented directing skills and has known sucess with such hits as A Better tomorrow movies and...
The BMW Z4 is a 2-door, rear wheel drive sports car. ...
Ticker The Driver ferries a diplomat, carrying a mysterious briefcase, who is being pursued by militants. Joe Carnahan is a North American film director. ...
The BMW Z4 is a 2-door, rear wheel drive sports car. ...
Beat The Devil The Driver drag-races the Devil, in order to earn James Brown his soul. James Brown (born James Joseph Brown, Jr. ...
There are new BMW movies in the making. Eight Extreme sightseeing movies are scheduled for release soon. See also Tony Scott for the American clarinet jazz musician. ...
The BMW Z4 is a 2-door, rear wheel drive sports car. ...
Nissan Nissan tried to capitalize on the popularity of the BMW films by producing their own short film featuring their newly reintroduced 350Z. The film was titled The Run and was directed by John Bruno (also worked on True Lies, The Abyss and Terminator 2: Judgment Day). The film was shown in theaters before feature films in November 2002. It was deeply influenced by underground racing classics such as Getaway in Stockholm, which feature car mounted cameras as a high performance vehicle speeds through a tight and stone paved European city in twilight. Nissan offered a DVD of the film for $9.95. However, The Run was never as popular as the BMW films. Nissan Motor Co. ...
True Lies is a 1994 action movie/comedy directed by James Cameron. ...
The Abyss is an award-winning science fiction film from 1989, written and directed by James Cameron, starring Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Michael Biehn. ...
Terminator 2: Judgment Day (commonly abbreviated T2) is a 1991 movie directed by James Cameron and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, and Robert Patrick. ...
Getaway in Stockholm is a series of illegal street racing movies filmed using mainly car mounted cameras along with some cameramen alongside the route. ...
Influences - After the first season, Clive Owen starred in The Bourne Identity, where he also drove around in a BMW. He currently owns several BMWs.
- The Transporter (2002), starring Jason Statham was based on the BMW's The Hire [citation needed] (Statham's character, Frank Martin, drove a 1999 BMW 735i in the first movie, and an Audi A8L W12 in the 2005 sequel)
Clive Owen (born October 3, 1964), is a critically acclaimed English actor, now a regular performer in Hollywood and independent American films. ...
The Bourne Identity is a 1980 spy fiction thriller by Robert Ludlum about an amnesiac who must discover who he is and why several different groups, including an assassin and the CIA, are trying to kill him. ...
The Transporter film poster The Transporter was an action/crime movie that was released (USA) on October 11, 2002. ...
Jason Statham, British actor Jason Statham (born September 12, 1972, in North of England) is an English actor, known for his roles in the Guy Ritchie crime films Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch. ...
External links - BMW Films The Hire Series
- BMW Films The Hire Zone
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