Rafael Neves
ABOUT
THE LONG WAY HOME is a 64-second commercial for the Ford F-150 Raptor arriving in Brazil, written, directed, generated, edited, graded and mixed by Rafael Neves, AI filmmaker and senior video editor. A boy from the Brazilian countryside spent his childhood watching a monster that would "never come here." Twenty years later it arrives, and he is the first to set it loose on the red dirt where he grew up. What it shows: • A real brief first: reference breakdown, original script, emotional curve and a 20-beat shot list • Locked identities for three characters and the truck, consistent across 28 shots • Every shot directed in writing, with real-commercial motion references and a 3D greybox for the hardest move • 480p drafts first, finals upscaled to a 4K master • Full post: Premiere edit, After Effects speed ramps, color per act with film emulation, 100+ sound effects, mix to -14 LUFS Full breakdown: rafael-neves.myportfolio.com/the-long-way-home Open to AI filmmaker, AI video editor and cinematic AI roles. Remote, UTC-3, US time-zone overlap. LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rafaellneves22 Email: rafaelnevesdesigner022@gmail.com
SELECTED FRAMES — 8 OF 8
PROCESS
BRIEF 64 s commercial for the Raptor arriving in Brazil. Started from a shot-by-shot breakdown of a hero car teaser (42 shots), then an original story: longing, stubbornness, release, humor, pride. Script, VO, emotional curve and a 20-beat shot list locked before any generation. REFERENCES About 300 references in 11 folders by act, plus 15 truck commercials studied for rhythm and camera. One palette per act: faded memory, cold doubt, dawn blue, red dirt and orange dunes, golden home. ASSETS FIRST 3 characters and the truck locked as sheets before video. 27 approved style frames: Google Flow for landscapes and the truck, Higgsfield when a character is in frame. Brand details locked from official photos. FRAMES TO MOTION 54 drafts at 480p, 29 approved takes. Each prompt written as a production document: capture at 24 fps / 180 degrees, FOV, physics, light, sound, no on-screen text. The hardest move (truck through a lagoon) was blocked in a Blender greybox first. Real truck commercials used as motion references, mirrored and slowed when needed. RESOLUTION Seedance 1080p only where text or the badge had to read. Everything upscaled to a 4K master in Topaz. POST Premiere edit, 2 speed ramps in After Effects (through the grille into the V6, slow-motion jump), color per act plus film emulation, 100+ sound effects layered for perspective, music edited to the cut, mix to -14 LUFS. EN master and PT-BR version. WHAT FAILED AND THE FIX • Seedance drifts into slow motion with water and sand. Fix: real-time capture language, then speed up in post. • A bad detail in the first frame comes back in every retake. Fix: clean the style frame before generating. • Hard human motion (a kid playing) looked fake. Fix: a real-footage motion reference. • Off-screen camera paths flip left and right. Fix: 3D greybox as the motion reference.
Credits
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