Gumout's "Secret Meeting"

A clandestine meeting between a pair of shady characters under a dank freeway overpass leads to an unexpectedly hilarious result in a new spot for Gumout directed by Kevin Smith of STORY.

pConceived by Cramer-Krasselt (C-K), the clever ad is set up to look like a scene from a gritty TV crime drama as a craggy-faced older man hops into a younger man’s car and hands him a plain brown bag. “Do you think it will help?” the young guy asks. Offering terse assurance, the older guy extracts a bottle of Gumout from the bag and explains how it can enhance the performance of his car. “You know this is available over-the-counter, kid,” he says. “We don’t have to keep meeting like this.”

Drawing out every ounce of noire tension, Smith directed the spot with deadpan restraint. “We stuck completely within the well-established conventions of a crime drama,” he explains. “Our big push was not to do anything funny.”