Lexus x Cirque du Soleil Partnership Logo
[Lexus x Cirque du Soleil partnership logo appears on screen against a dark
background.]
[The film opens with a Lexus RX driving followed by intimate,
behind-the-scenes settings, where we are introduced to Omar Corona Lopez in
his shop. Close-up shots of fabric rolling across the table, sewing machine
stitching, vibrant fabric rolls, and someone holding the final product: a
strap]
SUPER: BEHIND EVERY LEXUS IS OMOTENASHI
SUPER: THE JAPANESE APPROACH TO SERVICE
SUPER: WHERE EVERY NEED IS ANTICIPATED
[Inside a workshop, materials and tools are arranged on tables. Hands handle
components and inspect parts.]
VO: “What Cirque du Soleil is for me is the company that is always trying to
innovate, trying to be ahead of the trends.”
[We cut to a stage rehearsal. Cirque du Soleil performers swing through the
air as the audience watches.]
VO: “We really think about what we’re building for what, for who, and
anticipate any problems that should come out of that.”
[Omar is in his studio opens a large black portfolio, followed by more Cirque
performance visuals.
SUPER: THIS SAME PHILOSOPHY OF SERVICE LIVES AT
SUPER: CIRQUE DU SOLEIL
VO: Cirque doesn’t move away from a challenge.
SUPER: THE ART OF CRAFT
SUPER: EPISODE 2: OMOTENASHI
[We transition to an empty film studio setting, where Omar is sitting on a
stool being interviewed.]
VO: “My name is Omar Corona Lopez. I’m originally from Mexico. I am an
acrobatic fabricator.
SUPER: Omar Corona Lopez
SUPER: Acrobatic Fabricator, Cirque du Soleil
[Omar stands in his workshop, surrounded by hanging straps, ropes, and fabric
materials. This is followed by performance nets and aerialists using the
straps during a Cirque show.]
VO: “We build the nets on the shows, a lot of the custom harness, we also do
the straps.”
[Hands hold a strip of webbing covered in fabric, leading to a single
aerialist strap suspended in stillness, ready for the performance. A performer
is shown practicing with the straps, followed by fast clips of other
aerialists in the air.]
VO: “Acrobatic straps are a piece of webbing covered with fabric, which the
artist use to do a number - it could be something from their head, from their
arms, from their legs. Seems like something very simple to make, but there's
always a craft to it. It’s all about allowing the artist to perform
intuitively.”
[Within Omar’s shop, sketches of the strap’s design are shown. Omar examines a
piece of webbing material closely, followed by Omar comparing strap options
with a Cirque du Soleil performer in advance of the show.]
VO: “We start with the raw materials. We have the suede and we have the
webbing and those need to combine and become something that's comfortable,
that's safe, and that it's fun to use for the artist.”
[Different fabrics and colours are on display, touched and compared. Omar
focuses on a long piece of fabric and begins cutting and scoring the
material.]
VO: “Our straps that we built at the shop, they're brake tested around 5700
lbs. We can’t afford do mistakes, somebody’s life is on the line.”
[The scene cuts back to Omar sitting in the film studio, facing the
interviewer who is off camera, gesturing to each camera].
VO: “Craft is an extension of me. I look at stuff and I try to figure out how
it’s working, you know? I am looking at this camera or that camera and trying
to see what he is doing.”
[Omar is walking through the Cirque du Soleil office, looking up and taking in
a large practice area.]
VO: “At very young, I got out of trouble by staying inside and taking video
cassettes and TV's apart and figuring out how they work.”
[Quick cuts of workshop tools including rulers and metal pipes. Fabric is
rolled out and a fabric strap is measured].
[We rotate between a strap being stitches with a sewing machine, with Omar in
the studio placing his hands on top of each other continuously to show a
simplistic folding technique.]
VO: “When I started at the fabrication, the way we built the straps was you
take the size of material you need and then you fold, you glue, you refold,
and then you stitch. But right away I was like, oh, this is not a very
productive thing. There must be something that we can have custom made for
this application and it'll save us a lot of time.”
[Omar is holding a long metal tool, the binder. He rotates the metal exploring
the detail. The fabric is wrapped around the binder and funneled towards the
sewing machine.]
VO: “We were able to find an old gentleman that used to have a binder shop. He
was retired, but he very gladly made us two binders. Very simple, very basic,
but very useful. It was magic.”
[Cinematic moment of an aerialist using the straps during a Cirque du Soleil
show, showing the finished product in a performance.]
VO: “So slowly but surely it took shape, taking something that was maybe a two
or three times a year. Now, every week we make a pair of straps.”
[Close-ups reveal finishing details—leather tags, stitching, and subtle
personalized details.
VO: “Whenever I craft something, I'd like things to be done well, and it has
to look nice at the end too.”
[Omar stiches a leather tag to a strap. A small crown symbol hand-written on
the table, visible to start but folder underneath and hidden.]
VO: “We could slap on a regular tag on the straps, just a little piece of
fabric there that we can write on. We decided to do them in leather just to
have that little extra spark on it. And when I make them, I tend to do a
little crown on the tag because my last name is Corona, which means Crown in
Spanish.”
VO: “They're like kids, you know you make them, you throw them into the world
and see what happens, right? But in this case, we know what's going to happen
- they're not going to break.”
[Lexus SUVs drive through scenic streets. The camera transitions to Omar back
in the studio. A card is handed to Omar, from off camera].
VO (Interviewer): “Lexus borrows a few Japanese ideas about craft. Here's one,
please read it out loud”.
[Close-up of the card and the definition of Omotenashi, read word for word by
Omar.]
VO (Omar): “Omotenashi, the Japanese approach to service that quietly
anticipates what Guests need before they ask where every need is seamlessly
catered for.”
[Omar holds up the card, smiles and waves it subtly around in reference.]
VO: “I like it, it's very nice. I'll make some T-shirts. Omotenashi.”
[Soft laughter from the production crew is heard. Omar smiles again.]
[Omar coils a grey strap in his studio. He takes off his glasses and places
them in his apron pocket.]
[A performance scene shows two aerial artists spinning high above the stage,
attached to straps.]
VO: “A craft is something you made and that now it's a part of somebody else
life. Sitting in the audience and watching the artist spinning that fast, that
high, and he lands - it makes me proud. It makes me happy and relieved at the
same time, because we know we did our job. We got the crowd pumped so together
we created something incredible on stage.”
[Omar shares his final comments in the studio, then the scene cuts to his
empty shop, reminding the audience of where the straps are created.]
[The final sequence is the same road from the beginning of the episode, but
with the Lexus RX driving away.]
Lexus x Cirque du Soleil Partnership Logo
