A new TV commercial for the 2014 Jeep Cherokee has seen Jeep transform a city block in Vancouver into a forest, complete with a river and … yep, wolves.

JEEP HAS TRANSFORMED a city block in Vancouver into a forest, complete with wild mountain river, snowbanks, boulders, moss, live fir trees and two wolves. The urban transformation was part of a new TV commercial for the Jeep Cherokee.

According to Jeep, the TV commercial saw unsuspecting Cherokee test drivers follow “directions from its navigation system throughout downtown Vancouver. Following the detour, the directions soon led them to the “river in the city” and the drivers were actually a part of the real-life demonstration of the vast, wide range of capabilities of the Jeep Cherokee”.

“We wanted to bring to life the real world capabilities of the Jeep Cherokee in a unique approach,” said Olivier Francois, Chief Marketing Officer, FCA – Global. “So how do you do that? By taking what is essentially an experiential event where unsuspecting drivers are being filmed navigating a busy metropolitan street that has been turned into a fully functional mountain river and let them experience the capabilities of the Jeep Cherokee for themselves. Our ‘River in the City’ takes an untraditional approach to create a powerful statement that the Jeep Cherokee can handle anything a city throws at it.”

River in the City – Fast Facts:

• 1,000,000 pounds of boulders, rocks and sand (2500 sand bags), used throughout the set to break up water flow and give surface disturbance;
• Water (250,000 gallons) was pumped onto the street with water pumps hidden in the alley and placed in key spots. (The water was recycled using a closed water system that pumped water from the end of the street back to the top. The water was eventually discharged down the street, into Vancouver Harbor.);
• 400,000 pounds of snow – the snowbank was made of snow blanket and fish-ice;
• Logs, sticks, moss, and 80 fir/hemlock trees lined/covered the street. (The trees were boxed and returned to the nursery and boulders, gravel and other materials were also repurposed.); and
• Two wolves were on set. (The domesticated, mixed-breed wolves were made available from the Animal Insight for Film and TV. A representative from the American Humane Association was on set to attest that the wolves were treated humanely and procedures were followed. Observers were able to take pictures with the animals.)

So, what do you think of the Ad?