THE MAKING OF THE 1000 SERIES RANGE EXPANSION FILM

2 Days, 6 Riders, 9 Motorcycles, 11 Locations, 6 Crew, Countless Hours: Planning, Editing and Tweaking, One 60-Second Film…

And one unexpected police visit. (More on that later…)

That’s what went into our latest launch film, Hiplok 1000 Series | Anti-Angle Grinder Security for the Real World.

But what does it really take to bring a 60-second Hiplok film to life?

THE IDEA

At Hiplok, pushing the boundaries doesn’t stop with the products we create. From design and innovation to creative and marketing, we’re always looking for new ways to bring our products to life.

With the expansion of the Hiplok 1000 Series, we wanted a launch film that reflected exactly what the range was built for: the real world.

Different rides. Different motorcycles. Different journeys and different ways to secure them.

The idea was simple: introduce the new DXL1000 and L1000 alongside the existing 1000 Series and show how the range fits into a motorcyclist’s life. Whether riding solo or together, stopping along the way or securing your bike at home, there’s a Hiplok for every part of the ride.

2 Days, from country roads to city streets

We filmed over two days, allowing us to capture a range of contrasting riding styles and locations. On day one, we stayed close to home, filming in Leamington Spa and the surrounding areas. Capturing everything from adventure riding and group lock-ups to our recreated theft scenes.

For day two, we headed into Central London, swapping the open roads of Warwickshire for the busy streets, urban riding and the everyday reality of securing a motorcycle in the city.

Two very different days, with one goal: Show the 1000 series where it belongs. The real world.

9 Motorcycles and 6 Riders

To show motorcycle security in the real world, you need real motorcycles and the people who ride them. Our goal for this project was to bring together a mix of bikes and riding styles to represent the different riders the 1000 Series is designed for.

We managed to bring together nine motorcycles and five riders for the shoot, from adventure bikes hitting the green lanes in the Warwickshire countryside to sports bikes navigating the streets of Central London. Each brought something different to the film and helped us show how security needs can change depending on what you ride and who you’re with.

For day one, we reached out to Midlands Motorbikers, a Facebook community bringing together riders from across the Midlands.

James, who runs the page as well as local motorcycle detailing company Shiny Side Up, went above and beyond to help us out. Not only did he bring along his own tricked-out BMW R 1250 GS, but he also helped rally together riders with sports bikes and another adventure bike for the shoot.

And when we needed to get off the beaten track, James showed us some of Warwickshire’s hidden green lanes, giving us the perfect setting to capture the adventure side of the film.

Day two called for something a little different. A huge shout-out goes to Aous (@A_A_Rider), who might just have some of the best-looking bikes in London. He brought along his Ducati Panigale V4 S and Ducati Scrambler Nightshift, transporting them by van between locations across Central London throughout the day.

It’s safe to say the film wouldn’t be what it is without his help or the help of Ameer (@660London), who joined us with his Aprilia RS 660.

A massive thank you to everyone who gave up their time, brought along their bikes and helped us bring the film to life.

Sourcing bikes and getting them to the right place at the right time may be one of the more challenging aspects of a Hiplok shoot. That means we are always on the hunt for more bikes and more riders to feature in films, photography and content.

So, if you have a bike you think deserves some screen time? Reach out to us here, and hopefully we will see you on a Hiplok shoot in the future.

11 Locations

Motorcycle security doesn’t just happen in one place, so we didn’t want to show the 1000 Series in just one either. Across the shoot, we filmed at 11 different locations, five in Leamington Spa and Warwickshire and six in London, covering areas from the Tobacco Docks to Central.

Each location gave us another opportunity to show the range in different scenarios. This meant a lot of moving around. Motorcycles, riders, crew and kit all had to make their way from one location to the next.

But that variety is important. The 1000 Series is designed to give riders more ways to secure their motorcycles, and we wanted to reflect that.

6 Crew

Pulling together a shoot and film like this requires collaboration and planning. Our small in-house creative and marketing team managed everything from initial concept to locations, logistics, riders, motorcycles, and shot lists.

For the shoot itself, we worked closely with freelance partners. Ben Walton took the lead behind the camera, capturing the film across both days. The Hiplok team of two focused on photography, logistics and directing.

Once filming had wrapped, the footage was handed over to Jacob at Aspect Media, who worked closely with the Hiplok team to bring the project to life.

It might sound like a lot of work for a 60-second film. But the launch film is only a part of the plan; the shoot generates a library of photography and video that can be used for graphics, social media posts, adverts and much more; content that will appear across web, social, email and future campaigns long after launch.

And with a small cast and crew, everyone has to get involved. Including Hiplok co-founders Ben and John, who swapped designing bike locks for balaclavas and angle grinders to play our motorcycle thieves in the opening scene.

As it turns out, they might have played that part too well…

1 Unexpected Police Visit

Remember those recreated theft scenes we mentioned?

For the opening of the film, we wanted to recreate the kind of viral motorcycle theft videos you see across social media. Thieves in balaclavas, tooled up with an angle grinder and a lump hammer, attempting to steal a motorcycle in broad daylight.

So when Ben and John pulled on the balaclavas and the cameras started rolling, things might have looked a little too convincing.

Convincing enough, in fact, to catch the attention of the local police…

Despite taking precautions to avoid this exact situation, (i.e. we were filming in the car park in front of Hiplok HQ surrounded by a crew in bright yellow high-vis jackets and a filmer with a pretty large camera rig pointed directly at our ‘thieves’), we were greeted with the sight of a police car speeding up the car park towards us with the blue lights on… while Ben and John were stealing their own bike with angle grinders.

Luckily, after explaining, the local police officers took it quite well, and we all had a bit of a laugh about it. It was reassuring to see how fast the police had answered the call about a potential motorcycle theft in progress.