Vantage Pictures and realme turn nightlife into an AI-powered dream in “Live For Real” campaign
When realme set out to launch its new 15 Series 5G, the brief was simple: make it feel alive. What emerged was Live For Real – a high-voltage night odyssey that pulses with energy, style, and movement. Produced by Vantage Pictures and directed by Guy Bolandi, the film transforms an ordinary night out into a dreamlike blend of AI magic and disco-era glamour.
At its heart, Live For Real follows a young woman as she leaves the office and steps into the night. One moment she’s waiting at a bus stop, the next she’s lost in music and light — her realme 15 capturing every beat of her journey.
“We wanted to show how AI can elevate real life — how technology makes the ordinary feel cinematic,” says Alexis Odiowei, Creative Director at Vantage Pictures.
That idea crystallizes in a striking sequence where her outfit morphs from workwear to nightlife chic — a vibrant reflection of the phone’s own AI-powered transformations.
“The film isn’t really set in any specific era,” Bolandi explains. “It lives somewhere between the ’70s and ’80s — that Studio 54 energy — with a modern touch. The lighting, the wardrobe, the camera movement… everything was inspired by that world.”
The location at Nu Boyana Studios in Bulgaria, with its New York City backlot, became the perfect stand-in for that golden-age nightlife. “Even the entrance looked like Studio 54,” Bolandi laughs. “Once we lit it, it came alive — shimmering, colorful, and full of motion.”
Finding the right performer was another stroke of luck. The lead — discovered by a production assistant.
Bolandi encouraged her to improvise, letting the camera capture real spontaneity. “My process is about trust,” he says. “You build an environment where the performer can just be. That’s when something authentic happens.”
The Live For Real campaign rolls out globally — across Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, Russia, South America, and India — in multiple formats, from hero film to verticals.
“It’s a film about energy,” says Odiowei. “About stepping into the night and being your truest self. Whether you’re in Mumbai or Madrid, that feeling is the same.”
For Bolandi, the project was deeply personal — a chance to recreate the nightlife he’s always admired.
“I truly live and breathe those eras,” he reflects. “Studio 54, the ’70s, that New York pulse — all updated with a modern twist. Honestly, that’s the kind of world I’d want to live in. That’s how I see my parties.”
Credits
Brand: realme
Production House: Vantage Pictures
EP: James Duong
Director: Guy Bolandi
Creative Director: Alexis Odiowei
Producer: Ha Nguyen
Line Production: ICON/Films Sofia
Managing Director: Emil Rangelov
Service Producer: Boyko Shtonov, Slav Lambrinov
1st AD: Atanas Atanasov, Philip Andreev
2nd AD: Yoana Popova
Production Designer: Vanya Ivanova
Props Master: Dimitar Iliev
PA: Hang Ngo
Chaperon: Maria Kamenova
DOP: Mariano Monti
DOP 2nd unit: Kaloyan Ignatov
Stedicam: Tomislav Mihaylov
On-set editor/DIT: Aleksandra Nenkova
Gaffer: Peter Kostov
Wardrobe: Stanislava Yanakieva
Makeup: Krasimira Petrova
Storyboards: Tự Nguyễn
Post Supervisor: Hang Ngo
Post PA: Blue Dang
Editor & Online Artist: Huy Le
Colorist: Yulia Bulashenko
Composer: Two AM Music, Wolfram
VFX/3D: Basugaa Studio, Love Tech Magic, Flow Studio
UI Designer: Lynn Nguyen
