Mad Media Produces “GK2.1” with MTV’s Fantasy Factory and Rob Dyrdek / Ken Block
The Gymkhana project has become the most successful automotive viral film campaign in history. So where do you go from there? Some would think bigger, but DC Co-Founder and Rally Team Member Ken Block teamed up with Rob Dyrdek’s Fantasy Factory and Mad Media, and went…smaller! Gymkhana 2.1 is a funny new video segment that was shot, directed, co-produced, and co-edited by Mad Media for MTV’s Fantasy Factory show and DC Shoes. It features longtime buddies Block and Dyrdek charging around a Gymkhana course side-by-side—Block in his Crawford Performance built Subaru Impreza WRX STI, Dyrdek in his mini shifter kart version of Blocks machine.
Gymkhana 2.1 showcases the same high-end cinematography that has become the hallmark of Mad Media film production, and was used in previous installments of Block’s Gymkhana videos. Dyrdek and Block brought the Mad Media film crew to El Toro Airfield to produce the piece, while the MTV crew documented the “reality” angle as it unfolded.
“Ken and Rob decided to get the kart built and film the clip when Rob made an appearance in the Gymkhana TWO video earlier this year.” said GK 2.1 director and Mad Media co-owner Joshua Martelli. “We were stoked to get a call from Rob and the crew at MTV to come out and use the same techniques and camera gear to create something totally hilarious, but equally cool to watch. We fleshed out the stunts onsite and created the main story edit. It was a blast to work with two super talented guys and come up with stunts that were scary but funny to watch.”
The complete version of Gymkhana 2.1 features more than what’s seen on Dyrdek’s hit MTV show, including near run-overs, drifting, racing and shenanigans that occur when two unique individuals like Dyrdek and Block hit the tarmac in polar-opposite-sized whips.To date, the clip has received over a million views on YouTube.
