NERVO has created and produced a new experience for Sumol, challenging a group of seven friends to embark on a five-day journey to Bragança, without GPS or knowledge of their final destination, to witness the Solar Eclipse on 12 August.

Inspired by the ECLIPSE concept, the experience turns the journey into an adventure, where every stop, clue and challenge is part of a narrative that gradually unfolds until the most anticipated moment: arriving in Bragança to witness the astronomical phenomenon.

Throughout the journey from Lisbon to Bragança, the group is guided only by a physical map and a series of clues. To find their way, participants must also use glasses with a special filter that allows them to decode the map and reveal the next stages of the journey.

The experience also features the ECLIPSE Mission, a strategy game that follows the group throughout the five days. Each participant receives cards representing three elements — Sun, Moon and Earth — corresponding to a person, a location and an object. The goal is to align these elements in order to eliminate their target, creating an ongoing dynamic of alliances, negotiation and strategy among the participants.

“We wanted the ECLIPSE concept to be present not only in the final destination, but to drive the entire narrative throughout the five days. The main creative challenge was to turn a simple road trip into a game-show-like format, where group dynamics, the absence of technology and the elimination mechanics of the ECLIPSE Mission create tension, surprise and, above all, strong organic content for Sumol’s social media,” explains Miguel Pires, Creative Partner at NERVO.

The journey culminates at Bragança Aerodrome, where the group celebrates reaching their destination with a picnic and an exclusive concert, featuring music created by Sumol in partnership with Pedro da Linha, Xint0, Kalú, Femme Falafel, Frankie Chavez, Mafalda Lemos and Rislene, in a moment designed to accompany the viewing of the Solar Eclipse.

Beyond the creative concept, the project involved a large-scale production operation, with a five-day route, several stops across the country and a team distributed along the journey to ensure the execution of every clue, challenge and experience.

“From a production perspective, organising a blind journey with stops across the country requires logistics that can anticipate several possible outcomes. Our team ensures that every clue is in the right place, coordinates the interaction through hosts positioned along the route and manages the infrastructure at the final destination in Bragança, including the picnic setup and the exclusive concert during the astronomical phenomenon,” concludes Tiago Tarracha, Managing Partner at NERVO.