Oct
05
Oct
04
Motion504’s Main Title for AICP: 19th Century Typesetting with “Kinetic Type”
Posted in: aicp, General, kinetic type foundry, main title, minneapolis, motion504, opening title, steampunk, victorian
Minneapolis broadcast design & animation studio Motion504 coined the main titles for the AICP Show, The Art & Technique of the American Commercial, by paying a visit to a dark and unassuming steampunk-style type foundry. In the manner of Victorian craftsmanship, the title sequence introduces each reception sponsor through the invented art of “moving type” by the means of various 19th century widgets.
Opening at the storefront of the fictional Verne Bros. Kinetic Type Company, the title ushers in a cinematic tone, as inside, we meet the elderly protagonist. At the crack of dawn, working fervently, the man opens the shop for business. While the operations of the shop remain a mystery, kinetic type gadgets curiously come to life. Jingling and rattling, the inconceivable gizmos introduce the names of each AICP reception sponsor, one by one.
Client: AICP Minnesota, Kirk Hokanson, Executive Director
Product: AICP Show 2009 reception sponsor reel
Concept, Design & VFX: motion504
Creative Director/3D/Compositor: Scott Wenner
3D/Compositor: Amy Schmitt
Executive Producer: Eric Mueller
Director: Scott Wenner
DP: Bo Hakala
Art Director: Sarah Jean Kruchowski
Producer: Todd Cobery
Editor: Joe Martin
Sound Design: BWN
Sound Designer: Carl White
Oct
02
Prologue: MTV Video Music Awards 2009
Posted in: award, awards show, General, mtv, prologue, vma
MTV has found a good thing, and they’re sticking to it. For the third year in a row, they’ve tapped LA-based Prologue to create the graphics package for their colossal Video Music Awards show.
Directed by Ilya Abulhanov, the condensed sans-serif type and annotated landscapes of the VMA 2009 package build upon the look Ilya established for the OFFF 2009 titles. In the VMA 2009 package, though, the landscape is alive, modifying itself in subtle but surreal ways.
Gigantic telescoping streetlights and strings of gondolas adorn the familiar skyline of New York City, creating a panoply of mechanical transformations that seem to be a literalization of Rem Koolhaus’ vision of a “delirious New York.” Ilya’s split-screen moments create dizzying multiplications of the city, piling density upon density.
I’m reminded a little of Rob Chiu and Chris Hewitt’s titles for Offf New York. Ben “HECQ” Lukas Boysen did a masterful job sound designing both projects, creating a wild mix of tension and wonder that is driven as much by pockets of poignant silence as it is by the tightly controlled cacophony of the city.
Oct
01
It’s business time; Blackfish for HEC
Posted in: General
Not so long back, commercials for seats of higher learning were composed of shots of the less scruffy bits of a campus, where clean-cut bright young things sat cross-legged on the grass sipping lattes and trading opinions on Nietzche and nebulas. Or maybe there’d be a chemistry lab shot of eager lab coated nerds heating up bubbling potions in test tubes. Either way, higher education commercials have never offered mographers the chance to flex their Wacom honed muscles, until now…
Blackfish, charged by Ogilvy & Mather have created a storming romp through a bizzarist’s take on life after graduation from HEC (Apparently Europe’s no.1 business school). From first person perspective we watch as our hero burns a trail through the job market, vanquishing all that stands in his way, all within a blown-up musical-esque stagescape.
I love this spot because it essentially pokes a lot of fun at the very thing it’s advertising without denigrating it in any way. We arrive at the end of the spot having sold malls to martians, proving that for HEC graduates the sky is no limit! The film also assumes that aspiring business students must have a cracking sense of humour, which is something I was thus far un-aware of…
Client | HEC
Agency | Ogilvy & Mather
Creatives | Ève Roussou & Benjamin Brégeault
Director | Camille Bovier Lapierre
Production | Elegangz & Blackfish
Producers | Aurore Maincent Feer (Elegangz) & Pierre Sémon (Blackfish)
AD | Zurich29
3D | KnightWorks
Romain Politi
Umaru Embalo
Guillaume Gaussuron
Nadia Zouaoui
Geoffrey Pons
Brice
Charcater Design
Aurélien Marrel
Sound | Studio Apollo (Montreal)
Production duration : 10 weeks
Sep
30
SpecialGuest/Vinicius Costa: Zune HD
Posted in: 1st ave machine, central planning, General, microsoft, SpecialGuest, vinicius costa, zune
1st Ave Machine’s colorful alter ego, SpecialGuest, presents a new spot for Zune HD. This spot is Vinicius Costa’s commercial directorial debut with SpecialGuest, following his fantastic short film earlier this year.
From Vinicius: “For this spot I decided to represent high definition in a different way using light, contrast and colors.” No doubt! As with his other work, there’s endless playful, loving details lighting up the environment around them – hopping notes on the turntable, the mixing board faders amidst the vinyl records, the sonic mountains, the dimensionality of the other worlds through the Zune window, to name a few.
Director: Vinicius Costa
Creative Director: Aaron Duffy
Technical Directors: Dan Gregoras & Sam O’Hare
Lead Compositor: Weito Chow
3D Modeler: Joe Nguyen
Production Company: 1st Ave Machine
Executive Producer: Serge Patzak
Head of Production: Hae-Sook Song
Head of Creative Development: Claire Mitchell
Agency: Central Planning
Producer: Michael Lovelady
Associate Producer: Todd Carlson
Zune Creative Director: Ramiro Torres
Sep
30
Dominoes
Posted in: Céline Desrumaux, cel animation, characters, Chris Sayer, environmental message, General, Jason Arber, Paul James, retro, world wildlife fund, Wyld Stallyons, Yann Benedi
Dominoes by Wyld Stallyons is great new short film for the World Wildlife Fund that aims to encourage people to become activists for environmental change. The simple premise is well told through the metaphor of a domino that individual characters use to send their message. Great illustration, character design and animation and a lovely soundtrack top it off.
Yann Benedi and Céline Desrumaux animated and directed the film for Wyld Stallyons in just over three weeks. Céline was one of the film-makers who made Yankee Gal at Supinfocom in 2008, and Yann Benedi made Gary there in the same year. Both films are worth checking out if you haven’t yet seen them.
Céline Desrumaux’s post about Dominoes on her blog.
Yann Benedi’s here.
See the campaign for WWF here.
Sep
29
Passion Pictures’ Pete Candeland: Coke Zero “Happy Kingdom”
Posted in: coca-cola, coke zero, General, happy kingdom, medieval, passion pictures, Pete CandelandBuilt atop the repertoire of his work with Passion Pictures for the Gorillaz, director Pete Candeland’s buzz reached a fever pitch with the indelible Rock Band cinematic for The Beatles.
In “Happy Kingdom” for Coke Zero, Candeland delivers the goods again and lines the court with a rich cast of characters plucked straight from medieval times. Chock-full of pizazz, “Happy Kingdom” is a spectacle— a dazzling array of eye-candy that embodies the directors flair for extravagance and lavish aesthetics into an eclectic parody of fairy-tale clichés.
Title: Happy Kingdom
Length: 1×60 with 1′45′, 1×40′, and 1×30′ CD
Client: The Coca-Cola Company
Product: Coke Zero
Agency: Ogilvy Argentina
Executive Creative Director: Gastón Bigio
Head of Art: Jonathan Gurvit
Creative Directors: Javier Mentasti, Christian Camean
Agency Producer: Laura Passalacqua
Production Co: PASSION PICTURES
DIRECTOR: Pete Candeland
Producer: Debbie Crosscup
Executive Producer: Hugo Sands, Michael Adamo
Head of CG: Jason Nicolas
VFX Supervisor: Neil Riley
Technical Direcor: Julian Hodgson
Directors Assistant: Giles Dill
Storyboarding: Kevin Dart, Kim Frederiksen
Character Design/Development: Ron Kurniawan, Pete Candeland, Dan Sumich, Mario Ucci
Production Coordinator: Crystal Crompton
Matte Painting / Backgrounds: Kim Frederiksen, Lukasz Pazera
CG Modelling: Mario Ucci, Ian Brown, Matthias Bjurstrom, Doug Lassance, Dan Sweeney, Craig Maden
Rigging: Chris Dawson, Francois Pons, Julian Hodgson
CG Animation Supervisor: Wes Coman
Animation CG: Cath Brooks, Chris Welsby, David Sigrist, Melanie Climent
Animation FX: Jamie Franks, Tommy Andersson
Art Director: Mario Ucci
Texture \Shading: Mario Ucci, Ian Brown, Sally Wilson, Rick Thiele, Matthias Bjurstrom, Melanie Climent, Craig Maden, Nico Domerego, Dan Sweeney, Doug Lassance
Lighting/Rendering: Quentin Vien, Guillaume Cassuto, Claire Michaud, Rick Thiele
Lead Compositing: Niamh Lines
Compositing: Johnny Still, John Taylor, Lee Gingold
Editor: Jamie Foord, Dan Greenway
Technique and Software: XSI for CG, AFX/Nuke for Comp
Telecine: Rushes
Sound Mix: Toby Griffin at The Jungle Group
Music: Power Solo
Sep
25
Psyop Weathers The “Storm” For UPS
Posted in: cardboard, corrugated, doner, General, paul rand, Psyop, shipping, storm, UPS, weathers the stormFor their curtain call at the end of a brilliant four-spot performance for UPS, Psyop conjures a world that’s comparable to the cardboard-carved spectacles from previous spots that we know and love. Watch the other UPS spots: “Gladiator” / “Circus” / “West”
In “Storm”, color and texture become mnemonic devices triggering our emotional sense of UPS. The look, partly in credit to agency Doner, has moxy: It’s adaptable, engaging, and has held strong throughout the duration of the campaign.
We’re presenting an in-depth three-part interview with three of Psyop’s crew, complete with making-of videos and process imagery. Stay tuned for the other two interviews soon.
Part One
Technical Director and Project Lead Tony Barbieri
A special thanks to Lead Animators Jordan Blit and Pat Porter, as well as Technical Director and Project Lead, Tony Barbieri, for coming aboard the S.S. Motionographer amid the spitting rain and gusty winds of work and deadlines.
Sep
25
Photo by Jason Lewis
This year’s Cut&Paste Digital Design Tournament has made its way through 16 cities and 256 competitors from February – June 2009.
It now culminates in a battle of the best, champions vs. champions, with the final 2009 tournament event: the first-ever Cut&Paste Global Championship.
Showcasing the talents of 48 competition winners in 2D, 3D, and motion design, from the North America, Europe, and Asia/Pacific regions, the championship event will take place at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City on Friday, October 16, 2009.
The Global Championship will present the same three competition formats that Digital Design Tournament 2009 has featured throughout the cities on its global tour: 2D, 3D, and motion design.
When:
Friday, October 16th, 2009
Doors open: 7:00pm EST
Show starts: 8:00pm EST
Where:
Hammerstein Ballroom @ Manhattan Center Studios
311 W. 34th Street
New York, NY 10001
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