This was a wicked spot I art directed at Scholar LA. I initially worked with the Creative Director to prepare the pitch and present it to clients, helping to shape the visuals and narrative around the aspects of the product that they wanted to communicate. Once awarded, I coordinated the cel animation as well as providing feedback on the 3D elements, whilst maintaining a dialogue with the agency and client.
It was a fantastic experience combining the 3D and 2D elements to create a blitz of psychedelic imagery that emphasises the power of the product while also throwing in references to the heritage of the brand.
We detail the process in the following BTS, which showcases how we utilised the 2D and 3D animation to create this insane short.
Starting with 3D previs, we blocked out the camera and timing, giving that to our cel artists to animate over.
With the cel animation coloured, we started working out how to reflect the abstract imagery on our photorealistic models. The cel animation was set up so we could easily change the colours in After Effects, which helped us quickly achieve a harmony between the two mediums.
After that, we added in the cel FX: speed lines, light blurs, crackles of electricity; anything we could think of to ramp up the intensity, before throwing it back to the compositing wizards to blend it all together.
Direction, Design & Animation: Scholar
Creative Director: Will Campbell
Art Directors: Alex Bernas, Michael Cafarelli, Wu Hyun Lew
Managing Director/ Executive Producer: Anne Skopas
Executive Producer: Kate Aspell
Head of Production: Nakia Cooper
Senior Producer: Andrew Rindlaub
Designers: Ana Chang, Danni Fisher-Shin, Zach Herdman, Irma Hasanic, Madison Kelly, Susie Scheer, Amy Wallace, Kyle Fewell
Cel Animators: Alex Bernas, Olivia Blanc, Lyuben Dimitrov, Michael Relth, Julia Simas
3D Lead: Tim Hayward
3D Generalists: Michael Cafarelli, Vin Kim, Jay Kim, Jeffrey ‘Jip’ Jeong
Model/Texture Artist: David Martin
3D Animators: Han Hu, Stephen van Wyk, Sarah Wolfe
Compositors: Sam Bachman, Jeffrey ‘Jip’ Jeong
Storyboards: Fred Fassberger
Editor: Sam Bachman