Pixeldust Studios, an Emmy Award-winning digital animation, visual design, and production company with studios in Washington, D.C. and New York City, has produced 200 animated sequences that will be featured throughout the new, five-part, mini-series event “Alien Deep with Bob Ballard,” premiering Sept. 16-17 on the National Geographic Channel.nnnnFor “Alien Deep with Bob Ballard,” Pixeldust Studios was charged with conceiving and producing dramatic animations depicting everything from the depths of the Earth’s deepest seas, to landscapes on Mars. Rogue waves, ancient shipwrecks, dwellings for human beings built atop oil rigs and the Hawaiian Islands emerging from the Pacific Ocean are just a few examples of these compelling animated sequences. To view some of Pixeldust Studios’ work, please click here.nn”Ricardo and his team at Pixeldust Studios certainly had their work cut out for them with the large number of highly complex graphics required for this series,” comments Stephen Hunter, Executive Producer of the series for the National Geographic Channel. “Water replication is one of the most difficult things to accomplish with computer animation, so a great deal of work was involved to get everything right. The end result enhances the viewer experience of this ambitious documentary.”nnRicardo Andrade, Founder & Executive Creative Director of Pixeldust Studios, said, “The producers of this extraordinary mini-series presented us with an enormous wealth of data. We were challenged with translating some of this data into amazing, underwater landscapes. For example, we created a fly over of Hawaii with the islands emerging from the water, we recreated a number of historic shipwrecks from ancient Greek and Roman times, and we imagined futuristic dwellings on Mars in which human beings might live.” nnAndrade points out that especially demanding were the super complex fluid simulations they devised, which ranged from massive rogue waves in the oceans to tiny waves that appear in a teacup held by Dr. Ballard. “Our other animations presented geologically-correct underwater mountains, debris that appears to ‘rain’ down into the water from shipwrecks above, and a variety of Earth views looking down through clouds from outer space. All in all, this project was truly a wonderfully creative challenge,” remarks Andrade. nnIsa Alsup, a renowned 3D Stereographer and visual effects artist whose credits include the 3D versions of the feature films Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Green Lantern, Conan, and Dolphin Tale, worked with Pixeldust Studios on the Alien Deep episode entitled Fires of Creation. “Pixeldust wanted their already beautiful work to give the audience an impact-filled 3D experience in the stereographic version for this episode,” states Alsup. “In particular, we worked to ensure that our submarine scenes had a genuine ‘being there’ feel.’ We worked on our landscape and underwater flyovers to make them appear magical, with a hyper-real feel that can best be experienced using 3D animation and 3D stereo presentation. Also, having our audience ‘flying’ through the clouds in 3D stereo brings a real ‘Superman’ moment to the show.” nnThe biggest challenge facing Pixeldust was rebuilding the 2D shots as 3D stereo, throwing away all the depth of illusion tricks used by traditional VFX artists in their work. “On a really short schedule, we were able to deliver all the shots re-mastered in 3D stereo, without using 2D to 3D conversion and with few differences,” adds Alsup. “Then we made sure the 3D stereo version was better than the original. The shots we delivered were uniformly magnificent.” nnTo view some of Pixeldust Studios’ work, please click here.nnAbout PIXELDUST STUDIOSnFounded in 2004, Pixeldust Studios is an Emmy Award-winning digital animation, visual design and production company with studios in Washington, DC and New York City. Pixeldust Studios specializes in creating innovative motion graphics, animations and visual effects for television, film, new media and corporate clients. For more information, please visit www.pixeldust.tv or call 301-656-0050.nnAbout “ALIEN DEEP WITH BOB BALLARD”nThis five-part series premieres on Sunday, September 16, from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET/PT, with the final hour airing on Monday, September 17, from 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. ET/PT on the National Geographic Channel (NGC). Dr. Ballard is joined on camera by leaders in modern science, like Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin and TV personality Bill Nye the Science Guy, as well as professional surfers, fishermen and boat pilots who understand the sea at an instinctive level. To view a promo for this mini-series, please go here.nnFrom scientists to surfers, Dr. Ballard and his team will travel the world, seeking answers to questions at the root of earth and humanity. Where did life come from? What made the continents? What is the ocean’s engine? Are rogue waves real? Will men ever call the sea home?n nTo find these answers, Dr. Ballard visits breathtaking sites from volcanoes submerged more than 3,000 feet beneath the Hawaiian islands, to shipwrecks on forgotten ancient Greek trade routes, to cracks in the ocean floor where red-hot magma pours into open water. It is a surreal journey on which the National Geographic Channel’s cameras catch never-before-seen rock formations, lava vents and unusual species that call the ocean bottom home. Dr. Ballard will depend on the knowledge of peer leaders in science to decode the evidence he finds in this bizarre world.nn”Alien Deep with Bob Ballard” is produced for National Geographic Channels International (NGCI) by National Geographic Television (NGT). For NGT, series producer is Gary Johnstone. For NGCI, executive vice president and head of international content is Hamish Mykura.
Media Contact for Pixeldust Studios: Dan Harary The Asbury PR Agency Beverly Hills, CA 310/859-1831 Contact Dan via email
Quirky New Campaign For The 2025 AMP Awards For Music & Sound From TiNY Promotes Call For Entries
A new creative campaign supporting entries for the 2025 AMP Awards for Music & Sound, created by TiNY, the boutique creative agency known for bold ideas and sharp execution, has launched, and itโs turning up everyoneโs ears. Thatโs because the campaignโs quirky social videos feature talking ears (among other body parts), hilariously highlighting the often overlooked role that sound and music play in media storytelling. The first round of creative includes the spots โDemo Loveโ and โSexy Ear.โ (Watch Below) The first round of creative dropped recently on social media, with additional spots set to roll out over the next few months, all leading up to the AMP Awards ceremony scheduled for May 21, 2025, at Sony Hall in New York City. Sponsored by the Association of Music Producers, the deadline for submitting entries to the AMP Awards is March 7, 2025. AMP members entering before the early bird deadline of January 31, 2025, will qualify for a 30 percent discount on all entries. For full details on entry fees, category descriptions, and rules, visit the AMP Awards entry portal here. Despite the obstacle of having virtually no budget, TiNY delivered a laugh-out-loud campaign for the ad industryโs only non-profit, juried competition for music and sound that captures attention thanks to its clever humor and creativity -- one that bills itself, tongue in cheek, as โthe loudest show in the industry.โ "The AMP Awards have always celebrated creativity in its... Read More