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    Alkemy X Signs Animation & Design Collective Mighty Oak For Spots

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments3050 Views
    Mighty Oak’s (l-r) Michaela Olsen, Jess Peterson and Emily Collins
    NEW YORK --

    Alkemy X has added animation and design collective Mighty Oak to its roster for U.S. commercial representation. With a cultivated expertise in handmade animation techniques and design fused with live action, Mighty Oak has crafted campaigns for brands and networks including General Electric, Netflix, Luna Bar, HBO, Samsung NBC, Airbnb, Conde Nast, Adult Swim and The New York Times. Led by CEO/executive producer Jess Peterson, head of creative talent Emily Collins and creative director Michaela Olsen, the award-winning collective has garnered over 3 billion collective online views. Mighty Oak’s first original short film, Under Covers, premiered at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival. Helmed by Olsen, the quirky stop-motion short features hand-made puppets and forced perspective sets to glimpse into the unsuspecting lives and secrets of a small town that rest below the surface. 

    Alkemy X executive producer Eve Ehrich said, “I was immediately struck by the extreme care that Mighty Oak takes on each and every frame of their work. Their handmade style and fresh approach really make for dynamic, memorable animation, regardless of the concept.”

    Mighty Oak’s Peterson said, “We are passionate about collaborating with our clients from the earliest stages, working together to craft original character designs and creating work that is memorable and fun. In partnership with Alkemy X, we can use our art form to help brands and agencies share their unique stories.”

    Launched in 2015, female animation collective Mighty Oak began in a small studio space in Brooklyn, rapidly drawing a client base of top brands. In addition to their body of work, they have also dedicated their talents to craft original projects that would help move the needle for women generally who are underrepresented in the animation arena.

    Category:News
    Tags:Alkemy XMighty Oak



    Does “Hundreds of Beavers” Reflect A New Path Forward In Cinema?

    Monday, November 25, 2024

    Hard as it may be to believe, changing the future of cinema was not on Mike Cheslik's mind when he was making "Hundreds of Beavers." Cheslik was in the Northwoods of Wisconsin with a crew of four, sometimes six, standing in snow and making his friend, Ryland Tews, fall down funny.

    "When we were shooting, I kept thinking: It would be so stupid if this got mythologized," says Cheslik.

    And yet, "Hundreds of Beavers" has accrued the stuff of, if not quite myth, then certainly lo-fi legend. Cheslik's film, made for just $150,000 and self-distributed in theaters, has managed to gnaw its way into a movie culture largely dominated by big-budget sequels.

    "Hundreds of Beavers" is a wordless black-and-white bonanza of slapstick antics about a stranded 19th century applejack salesman (Tews) at war with a bevy of beavers, all of whom are played by actors in mascot costumes.

    No one would call "Hundreds of Beavers" expensive looking, but it's far more inventive than much of what Hollywood produces. With some 1,500 effects shots Cheslik slaved over on his home computer, he crafted something like the human version of Donald Duck's snowball fight, and a low-budget heir to the waning tradition of Buster Keaton and "Naked Gun."

    At a time when independent filmmaking is more challenged than ever, "Hundreds of Beavers" has, maybe, suggested a new path forward, albeit a particularly beaver-festooned path.

    After no major distributor stepped forward, the filmmakers opted to launch the movie themselves, beginning with carnivalesque roadshow screenings. Since opening in January, "Hundreds of Beavers" has played in at least one theater every week of the year, though never more than 33 at once. (Blockbusters typically play in around 4,000 locations.)... Read More

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