For the second consecutive year, a United Airlines spot directed by Wendy Tilby and Amanda Forbis of Acme Filmworks, Hollywood, for Fallon, Minneapolis, topped the commercials category at the Annie Awards competition, which recognizes outstanding achievement in animation. This year, the winning spot was “Mr. Pants.” In 2005, the Annie was bestowed upon United Airlines’ “Interview.”
“Mr. Pants” garnered the honor this past weekend (2/4) during the 33rd annual Annie Awards ceremony at the Alex Theatre in Glendale. The Annies are presented by the Burbank-headquartered International Animated Film Society (ASIFA-Hollywood).
The United Airlines’ ad won out over four other nominees: General Electric’s “Tower” directed by Joe Pytka of PYTKA, Venice, Calif., with animation and effects from Quiet Man, New York, for BBDO New York; ConocoPhillips “1975,” from Ring of Fire, West Hollywood, for Dailey & Associates, Los Angeles; and two pieces from Laika/house (formerly Vinton Studios), Portland, Ore.–Coca-Cola’s “Futbol,” for Buenos Aires agency Santo, and They Might Be Giants’ “Crazy Bastard.”
“Mr. Pants” was a SHOOT “Top Spot” last year (6/10/05, p. 12). The ad depicts a pair of legs–those of a businessman–waking up in the morning and showering, then hailing a taxicab to get to the airport. Along the way, the man encounters other legs as they do, well, the things that legs do–like play soccer, skateboard and walk along city streets. Whimsical, colorful and fun, “Mr. Pants” illustrates the message that United offers more legroom than any of the other airlines, and the spot makes it a point without getting too literal. We never see the legs stretched out in an airplane seat.
Tilby and Forbis also served as production animators on “Mr. Pants,” along with Maximilian Graenitz. Others in the Acme ensemble included executive producer Ron Diamond, senior producer Holly Stone, digital supervisor Michael O’Donnell, and offline editor/post supervisor George Khair.
The Annie Awards competition honors outstanding animation achievement in features, TV programs, commercials, home entertainment and short subjects/special projects. The other big winner this year with ties to the spot community was Aardman Animations, Bristol, U.K., for Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, which took several Annie feature categories including best feature production, best animated effects, character animation, character design in an animated feature production, directing (for Nick Park and Steve Box), music, production design, and writing.
ASIFA is the French acronym for Association Internationale du Film d’Animation, an organization founded 49 years ago in France by a group of professional animators. ASIFA was chartered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in ’60 to encourage the art of animation and to further international understanding and goodwill through the animation medium. Currently, there are ASIFA chapters in some 30 countries. The Hollywood chapter was founded in ’72.
