Created to raise awareness for the underrepresentation of American Indian Students in U.S. colleges, this PSA titled “One Percent”–directed by Chel White of Bent Image Lab for Wieden+Kennedy, Portland, Ore.–is elegantly rendered in a style reflecting that of famed Choctaw artist Marcus Amerman.

Showcasing the difference one person can make, the spot’s message is brought to life through a carefully executed beaded animation metaphor. Opening on a single yellow bead, the camera pans wide to showcase additional beads joining the first in the creation of traditional Native American themes. As the images morph from one to the next, momentum builds with quotes from past American Indian College Fund recipients “I use my knowledge to improve the health of my people” and “I prevent my culture from being forgotten.” The piece culminates with the beads creating the face of a young American Indian woman and we hear “I am a college student, but I am only one percent,” entreating the audience for awareness and donation. 

“From a technical point of view the job was also very interesting – in the sense that animating the beads required a new and different approach,” said White.  “We wanted to keep a sense of realism and texture and were keen to use stop motion. However, due to the sheer number of beads in the spot [over ten thousand], the project would have taken months to animate solely in this technique. To achieve a harmony of look and timeline, we chose to use a careful balance of stop motion and CG.”

Beginning with traditional stop motion to establish the real texture of the bead and buckskin background, the team switched to a CG execution as the animations became more complex. Keeping imperfection to the movement of the beads was just as important as the look of the beads to creating a sense of authenticity, and each bead was individually animated by Bent’s expert team to ensure organic movement.

“One of the things that is also special about the project is the collaboration and donation of some really notable artists,” said White. “Jim Jarmush’s Dead Man is one of my favorite films; Wieden & Kennedy was able to obtain the rights to use Neil Young’s theme song from the film for free, and Gary Farmer, an American Indian who starred in the film alongside Johnny Depp, agreed to do the voiceover for the commercial.”

Credits

Client American Indian College Fund Agency Wieden+Kennedy, Portland, Ore. David Kennedy, executive creative director; Jeff Selis, producer; Patty Orlando, art director; Tara Dubbs, writer. Production Bent Image Lab, Portland Chel White director/designer; Derrick Huang, exec producer; Brianna Vitale, associate producer; Jon Bell, technical director/CG animator; John Summerson, stop motion animator; Stef Kofman, head of CG; Kamela Hayward, storyboard artist; Brent Heise, editor.

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