Seed Matters, an initiative of the Clif Bar Family Foundation, has rolled out “Mr. Seed,” an animated short conceived by The Butler Bros., a brand design studio in Austin, Texas, and directed by L.A.-based animation company Buck. Mr. Seed is also the protagonist in this short. He’s a clean-living organic seed who at times has a potty mouth (voiced by comedian Pete Holmes), calling out the big agrichemical companies that are feeding the world with unhealthy fare.
The film opens with an animated ad for fictional Pharm Foods, panning across an idyllic farm and a family at the dinner table. Only ominous cues—dead birds, anthropomorphized food—hint that something isn’t right in this world.
Mr. Seed emphasizes the benefits of organic seed compared with the chemically-dependent alternative. “Is this what America wants to eat?” the film’s hero asks. “Unlike those GMO bros, organic seeds like me can feed the world without ruining it because we keep it clean. We don’t dirty ourselves with all those pesticides.”
Seed Matters advocates for the improvement and protection of organic seed to ensure healthy, nutritious and productive crops are able to feed people now and in the future. Its mission is to conserve the genetic diversity of crops, promote farmers’ roles and rights as seed innovators and stewards and reinvigorate public seed research and education.
Credits
Client Clif Bar Family Foundation Creative The Butler Bros. Adam Butler, creative director/copywriter; Marty Butler, creative director/art director; Jeremy Spencer, Ryan Honey Erik Enberg, copywriters; Allie Nordstrom, art director; Craig Crutchfield, Hoang Nguyen, designers; Vincent Calderon, Bridget Liddy, Christine Lopez, producers. Production Buck Buck, director; Ryan Honey, executive creative director; Maurie Enochson, exec producerd; Joe Mullen, creative director, design; Doug Wilkinson, head of CG; Emily Richard, producer; Kaitlyn Mahoney, production coordinator; Laura Yilmaz, art director, storyboards, concept art & matte paintings; Kenesha Sneed, character design & design; Kendra Ryan, Craig Yamamoto, storyboards; Scott Huntsman, Susan Yung, design, concept art & matte paintings; Audrey Lee, Rasmus Bak, Xoana Herrera, Vincent Tsui, Jenny Ko, design; Alex Dingfelder, CG lead, modeling, look development lead, lighting direction, compositing lead; Wing Sze Lee, John Niehuss, Mingoo Park, Jens Lindgren, Eyad Hussein, Arvid Volz, Brice Linane, Rie Ito, modeling; Wing Sze Lee, Eric Pagtaconan, Jens Lindgren, John Niehuss, Mingoo Park, look development; Ernesto Ruiz Velasco, rigging TD, character TD; Eyad Hussein, character TD; Albert Omoss, pipeline and FX TD; Lee Wolland, additional rigging; Alessandro Ceglia, animation director, 3D animation; Tyler Lancaster, Dony Permedi, Adam Floeck, 3D animation; Vincent Tsui, Debora Cruchon, Rafael Araujo, Nicole Stafford, 2D screen animation; Michele Herrera, lighting, look development; Jens Lindgren, Alex Dingfelder, Eric Pagtaconan, lighting; Wing Sze Lee, look development, compositing. Pharm Foods commercial within the short: Gunnar Pettersson, design; Laura Yilmaz, animation director/animation; Laura Yilmaz, Kendra Ryan, Nick Petley, Vincent Tsui, Rafael Araujo, Debora Cruchon, Nicole Stafford, animation. End Credits: Kevin Walker, associate creative director; Rasmus Bak, design, animation; Esteban Esquivo, animation. Music & Sound Design Antfood Voice Pete Holmes (voice of Mr. Seed)
When dozens of Klick Health team members said they wouldn’t be able to hug loved ones over the festive season, the agency turned to AI and other magic to orchestrate a series of sentimental, surprise reunions captured in its “Holiday Hugs” video. The heartwarming four-minute video, benefitting the D.C.-based Foundation for Social Connection (F4SC), parallels recent findings from a Maru/Blue Public Opinion survey commissioned by Klick.
The poll found 74 percent of Americans and Canadians won’t be able to hug at least one person they wish they could over the holidays. And like those in the video, survey participants cited geographical distance and loved ones having passed away as the leading factors preventing their hugs.
“I just wish I could really squeeze her right now,” says teary-eyed New York Klickster Kari Bocassi watching her AI-generated hug with her sister Marlene, moments before she bursts onto the set for a long in-person embrace. The siblings have spent the past 14 years caring for their mother since her Alzheimer’s diagnosis, but haven’t been together for the holidays since Marlene moved to Virginia. Similarly, Toronto’s Fred Duarte gets the bear hug of his life when his brother Rico, who lives in Brazil, walks into Klick’s production studio for their first holiday reunion in seven years.
Directed by James Cooper via Cooper Films, “Holiday Hugs” also taps into the fact that hugs don’t just make people feel better emotionally, they also have numerous health benefits. According to the National Institutes of Health, hugs can lower blood pressure and boost the immune system.
“There’s nothing quite like the warmth and reassurance of a heartfelt hug,” said Klick’s chief creative officer Rich Levy. “With ‘Holiday... Read More
