Seattle-based production studio World Famous has partnered with Make-A-Wish Alaska and Washington to grant an unprecedented wish for six-year-old Alexis, who recently battled acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Alexis wanted to create a cartoon that would tell her own story in a way her friends could understand and bring awareness to pediatric cancer.
The World Famous team rallied together to bring Alexis’s story to life. The resulting three-minute film, Alexis’s Wish, is a powerful yet whimsical fairy tale starring Princess Alexis as herself battling the dragon “Kemia” with the help of her family and friends.
Credits
Client Make-A-Wish Alaska and Washington Production World Famous, Seattle Dan Brown, director; Juan Carlos Arenas, art direction, character design and backgrounds; Alan Nay, executive producer; Shawn Fedorchuk, Thomas Prince, Andy Seaver, editors; Rogelio Salinas, lead animator; Yassir Rasan, lead character animator; Ben Bullock, Cody Cobb, Joe Garber, Chase Hochstatter, Corey Lewis, Alan Llave, John McIntosh, Andy Musser, Carl Nelson, Stieg Retlin, Jake Wegesin, Lawrence Wyatt, animators. (Toolbox: Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, After Effects, Premiere; Cinema 4D)Music Madrona Music Jason Staczek, composer. Audio Mix/Voice Recording Clatter&Din Eric Johnson, sound design & surround mix; Ben Kersten, sound design. Jamie “Foley Rambo” Hunsdale, Foley artist. Performers Alexis Hwa as herself; Angela Hwa as herself; Jamie Chung, narrator.
After losing part of his right leg due to cancer, Terry Fox campaigned to raise national awareness and funding for cancer research by running his Marathon of Hope, a cross-Canada 42-km daily run, on his prosthetic leg. Fox, who died in 1981, is a national hero. His image will be on Canada’s new $5 bill.
In this two-minute video titled “Finish It,” the Marathon of Hope is recreated. It’s all done in one take, and it features an actor/marathon runner who uses a prosthesis on the same leg as Fox. CGI was deployed to make him look more like Fox. To further ensure the actor represented Fox accurately, not only did the actor and team watch and study many videos of Terry, but Terry’s brothers, Fred and Darrel, coached the actor on Terry’s running style and mannerisms. They also created a copy of Terry’s prosthesis for the actor to use for the shoot.
The message is clear. As the Marathon of Hope now marks its 45th anniversary, we now have the opportunity to “Finish It” for Fox, raising money and awareness to get a cure for cancer over the finish line, completing the work that Fox started. The public service film starts with Fox on the marathon run, eventually joined by a crowd of other dedicated runners from all walks of life who take over the race.
Mark Zibert directed via production company Scouts Honour for Toronto agency Diamond. The video features a never-before-heard version of the song “Courage” from Canadian band The Tragically Hip.
“We wanted to create a campaign that captures the magnitude of Terry Fox’s legacy while driving meaningful action,” said Peter Ignazi, chief creative officer at Diamond. “By revisiting the Marathon of Hope with such care and reverence, we aimed to reignite Terry’s mission and... Read More
