John Singleton (Boyz in the Hood) directed this spot for AECOM, a company which designs, builds, finances and operates infrastructure assets for governments, businesses and organizations in more than 150 countries. In this piece, the focus is on the mass transit Metro Line in Los Angeles, introducing us to a young surfer from South L.A. who commutes over the Metro rail to the beach in Santa Monica. Conceived by L.A. ad agency Battery, the commercial is the first ever for AECOM, airing on CNBC, timed to coincide with AECOM CEO Michael Burke’s ringing of the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange. The ad underscores how the Metro connects people with each other and their communities throughout Greater L.A.
Asked what attracted him to the project, Singleton said, “Ever since I was a kid, I was fascinated by moving vehicle–especially trains. I like the idea of sitting some place and watching the world move around, and for that moment you’re in another world. It would be an opportunity to tell a story about a person in motion with emotion.”
Credits
Client AECOM Agency Battery Phil Khosid, chief creative officer/co-founder; Raymond Hwang, Scott Brown, VP/creative directors; Joanna Rhodes, executive producer; Kristine Ling, sr. producer; Mackenzie Busch, producer. Production @LArge Productions John Singleton, director; Beth Aranda, exec producer; Paul Alcus, line producer. Editorial Metro Pictures Editorial Paul Norling, editor; Heather Bartholomae, assistant editor; Mary Stasilli, exec producer. Color The Mill Adam Scott, colorist; Thatcher Petersen, exec producer; Diane Velara, producer. Music/SFX SOUTH Music & Sound Design, Santa Monica, Calif. Audio Formosa and Margarita Mix Hollywood John Bolen, mix engineer (Formosa); Lauren Cascio, exec producer (Formosa); Michael Greenberg, mix engineer (Margarita Mix); Patrick Knight, exec producer (Margarita Mix). Footage Port Authority New York and New Jersey; NASA, Kennedy Space Center, Florida, USA; Footage Courtesy of The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro)
Blinkink director Jack Brown created this stop motion film to tell a handmade story for Tekla’s holiday campaign.
Established in Copenhagen in 2017, Tekla was born from a desire to bring modernity and freedom of expression to the homeware category. As a brand, it rejects rapid trend cycles by designing for longevity, with an uncompromising focus on quality and responsible production. Brown’s use of stop-motion animation, using only Tekla fabrics, places both the brand’s story and its values front and center.
The film takes us on the journey of a teddy bear exploring the enchanted interiors of the Tekla Copenhagen store. The vibe feels dreamlike and the addition of stop motion adds a tenderness to the film. Inspired by the stories of Hans Christian Andersen, the campaign features iconic figures and nods to his fairytales; the towering mattresses of The Princess and the Pea, the magical umbrella of The Sandman, and the floating luggage of The Flying Trunk.
Brown said, “What an amazing little project this was, and for such a great brand. Tekla was such a cool client to work with. I suggested making the whole ad out of their fabrics and within 24 hours, there were boxes of beautiful fabrics being delivered for us to cut to pieces. Everything you see is about the size of an A4 sheet of paper and all hand cut, stitched and animated by a very small team of very talented people. Anita Bruvere was the lead builder and animator and did such an amazing job of turning all these tiny pieces of fabric into a magical world.”
