Psyop produced this “Four for the Holidays” animated/live-action short for Cricket Wireless and San Francisco-based ad agency ARGONAUT. The piece features four friends with holiday plans that take them separately across the U.S., Mexico, and Canada. They text, post, and share joyous holiday moments but as time goes on, they realize they’re missing each other most of all.
At the end of the film, the four animated characters reunite and discover that in a season of sharing, the best holiday plans are the ones that bring us together.
Credits
Client Cricket Wireless Agency ARGONAUT, San Francisco Hunter Hindman, chief creative officer; Shravan Hegde, Kamil Kowalczyk, associate creative directors; Brittany Rivera, sr. art director; Jacque Vavroch, sr. copywriter; Austin White, copywriter; Mica Dieterich, jr. art director; Shireen Beygui, jr. copywriter; Erin Fox, executive producer; Dan Watson, executive broadcast producer; Justin Visser, executive digital producer; Ben Waller, Vertel Jackson, jr. producers. Production Psyop Marco Spier, Jack Anderson, directors; Justin Booth-Clibborn, chief executive producer; Neysa Horsburgh, managing director; Noah Goldsmith, exec producer; Tom Martin, line producer; David Franco, DP; Robert Campbell, 1st assistant camera; Jeff Mann, production designer; Gaston Langer, art director; Mike Curtis, 1st assistant director. Visual Effects/Animation Psyop, bicoastal Chris Sage, 3D lead; Lane Jolly, 2D lead; Adriane Scott-Kemp, producer; Calvin Chin, associate producer; Brandon Sanders, Flame artist; Paul Yacono, colorist; Jaemin Lee, You Tengari, Ryan Kirkwood, Nitesh Nagda, lighting & rendering artists; Danny Song, Tingting Li, Carl Mok, comp artists; James Atkinson, Nico Sugleris, Mat Rotman, Houdini; Stephen Mann, Zed Bennett, John Bloch, tech animators. Little Zoo Studio, Falmouth, Maine Jason Taylor, animation director; George Schermer, animation supervisor; Todd Wilbur, Manu Menendez, Andrzej Ellert, Andrew Conroy, John Turello, Matt Walker, Mariano Lopez Dau, Kevin Hoa Nguyen, Adam Strick, animators (Toolbox: Maya, Arnold, Houdini, Nuke, Photoshop, Flame) Editorial Exile Paul Kumpata, editor. Sound Barking Owl Morgan Johnson, sound designer; AJ Murillo, mixer. Music Barking Owl Jacob Plasse, composer; Kelly Bayett, creative director; Ashley Benton, producer.
Stain remover Vanish presents this emotional short film--created by BETC Havas, Sao Paulo, and produced by LOBO--that explores the profound consequences of bullying and highlights the importance of open conversations between parents and children. Titled The Bully Monster, the animated film premiered at the Maquinaria Festival in Rio de Janeiro on February 15 in a special edition featuring family-focused programming.
The film’s protagonist is a boy who experiences bullying at school but keeps silent about his suffering. Isolation turns sadness into insecurity, creating invisible emotional scars that only grow in the absence of dialogue. When his mother notices stains on his uniform, these marks become the starting point for a revealing conversation. As words find space to make themselves heard, the stains begin to fade.
This initiative aligns with the Vanish Saves Your Uniform campaign, which, for the past three years during the back-to-school season, has engaged with parents by positioning the brand as a trusted partner in preserving school uniforms. This year, Vanish decided to broaden the conversation, bringing bullying into the debate as the real stain that can impact a child’s life.
The Bully Monster is being screened as preshow material in movie theaters starting February 20 and will also be available on streaming platforms and digital channels. In addition to the film, the campaign will include out-of-home activations and school initiatives through a partnership with Abrace – Preventive Programs, the founding organization of the “Bullying-Free Schools” program, which has been equipping institutions with resources to combat school violence for 12 years.
“Research indicates that stains on a uniform can... Read More
