Director Sam Southward transports viewers to a miniature alpine wonderland in this beautifully detailed CG spot, titled “Goodness,” for Milka chocolate.
Produced by Nexus Studios in collaboration with Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam, the rich and tactile setting feels like a handmade miniature set when in reality Southward and the team skillfully crafted every detail of the environment digitally.
The acute attention to detail in every aspect of this spot, including the use of real cotton wool to form the clouds, alongside a multi-layered sense of depth and scale, add to its stop-motion like charm and surreal sense of humor.
Following “a day in the life” of a small, remote and rural community, the piece uncovers the secret to the irresistible goodness of Milka chocolate, its herd of only 60 cows providing 100% alpine milk in every bar.
Southward shared, “Creating Milka’s alpine wonderland was an exercise of pure escapism for me. From the early concepts through to the fully realized world, we wanted to achieve a detailed and tactile feel that would exude charm. Immersing viewers in this heartwarming miniature world and leaving them with a truly memorable moment of goodness.”
Credits
Client Milka Agency Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam Javier Perroud, producer. Production Nexus Studios, London & Los Angeles Sam Southward, director; Chris O’Reilly, executive creative director; Tracey Cooper, executive producer; Thierry Levy, producer; Derek Walsh, production manager; Andy Spence, lead artist; Felicie Haymoz, character designer; Dave Hunt, production designer; Signe Cold, Callum Strachan, designers; Russell Hossain, Morgan Ritchie, storyboards; Sergei Shabarov, Sara Holm, Thibaud Clergue, Rimelle Khayat, Alissa Mazouz, animation; Nur Diker, Fabien Glasse, Matt Clark, Maxime Dartrois, character modelers; Sebastian Bispo, James Drummond, Eder De Souza, Matteo Antona, props/environment modelers; Lea Finucci, texturing artist; Lea Georges, rigger; Dorianne Fibleuil, Carl Kenyon, Darren Rolmanis, Jonathan Vuillemin, CG generalists; Ian Beresford, Freddie Lewis-Wall, German Diez, Vlad Iliescu, composite; Thomas Heleta, Dave Slade, Mark Van Heusden, edit. (Toolbox: Adobe, Reference, Zbrush, Maya, Substance Painter, Marvellous Designer) Sound Design Factory Jack Hallett, sound design & mix; Lou Allen, audio producer.
How do you top one of the most viral brand videos ever made? Spoiler alert: you can’t. But when Dollar Shave Club tapped Zack Seckler to direct a new campaign to revive the absurdist humor of its iconic launch video, he knew he had a rare opportunity to create something special.
The brief was simple: introduce the concept of a physical “Club” that people would love to join while showcasing Dollar Shave Club’s products and embracing the weird. From script to direction and post, Seckler--an alum of SHOOT’s 2021 New Directors Showcase--was invited to help sculpt that vision.
The result is this “Welcome to the Club” spot which invites us to join a unique, seemingly exclusive but in reality an accessible and affordable fraternity of Dollar Shave Club members. But you need to know the password or more accurately, the two-word phrase--"shave money."
“The Club” campaign brings the brand back to its humorous roots, reflecting a new chapter after being acquired by Nexus Capital Management from Unilever in late 2023. The work takes Dollar Shave Club back to its disruptive beginnings and what made the brand a viral sensation from its inception in 2011.
