A mother’s personal narrative and a ribbon have become the focal points and inspiration for people to donate in support of children and families served by Ronald McDonald House Charities® (RMHC). With the ambitious goal of raising $1 million by December 31, 2012, the Charity has launched a campaign employing innovative multimedia strategies to unite people around its cause, help them understand the impact its family-centered programs have on improving the health and wellbeing of children and compel them to donate. The campaign’s cross-media elements from DDB Chicago have debuted across America this month, including a :60 animated spot the agency created in partnership with award-winning design and digital production company Thornberg & Forester (T&F).nnUsing a poignant and thoughtful animated approach, the campaign spot conveys the difficult story of a terrible car accident that changed one family’s world forever. Compelled onward through the narrative by a moving red ribbon that represents RMHC, the hard-hitting spot invites donors and supporters to "Give the Gift of Togetherness" to help the Charity keep families together when their lives fall apart. The red ribbon also appears in all campaign elements including on the Charity’s website at www.rmhc.org, encouraging visitors to learn more about its mission, meet some of the families supported by RMHC and understand the significant impact their contribution has on children’s health and wellbeing. "The thought behind the campaign is a simple one — that when you least expect it, your world can very quickly unravel," said Alex Braxton, creative director at DDB Chicago. "And that’s when RMHC so often comes to the aid of families across the country."nn
nClick here to view spot online.nnFor T&F, the project was led by co-founder, principal and director Scott Matz. His team included art director/designer Kyle Miller, designers Kyle Hurley and Frank Pichel and animators Jorge Peschiera, Joe Lawrence, Mike Burgoyne and Ken Krueger. nn"Our friends at DDB Chicago conceived a very thoughtful campaign to elegantly connect images and textures that manifest in sync with the audio story," Matz began. "The ribbon ultimately wraps a special gift, initiating a call-to-action to support Ronald McDonald House Charities by inviting donations… and to get there, we follow Erin Maley’s powerful testimonial.nn"To support the fluid nature of Erin’s story, we designed smart, simple graphics (some metaphorical) and fluid transitions," he continued. "We distilled and refined our storyboards until the graphic language and tone were perfect. We also did a great deal of ‘ribbon R&D’ to compare 2D versus 3D solutions, textures, other physical properties and motion dynamics. Ultimately, our goal was to tell the story in a seamless and clever way, as if the graphics were filmed in-camera as one, continuous journey."nnUpon approval of the final storyboards, T&F animator and compositor Jorge Peschiera took on the role of lead animator, dividing 2D and 3D responsibilities between two teams and artfully uniting the end results. Among many important technical approaches that impacted the final results, T&F artists working in Maxon Cinema 4D exported their 3D cameras into Adobe After Effects.nnAs the deadline for the spot’s delivery and debut arrived, T&F’s team in New York City faced a considerable challenge: Hurricane Sandy. Despite having no power in NYC, Peschiera and T&F producer Kelsey Thomson put in a great deal of extra effort and pulled out all the stops to keep in contact with DDB and deliver the custom :30 version, right on time. nnFor DDB Chicago, along with Braxton, project credits also include executive VP and chief creative officer Ewan Patterson, creative director Alistair Robertson, VP/creative director Nancy Jordon, ACD/art director Pete Pona, copywriter Jeremy Simmons, EVP/director of integrated production Diane Jackson, EP Liat Ebershol, producer Patty Phassos and digital account executive Ashley Bobbit.nnT&F’s credits also include executive producer Elizabeth Kiehner and head of production Javier Gonzalez. For more information on this project, please visit www.thornbergandforester.com.nnAbout Thornberg & ForesternThornberg & Forester (T&F) is an award-winning design and digital production company that exists to bring quality, integrity and innovation to the media landscape. Our team does this by crafting stories and conveying brand messages through the most relevant mediums possible. We challenge ourselves to leverage both creativity and technology, and above all we genuinely listen to the needs of our client partners and respond with the best solutions for you. With conceptual design as our backbone, our headquarters in Manhattan and an outpost in Hollywood, we offer a complete turnkey solution for brilliant end-to-end production through delivery. Many of our clients worldwide refer to us as their secret weapon and it’s time we let you in on the secret: www.thornbergandforester.com. nnAbout Ronald McDonald House CharitiesnRonald McDonald House Charities® (RMHC), a non-profit, 501 (c) (3) corporation, creates, finds and supports programs that directly improve the health and well being of children. Through its global network of local Chapters in 57 countries and regions, its three core programs, the Ronald McDonald House®, Ronald McDonald Family Room(R) and Ronald McDonald Care Mobile®, and millions of dollars in grants to support children’s programs worldwide, RMHC provides stability and resources to families so they can get and keep their children healthy and happy. All RMHC-operated and supported programs provide a bridge to quality health care and give children and families the time they need together to heal faster and cope better. For more information, visit www.rmhc.org, follow us on Twitter (@RMHC), or like us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/RMHCGlobal).Roger Darnell DWA for Thornberg & Forester Phone: 1.828.264.8898 Contact Roger via email
Goldcrest Post Speeds Delivery of “Severance” Season Two
The New York Times recently wrote that the just-released Season Two of Severance will “blow your mind”—and we couldn’t agree more. Created by Dan Erickson and Ben Stiller, the Apple TV+ drama is smart, spellbinding, distinctly original and packed with surprises. For those who aren’t already devoted fans, the show centers on Mark Scout (Adam Scott), leader of a team at Lumon Industries, whose employees have undergone a “severance” procedure that surgically divides their memories between their work and personal lives. Goldcrest Post provided post services for both seasons of the show, including picture editorial support, sound editorial, ADR and sound mixing. Editorial for Season One began in 2020. Due to the restrictions imposed by the pandemic, Goldcrest supplied both onsite production offices and edit suites, and remote editing systems for individual editors, with everything linked to a central server. "Mixing at Goldcrest with our team has been a great experience,” says Stiller. “Bob and Jacob are in sync with our creative process and so good at what they do that the experience is always one where it's about how we can enhance the creative vision, with a baseline of knowing everyone is totally committed to making something as good as it can be." Diana Dekajlo, the show’s co-producer, says that the arrangement worked so well, they chose to continue the hybrid approach for Season Two. “We’re a remote friendly show,” she explains. “Whether we’re at Goldcrest, our studio in the Bronx or at home, our workflow is seamless. I conduct remote daily meetings with my immediate staff, and weekly meetings with editorial and VFX, and we talk to each other as if we were just down the hall. It makes for great staff... Read More