Award-winning animation and visual effects studio Hinge Digital recently teamed up with BVK to create a clever series of advertisements for Carrington College. The integrated campaign includes two animated and live-action broadcast spots, as well as three online outtakes, 24 print ads, plush toys and more, which all showcase original character designs by Hinge Digital‘s talented team of artists. “Carrington College Squirrel,” the first :30 campaign promo, introduces new Carrington bird mascots, Goldie and Blue, and is now airing on TV, with a live-action spot to follow in September. nnnComedic outtakes from the project are also available to view online here.nnUnder the direction of Hinge Digital‘s Alex Tysowsky, a 30-person crew delivered multiple pieces of the campaign from concepting and storyboarding to character design and modeling, animation, VFX, editing and more – all within less than three months. The team faced a number of complex animation challenges throughout, especially in making the characters stand out without dialog and adapting design elements to ensure they would work across all facets of the campaign. nn”Truly unique, the first ad introduces Goldie and Blue for the first time without any dialog, so our animation really had to drive the story. The success of the entire campaign hinged on our ability to visually convey the story through our animation on this first spot,” said Alex Tysowsky, director, Hinge Digital. “Adding to the challenge, we had to carefully design the characters to work graphically across multiple platforms: TV, twitter, pens, plush animals, billboards.” nnIn “Carrington College Squirrel,” an amiable squirrel atop a tree sees three other squirrels on a neighboring tree indulging in acorns – representative of the student demographic. Intent on joining them, he edges out to the end of the branch, but one look down below petrifies him, and he returns to the base of the tree defeated. Goldie and Blue, symbolizing Carrington career counselors, appear and encourage him to take a leap of faith. After confiding in Goldie and Blue, he musters the courage to leap across – joining his friends. Outtakes of the spot, which started airing at the end of August on Carrington’s website, offer an uncut, insider’s look behind the shoot. nn”The creative process on this project ran smooth. BVK came up with the initial concept but gave us the freedom to design these characters and bring them to life in an interesting way that would translate across the campaign; it was pure magic,” said Hinge Digital VFX Supervisor Michael Kuehn. “When you run through dailies with a client and receive a genuine positive, passionate reaction to the characters you’ve worked so hard to create, that’s a great feeling.” nnBVK Art Director Ryan Smith shared, “Hinge Digital offers the right mix of creative talent, artistry and technology that this sort of campaign requires. They were there for us throughout the entire creative process and played an integral role in developing loveable, believable characters that carry this campaign.” nnHinge Digital leveraged a variety of technology throughout the project including proprietary plug-ins, Maya for 3D animation, Shave and a Haircut, Mari for 3D painting, Nuke for compositing, Mudbox and ZBrush for modeling, headus UVLayout, mental ray and SquidNet for rendering, as well as Shotgun, Revolver, Tweak RV and cineSync.nnProduction CreditsnCLIENT: Carrington CollegennAGENCY: BVKnProducer: Terri BurmesternArt Director: Ryan SmithnCopywriter: Seth GordonnCreative Director: Gary MuellernnAnimation/Visual Effects/Post:
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Asian World Film Festival Reveals Asian Vision Program Lineup, Snow Leopard and Bruce Lee Honorees, and Jury Members
The 10th Annual Asian World Film Festival (AWFF) is proud to announce the lineup for its inaugural Asian Vision program, which was conceived to showcase new and exceptional Asian features that have participated in major A-list film festivals and/or garnered international acclaim. The program of eight motion pictures (see list below) will be held November 17-19, 2024, with the top film receiving the Asian Vision Best Film Award. The 10th Annual Asian World Film Festival takes place November 13 - 21, 2024, at the Culver Theatre in Culver City, CA. This year’s Snow Leopard Lifetime Achievement Award, the Festival’s highest honor, will be presented to acclaimed director, screenwriter, and producer Sergei Bodrov in celebration of his remarkable 50-year career. Bodrov established his reputation as a visionary filmmaker with “Mongol: The Rise of Genghis Khan” (2007), nominated for the Academy Award® for Best Foreign Language Film, and “Prisoner of the Mountains” (1996), also an Oscar® nominee as well as a Cannes Film Festival FIPRESCI Prize-winner. The Snow Leopard Outstanding Cinematic Achievement Award will be presented to director, producer, and screenwriter Peter Ho-Sun Chan, one of Hong Kong’s most critically acclaimed and accomplished filmmakers. Known for his versatility and the scope of his work, Chan’s landmark films, including “Comrades: Almost a Love Story” (1996) and “The Warlords” (2007), have earned him a remarkable 233 awards from more than 400 nominations. As previously announced, AWFF will screen “Comrades: Almost a Love Story,” followed by a Q&A with Chan. Multi-award-winning actress Kathryn Bernardo will receive the Snow Leopard... Read More