Commercial visual effects studio Public is poised to celebrate its first anniversary with an impressive slate of projects for the world’s top brands, advertising agencies and directors, revealing big facility firepower and talent configured in a beachside boutique. Recent projects include Nike “Rise,” Lincoln “Smarter Than Luxury,” Honda “Impressive Space,” Head & Shoulders “Sun” and Disney Cruise Line “Behind the Magic.”
Nike “Rise” features LeBron James envisioning his career in a series of fantasy sequences. Public recreated the moment when the basketball star’s iconic banner, part of Cleveland’s skyline for seven years, famously came down following the former Cavalier’s controversial announcement that he was leaving to join the Miami Heat. Public produced a CG version of the 10-story mural and the Landmark Office Tower as well as its reflection in a car window, in addition to several other vignettes. Nike “Rise” was directed by Stacy Wall of Imperial Woodpecker for Wieden+Kennedy and edited by Spot Welders’ Robert Duffy, his first commercial project after editing the Tony Scott action film “Unstoppable.” James Allen served as visual effects supervisor for Public.
Erika Madison, agency producer at Wieden+Kennedy, said, “Working with Public was a pleasure. Their creative problem-solving and tremendous eye for detail helped our process run smoothly, especially with our tight deadlines. Many thanks to the entire Public team for a great experience.”
Click Nike “Rise” to view work online. (full credits below)
Lincoln’s “Smarter Than Luxury” campaign for the 2011 MKS and MKZ Hybrid was shot at the Salk Institute overlooking the Pacific Ocean in La Jolla, California, and also on a sound stage designed to recreate the famed architectural landmark. The nine-spot campaign, featuring “Mad Men” actor John Slattery, was directed by Lance Acord of Park Pictures for Team Detroit.
The Salk Institute’s modern abstract shapes open onto a courtyard of travertine marble and serve as a metaphor for Lincoln’s offer of style, craftsmanship and technology. Since cars are not permitted on the travertine, Public brought the architectural vernacular of the site to the stage digitally, relighting the environment and placing CG Lincoln vehicles into the live action footage. A total of 122 visual effects shots was completed in just 10 days by a crew of more than 25 artists. The campaign was overseen by visual effects supervisors Chris Noellert and James Allen and was also color corrected at Public using a proprietary CG and Flame-based approach.
Eric McClellan, EVP and GCD at Team Detroit, said “Public is, in a very literal sense, awesome. Their professionalism, dedication, good cheer and, above all, their artistry filled me and my colleagues with a sense of awe.”
Click to view Lincoln’s “Smarter Than Luxury” Spot (full credits below)
Other recent projects include Honda Pilot “Impressive Space” directed by Erich Joiner of Tool North America for RPA; Head & Shoulders “Sun” featuring Pittsburgh Steeler Troy Polamalu, directed by Greg Popp of Supply & Demand for Saatchi/NY; and Disney Cruise Line “Behind the Magic” directed by Sean Thonson of Supply & Demand for Disney.
With Venice Beach virtually at its door and high caliber projects in the pipeline, Public has been able to attract an expert and accomplished production team. Visual effects supervisor and lead Flame artist James Allen was formerly with Asylum, where he worked on Nike “Fate” for director David Fincher and Nike “Leave Nothing” for director Michael Mann. Visual effects supervisor Jonah Hall has worked at Digital Domain, Asylum and DreamWorks and has extensive commercial and feature film credits. Visual effects supervisor Chris Noellert was a technical director at Nordisk Film, the largest producer and distributor of electronic entertainment in Scandinavia, as well as visual effects supervisor at The Syndicate in Stockholm. Executive producer Kim Nagel joined Public from Spot Welders and was previously executive producer at bicoastal Bug Editorial at its L.A. and NYC locations.
Public‘s co-founder and creative director Tony Smoller said, “Our supervisors and artists can execute in the room, but they also know how to navigate between the live action world and the digital production environment. Whether it’s on-set supervision or on-the-box execution, they do it with an understanding of the language and process of film and with a great feel for story. They are our greatest asset. Their talent and collective energy have fueled our upward trajectory.”
Public emerged in the spotlight earlier this year with visual effects and compositing for a 13-spot package for Hyundai, a well-received campaign that aired during the 2010 Super Bowl broadcast and the Academy Awards. Since then, the studio has contributed to a notable range of commercials, branded content, interactive campaigns and transmedia.
Public uses a wide array of hardware and software, including Autodesk Maya and Flame, Side Effects Houdini and SynthEyes camera tracking and stabilization.
About Public
Public was founded in 2009 by Creative Director Tony Smoller and the principals of award-winning editorial company Spot Welders, David Glean and Michael Heldman. The merger of their visual effects companies Moving Pixels and Sea Level culminated in the newly formed independent studio Public, a joint venture designed to leverage the strengths of both companies’ talent to produce top-tier work for their clients.
Located in the creative hub of Venice, California, in a space designed by noted architect Roy McMakin, Public specializes in innovative 2D and 3D visual effects, animation, design and supervision for the commercial and advertising industries.
For more information, please visit www.publicvfx.com or call 310-450-6969.
Nike “Rise” Credits
Agency: Wieden + Kennedy, Portland
Client: Nike
Creative Director: Alberto Ponte
Creative Director: Ryan O’Rourke
Copywriter: Caleb Jensen
Art Director: Taylor Twist
Producer: Erika Madison
Executive Creative Director: Mark Fitzloff
Executive Creative Director: Susan Hoffman
Agency Executive Producer: Ben Grylewicz
Production Company: Imperial Woodpecker
Director: Stacy Wall
Executive Producer: Doug Halbert
Line Producer: Dina Oberley
Director of Photography: Sal Totino
Editorial Company: Spot Welders
Editor: Robert Duffy
Post Producer: Carolina Wallace
Post Executive Producer: David Glean
Assistant Editor: Healy Snow
VFX Company: Public
Creative Director: Tony Smoller
VFX Supervisor/ Lead Flame Artist: James Allen
CG Supervisor: Jonah Hall
Lead Flame Artist: Brad Scott
VFX Producer: Rachel Kaminek
Sound Company: Stimmung
Sound Designer: Gus Koven
Producer: Jack Caitlin
Producer: Ceinwyn Clark
Song: “Crockett’s Theme” by Jan Hammer
Color Correction: Company 3
Colorist: Dave Hussey
Mix Company: Lime
Mixer: Loren Silber
Mixer: Mark Meyuhas
Producer: Jessica Locke
Lincoln “Smarter Than Luxury” Full Credits
Agency: Team Detroit
Client: Lincoln
Toby Barlow: EVP, Chief Creative Officer
Eric McClellan: EVP. Group Creative Director Lincoln National
Alicia Johnson: Creative Director
Hal Wolverton: Creative Director
Jed Alger: Writer
Michael Stark: VP, Executive Producer
Tieneke Pavesic: Producer
Production Company: <b<Park Pictures
Lance Acord: Director
Jackie Kelman Bisbee: Executive Producer/ Owner
Mary Ann Marino: Executive Producer
Dinah Rodriguez: Head of Production
Patricia Frazier: Producer
Editorial: Spot Welders
Haines Hall: Editor
Catherine Bull: Editor
Neil Gust: Editor
David Glean: Exec Producer
VFX: Public
Creative Director: Tony Smoller
Executive Producer: Kim Nagel
VFX Supervisors/Lead Flame Artists: Chris Noellert & James Allen
CG Supervisor: Jonah Hall
Flame Artists: Brad Scott, Stefan Smith, Rob Winfield, Julie Jang, Paul Song
VFX Producer: Jamie Schuster
Color Correction: Public
Color / Flame: Chris Noellert
Music: Massive Attack
