Los Angeles based Team One, Publicis Groupe's fully integrated advertising, digital and media agency, is behind the delightful stop-motion animation creative campaign for littleBits’ new line of inventor kits, which use science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM) to encourage kids to live beyond the instruction manual and invent the world they want to live in.
Team One partnered with ShadowMachine, one of the top animation studios in the world, to create three 30-second stop-motion animation spots showing how the Base Inventor Kit, the Electronic Music Inventor Kit and the Space Rover Inventor Kit challenge kids to build and customize fun, playful inventions.
Inspired by makers, breakers, tinkerers and troublemakers, Team One conducted interviews with real kids to ensure that each video captured the ethos of littleBits’ #MakingChangemakers philosophy by drawing on kids’ limitless imaginations. The full campaign involved seven animators and over 150 hours of shoot time.
“Kids are scrappy, crafty little creative engines that can dream up anything,” said Chris Graves, chief creative officer at Team One. “We wanted to capture that pure, unadulterated imagination with spots for littleBits that feel equally crafty and creative. And who wouldn’t want a Bear Bot?”
"littleBits has always been at the forefront of the maker movement, so it was important to us to work with true makers to create these beautifully imaginative stop-motion animation videos for our three new STEAM inventor kits," said Ayah Bdeir, founder and CEO, littleBits. “Team One and ShadowMachine’s work reflects the creative and curious minds of kids, empowering them to find inspiration in the world around them as they tackle the epic challenges ahead."
ShadowMachine has produced many television series, including BoJack Horseman, Final Space and Robot Chicken, and the studio is also well-known in the advertising world for its stop-motion work. Its next project is the upcoming Netflix production of Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio in collaboration with the Jim Henson Company. Its world-class crew of artists, designers, directors and animators have also worked on feature films such as Coraline, The Boxtrolls, and The Nightmare Before Christmas.
“A Trash-Eating Bear Bot”
Watch full screen on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/embed/Dxuiydin8TA
“How To Talk To Whales”:
Watch full screen on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/embed/Dn8T95IzP3I
“Windmills on Mars?”:
Watch full screen on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/embed/prcAUHJ6BIk
Screenwork Credits
Agency: TEAM ONE Janet Anderson – Associate Director of Business Affairs, Jesse Blatz – Creative Director, Chris D’Rozario – Executive Creative Director, Chris Graves – Chief Creative Officer, Elliot Klein – Account Executive, Matt Lanzdorf – Creative Director, John McGonigle – Management Director, Jason Stinsmuehlen – Group Creative Director, Angela Stowers – Project Manager, Jenny Valladares – Senior Producer, Sam Walsh – Executive Producer
Production: SHADOW MACHINE Alexander Bulkley – Executive Producer, Corey Campodonico – Executive Producer, Jed Hathaway – Executive Producer, Ross Shuman – Director, Musa Brooker – Animation Director, Jack Zegarski – Producer, Rachel Horvath – Production Manager, Danny Wilkinson – Production Coordinator, Eric Adkins – Director of Photography, Paul Guglielmo – 1st A/C, Jason Kolowski – Production Designer, Greg Pinsoneault – Art Director, Jeff White – Lead Set Builder, Nellie Veitenheimer – Set Builder, Maria Salehi – Prop Maker, Victoria Cloyes – Set Dresser, Rachel Mark – Lead Painter, Leah Olbrich – Puppet Supervisor, Alex Alemany – Fabricator, Nikki Rice Malki – Fabricator, Jennifer Fournier – Costume Designer, Ivy Isenberg – Casting Director, Gregory Sesma – Storyboard Artist, Blake Larson – Storyboard Artist, Jeff Bounthavong – Graphic Designer, Tennessee Norton – Animator, Christina Brous – Animator, Misha Klein – Animator, Yu Yu – Assistant Animator, Sequoyah Madison – Assistant Animator, Jackie Cadiente – Assistant Animator, Nick Blake – Lead Animation Rigger, Dick Kaneshiro – Animation Rigger
Production: Ancient Order of the Wooden Skull Kyle Arneson – Creative Director
EDITORIAL & VFX: SHADOWMACHINE Matt Mariska – Editor, Andrew Babick – VFX Supervisor, Larry Ho – VFX Artist
Color: C03 Dave Hussy – Colorist
Music & Sound Design: Robot Repair Doug Darnell – Sound Designer, Aaron Alden – Music, Mike Schanzlin – Music, Kael Alden – Music
Mix: Juice Studios Bruce Bueckert – Sound Engineer, Dawn Redmann – Executive Producer
About TEAM ONE
Team One is Publicis Groupe's fully integrated advertising, digital and media agency dedicated to helping premium brands thrive in the modern media landscape. Team One has five North American offices, including its Los Angeles headquarters, and in Dallas, New York, Chicago and Atlanta. Team One clients include Lexus, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company, Expedia, HSBC Premier, Icelandic Glacial Water, PIMCO, St. Regis Hotels and Resorts, W Residences (Marriott), and the It Gets Better Project. Please visit www.TeamOne-USA.com.
About LITTLEBITS
littleBits is the New York-based education startup that invented the electronic building block. These magnetic “Bits” snap together to turn ideas into inventions, transforming the way kids learn so they can grow up to be tomorrow’s changemakers — no matter their age, gender, race, nationality, or ability. Up to 40 percent of the kids using littleBits kits are girls, which is four times the industry average. littleBits was founded in September 2011 by Ayah Bdeir, an engineer and interactive artist. An alumna of the MIT Media Lab, Ayah’s TED talk: “Building Blocks that Blink, Beep and Teach” about littleBits has garnered more than one million views. littleBits, itself, has won more than 150 awards in tech, education, and toys — including The Toy Association’s 2018 Creative Toy of the Year, Common Sense Education’s “2018 Top Pick for Learning,” CNN’s “Top 10 Startups to Watch,” and one of CNBC’s “Next List.” A STEAM leader at home and in the classroom, littleBits has sold millions of kits in over 70 countries. For more information, please visit www.littleBits.com.
