Artist owned-and-operated bi-coastal effects boutique Brickyard VFX has just completed work on the new "Yahoo! Lip Sync" campaign via ad agency Goodby, Silverstein & Partners and Hungry Man director Bryan Buckley.
Press Release from Brickyard VFX
Santa Monica, CA (July 14, 2010) - Artist owned-and-operated bi-coastal effects boutique Brickyard VFX has just completed work on the new "Yahoo! Lip Sync" campaign via ad agency Goodby, Silverstein & Partners and Hungry Man director Bryan Buckley. Set to popular tracks from artists such as Kanye West, Motley Crue and Lionel Richie, the campaign promotes Yahoo!'s search engine through three :30 spots: "Flashing Lights", "Home Sweet Home" and "Hello".
Each spot paints a picture of a man or woman discontent with their daily routine and introduces a purple door with a Yahoo! Ringer as a gateway into an exciting world conjured up by its dreamer. "Flashing Lights" transports a bored office employee from his cubicle into a world of limos, ladies, paparazzi and stardom. "Home Sweet Home" transports a man from his living room into a surreal alternate universe -- complete with a Nascar driver playing the piano while on fire, a western brawl, a mechanical bull ride and more. In "Hello" a woman escapes from a mundane dinner date into a universe of grandiose dating options. At the end of each spot the dreamer is slowly brought back to reality as a Yahoo! search page appears behind them to "reveal" their customized search results while characters from the music videos interact with them in their original environments.
"We love collaborating with Goodby and always look forward to working with them, because the quality of their creative is always inventive," said Jeff Blodgett, Executive Producer, Brickyard VFX, Santa Monica. "Working side by side with director Bryan Buckley helped guide us in delivering effects and compositing work that contributes to the quirky humor of these spots."
Patrick Poulatian, VFX supervisor, was on location in Prague where all of the spots were shot in a historical mansion over a period of 6+ shoot days. While Brickyard was on set to support the creative vision, a bulk of the team's work came after the shoot, as they completed transitions and additionally designed CG elements in Maya and composited using Autodesk Flame. The project did not come without challenges. "Bryan took an organic filmmaking approach to the shoot and used a handheld camera. This gave him the freedom to shoot whatever he needed, but it also posed quite a technical feat when it came to tracking," noted, Patrick. "With no motion control, it was a challenge to track elements; however our team of artists was relentless to circumvent the obstacles and ultimately achieve the look and feel Goodby had envisioned."
About Brickyard VFXWith offices in Boston and Santa Monica, Brickyard VFX specializes in the creation of high end Visual Effects, Graphics and CG for Commercials, Film and New Media. Artist owned and operated, the company was founded in 1999 to bring clients a level of customer service, craftsmanship and focus difficult to find at facilities today. Brickyard's creative expertise on set and in the studio has been applied to model, animate, light, texture, track, color correct and render seamless digital effects for Volvo, Budweiser, T-Mobile, NBA, Visa, Sprint and many other accounts. For more information, please call Brickyard VFX Pacific at (310) 453-5722, Brickyard VFX Atlantic at (617) 262-3220, or visit http://www.brickyardvfx.com
PROJECT CREDITS:Campaign: Yahoo! Lip Sync Campaign
Spot Title: "Flashing Lights" / "Hello" / "Home Sweet Home"
Agency: Goodby, Silverstein & PartnersCreative Director: Jim ElliottCreative Director: Will McGinnessSenior Art Director: Raphael MilczarekCopywriter: Rob KatzensteinAgency Producer: Todd PorterAgency Producer: Melissa Nagy
Production Company: Hungry Man LALocal Production Company: Unit and SofaDirector: Bryan BuckleyDirector of Photography: Scott HenriksenProduction Design: Petr ZuncArt Direction: Zuzana SuchaExecutive Producer: Filip HejdukProducer: Mino Jarjoura
Visual Effects: Brickyard VFXLead Flame Artist: Patrick PoulatianFlame Artists: Mandy Sorenson, Chris Sonia, Joe Morrison, David SarbellShoot Supervision: Patrick PoulatianExecutive Producer: Jeff BlodgettHead of Production: Diana YoungVisual Effects Producer: Carla Attanasio
Editorial Company: HutchcoEditor: Jim HutchinsEditor's Assistant: Joaquin MachadoExecutive Producer: Jane Hutchins
Telecine Company: CO3
Colorist: MPC
Audio Post: Jeff Payne / Eleven SoundAudio Mixer: Jeff Payne / Eleven Sound
Sound Design: 740 Sound Design