Framestore CFC recently completed digital effects work on a new three-spot campaign for BT, highlighting the company's Customer Care program. St. Luke's was the agency on SNOW, FOOTBALL and SOUNDS with Outsider films as the production company. SNOW and FOOTBALL were directed by Dom and Nic with Nick Gordon helming SOUNDS.
Highlighting BT's pledge to keep appointments, SNOW shows a cross section of Londoners preparing for an event -- it gradually becomes clear that they are anticipating a snowfall. "If you knew when to expect things," says the voiceover, as the expected snow starts falling, "Imagine how much more you could do with your day."
The promise that a human operator will always be available is illustrated in FOOTBALL. A young girl whispers instructions (under the shouts of her father and his brothers) to a football team on the television, which they obey.
In SOUNDS, a woman struggling to sleep against a variety of noises from outside goes out onto the balcony of her hotel to find that the whole neighborhood there to help her. All three spots close with the BT logo and the tags "More committed to service. More power to you."
Inferno artist Ben Cronin supervised the SNOW shoot for Framestore CFC. His VFX work can be seen in the spot, where many varieties of artificial snow, both practical and digital, were required. The culminating event of the spot -- a snowfall on Primrose Hill -- required Cronin and his animation team to put snow in the air and all over the grassy rise. With the camera moves tracked, the 3D snow elements were created, providing Cronin with a variety of depths of field with which to compose his shots. He achieved the ground dusting of snow through the application of a couple of 'keys,' using the textures and lighting of the grass to help form the snowy surface. The heavy sky over the north London scene was also a digital construct, built by Cronin.
Cronin also did a lot of work on crowd replication for the FOOTBALL spot, as the entire match the family is watching was actually shot in Scotland, with local team Inverness Caledonian Thistle and 250 of their fans providing the action.
Dave Ludlam provided the Telecine for SOUNDS, complementing the strongly atmospheric look.
Framestore CFC is one of the leading visual effects company working on effects for feature films and commercials. More information can be found at www.framestore-cfc.com.
Credit List:BT Customer Care SnowAgency: St Luke'sAgency producer: Kate MaleProduction company: Outsider FilmsDirectors: Dom and NicProducer: John MadsenInferno artist: Ben Cronin3D animators: Chris Syborn, Jake Mengers, Matt EstelaPost producer: Helen Stanley
BT Customer Care FootballAgency: St Luke'sAgency producer: Kate MaleProduction company: Outsider FilmsDirectors: Dom and NicProducer: John MadsenInferno artist: Ben CroninPost producer: Helen Stanley
BT Customer Care SoundsAgency: St Luke'sAgency producer: Kate MaleProduction company: Outsider FilmsDirector: Nick GordonProducer: John MadsenInferno artist: Ben CroninTelecine colourist: Dave LudlamPost producer: Helen Stanley