The Mill provides visual effects, including a fully CG reindeer, for Kohl’s new holiday campaign.
The directing duo Si & Ad of Academy Films, and agency Peterson Milla Hooks brought their “Holiday Magic” ad for Kohl's to The Mill to create a digital reindeer double.
This snow-filled spot features a father taking his son on a trip, a drive to the same magical place his father used to take him. The Mill transformed the Canadian landscape, where winter had just barely hit, into a winter wonderland. Mill creative director Adam Grint led the 2D team in adding atmospherics like snow falling and frost on the tops of trees, as well as extending snowy environments into the distant background. This was achieved with multiple 3D passes of snow interaction and fog dynamics.
“We had beautiful raw footage to work with, courtesy of Si & Ad,” Grint said. “It already had a wonderful cinematic quality, just a little nudge here and there was enough to achieve what we needed and maintain the look of it being entirely shot in-camera.”
The Mill also created a fully CG reindeer for the spot. “We had to do a full digital takeover of the reindeer for it to leap into the air and fly off into the night,” explained Lead CG artist Nic Yiallouris. “It was re-built from data captured on set and we used our proprietary fur system to match the live-action reindeer fur. The end result is a CG reindeer that seamlessly blended with the live action one, the difference being that he could leap five feet into the air!”
Source: The Mill
Formerly Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network, Jennifer Wolfe has worked in the Media & Entertainment industry as a writer and PR professional since 2003.
