Ad agency Goodby, Silverstein & Partners recently commissioned the talents of digital effects studio a href="http://www.aidb.com/clicks.php?ref=news&ref_id=11086&id=13069">Ring of Fire for a dynamic (and nostalgic) spot for client Saturn. Drawing inspiration from the classic arcade game PAC-MAN, the high-energy spot features the Saturn VUE in a Pac-Man-like world and the tagline, "People First."
"PAC-MAN" opens on the Saturn VUE spinning on the driveway to the very familiar Pac-Man game sounds as a man walks out of the house and gets into the SUV. He follows white power pellets down the streets to various destinations and comes upon people and items such as shopping carts, children and sporting goods. When he reaches the objects, they suddenly appear inside or on top of the car. Grocery bags in the shopping cart materialize in the car as does a young girl in soccer uniform, and a drive by the sporting goods store lands a kayak and bike on the top of the car. The VUE makes it way back home, consuming all the white pellets, and pulls into the driveway as the voiceover concludes, "The versatile Saturn VUE. It helps you pack it all in."
For the Ring of Fire team, the project involved creating test shots and collaborating with director Rupert Sanders to find the best approach to shoot the elements. The spinning motion of the car and the people was achieved by placing them on a turntable in the environment; the inanimate objects such as the shopping cart and sports gear were hung from wires.
By shooting the people in the environment and against greenscreen, Ring of Fire was able to create the appearance of them spinning in their surroundings and then materializing inside the car.
"Our goal with this spot was to make the effects appear as seamless, believable and real as possible," explains Jerry Spivack, Ring of Fire creative director. "We had to place the out-of-the-ordinary into an ordinary environment. In all of the shots, we utilized real balls. However, in one shot we threw in a CG ball just to see if anyone could tell it was real. We had a great time working on this project with Rupert Sanders and his team and felt it was a successful effort."
Ring of Fire credits include:
Exec Producer: John MyersCreative Director/Set Supervisor: Jerry SpivackProducer: Zenta KronitisInferno Artists: Paul Geiger, Todd Hemsley, John Ciampa, Alicia Aguilera, Thomas DownsHenry Artists: Brian Shneider, Tina EastlakeAnimator: David Sudd
West Hollywood-based Ring of Fire (www.ringoffire.com) was launched in1996 to specialize in visual effects supervision, 2D compositing, CGI and design for commercial, television and feature film projects. Catering to ad agencies, production companies and editorial houses, the Ring of Fire team is made up of veteran visual effects supervisors, as well as some of the best inferno, Henry and 3D artists in the world.
Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.
