June « 2010 « I Design Your Eyes

TWISTED METAL – A Behind the Scenes Look with Director Levi Ahmu

Posted by Chris in I Design Your Eyes on June 23, 2010

Zoic Studios Director Levi Ahmu came on board Twisted Metal during the conceptualizing phase of the project. At that time he says, “The idea for the spot wasn’t fully fleshed out. A lot of different ideas were being bantered around. Everything from creating a full CG spot to (what ultimately happened) creating a live action Sweet Tooth and his band of “Freaks” getting ready to rampage the city. Once the realization that shooting a live action spot was possible everyone began to get really excited. We all new this was going to be the perfect re-introduction of one of the most beloved franchises in video game history.”

At this point Ahmu and Zoic Studios Executive Creative Director Chris Jones collaborated with Twisted Metal creator David Jaffe and his Sony team, Creative Director: Scott Campbell, Producer: Michael Brynteson to create the “Cabbie Scene” we see in the spot. Ahmu says, “Jaffe is great at multitasking. He has so many projects on his plate and he was still so hands on. He really remained engaged with everything from dialogue, through editing, and the post process.” What Jaffe’s team wanted to execute wasn’t going to be easy due to time and budget constraints, but Ahmu was confident the end result was going to be mind blowing.

“ Having an amazing crew is really what makes the production process fun. Good people surrounding me allow me to focus on what I need to do … be creative. It let’s me work with the actors and the look of the spot without worrying about the other millions of things that are happening around me. On this one, my line producer was Gary Kout. The guy was unbelievable. I’m still amazed with what he got done on such a limited budget. Honestly, I don’t think he ever said no to anything I asked for and knowing the quality everyone was expecting I asked for a lot. I mean, in order to achieve the interactive light on the clowns at the end of the spot required that individual light rigs be built for every actor. That in itself was no small feat. In addition to that we had location issues. Early on in the process the guys at Sony sent us footage of the early levels of the game: New York, big sky lines that sort of thing… so we had to find a location that matched that world. When you have all the money in the world that’s not a big deal, when you’re on a tight budget that can be tough. I must have scouted twenty locations and there really were no other options than to shoot in Downtown LA. The fact that we had to shoot there is taxing to any budget but once again Gary got me what I wanted and more importantly what the spot needed to feel legitimate.” recounts Ahmu

The other key player on this spot was Vincent Laforet the director of photography. Vincent and Zoic Studios had been collaborating on a couple of different ideas over the last few months and when this one came along it was an obvious opportunity to work together. “Vincent is an incredible photographer and accomplished storyteller. Originally he was a photojournalist and because of this he really understands how to make a picture tell a story. He also knows how to use light to create the effect he wants. Instead of approaching the shoot from an “I need all of this Blah Blah Blah” Vincent approaches it by looking at what he has and then sculpting the set with those tools. His work is absolutely amazing. He has such a wonderful eye for framing a shot to capture an emotion.”Ahmu said.

When it came to working with the cast, Ahmu and Jaffe were intent on finding the perfect actors to bring the characters to life. “We ended up auditioning over a hundred guys for the cabbie: young gamer types, older cab driver types. Tommy and Michael won in the end because of their great on and off screen chemistry. They were originally teamed with other actors during the auditions and I just wasn’t feeling it. At some point I was sliding around the casting photos and their photos lined up. We called them in as a team and they just rocked the performance. I mean you could feel the energy. They immediately got it and got what we were looking for. The added bonus was they were the perfect hybrid of gamers and cabbies – people who could believably be both. ”

Ahmu and the crew had only 12 hours (7am -7pm) to knock out the entire shoot. “We had pending rain the entire night so we were really under the gun to get things done. Thankfully when the rain finally happened we were down to our last setup. The problem at that point became less about the rain and more about getting our clown actors out of the ”flames rigs” because they were NOT water proof!” Ahmu recounts, “-And then there was the blown power generator. We lost an hour of production to that. Thank God our gaffer knew someone who could bring another stat. -I guess technically we finished in 11 hours which I think was more out of necessity than choice. After all, even though we were cleared to shoot until 7 am the sun still decided to rise around 5:15 am. I guess the rain did come in handy then as it kept the alley dark, and moody due to the thick overcast. Sometimes things just work in your favor.” Ahmu continued with a laugh.

When asked about the highlight of the shoot Ahmu responded, “Getting that techno crane reveal of Sweet Tooth. Because we only had a techno with a 15-foot jibe arm we could either get in tight on Sweet Tooth or wide on the alley – but not both in the same shot-, which is what we needed. So after a lot of brainstorming we came up with the idea of dollying the techno crane; literally unlocking the wheels and rolling it backward while you’re shooting. This is normally something you just don’t do, but, the crane op had a great team and they pulled if off seamlessly. It’s making things happen, the problem solving that goes on when your shooting that always makes it exciting. When you are in it with a crew that is focused on solutions. A crew that is fully committed to making the best possible piece it makes shooting an amazing process”

In the end, both Jaffe and Sony seemed very proud of the results Ahmu and Zoic Studios achieved. Everyone’s excited to have Sweet Tooth back on the streets… so when you’re out alone at night, watch your back!

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Zoic’s “Epic” Presence at E3

Posted by Miles Dinsmoor in I Design Your Eyes on June 18, 2010

Miles Dinsmoor

I’ve always been a fan of the minimalist aesthetic in advertising. Great branding involves the consistent application of a select few choices – color, layout, tone and voice – that become instantly recognizable to viewer even at a quick glance.

Apple has been an exemplar of this for some time. Regardless of what you think of them (and an argument could be made that their recent spots have been both derivative and repetitive), you can’t deny how forcefully the brand is communicated through minimalist design – in both the marketing, and within the products themselves.

But to succeed with this type of design (as I would argue Apple has) you need a strong brand foundation with clear values and a point of view. And you need to pay careful attention – insanely careful attention – to the details. All the value is in the details. Minimalism done with precision is an Eames chair. Minimalism done quickly is Ikea.

What does this have to do with the world’s most famous mouse?

Well, recently we were given the opportunity to participate in a fantastic project that allowed us to play with the perfect blend of applying a minimalist aesthetic to a very strong brand.

And I couldn’t be happier with the result.

Disney Interactive Studios and The Ant Farm came to Zoic with a fantastic idea to tease the launch of their new “Disney Epic Mickey” game; being released on the Wii platform this Holiday season.

In the game, Mickey navigates the “Wasteland,” an inverted shadowy parallel to Disneyland – which he accidentally created, and which he must correct using only the power of his paintbrush.

Since the game’s action is rooted in paint, Disney and the Ant Farm wanted the Teaser to be based in paint as well. And they wanted something artistic. Something painterly. They referenced a Japanese artist named Shinichi Murayama whose work inspired them. They wanted something that would surprise their audience, that would feel Disney-esque, but bold, beautiful, and maybe just a little bit brooding.

Our final treatment that was chosen to go into production was called “Mirror”, and was based around the idea of using deep, saturated throws of paint as “mirrors” which would reflect distorted images from the game as a way to tease the content.

So the challenge was upon us on several levels. The spot would appear simple. On one level it’s just paint tossed and caught frozen in mid-flight, suspended in the air. What could be easier?

But to get this to look right took a painstaking effort on all fronts.

In CGI this required endless rounds of fluid sims. We had to dial in the texture and viscosity of the paint to get just the right feel – thick enough to feel really rich. But go too thick and you get blobby.

And then there’s shape. Fluid sims are not really “controllable” the way most CGI animation is. It truly is a simulation. You can try to “direct” the fluid. But it’s gonna do what it’s gonna do. You can’t control it anymore than you can control water. So for every shape that made the cut, there were probably thirty tests that didn’t work out for one reason or another.

We also needed to include speed ramps in order to get our “moments of suspension”, which created yet another challenge. There was no blueprint for the proper frame rate to achieve the effect we were aiming for. Our only option was multiple tests in order to find the exact right combination of frame rate, amount of frames, length of shot and desirable shape.

Now add on top of that the need to tease artwork for the game in “reflections” and you can see that we really did have a puzzle on our hands. What are the right scenes to tease? Where do you tease them? In what shapes? Are the key characters and environments being properly reflected in the right shapes?

There was no shortage of details to consider.

But it’s those sorts of details that turn simplicity… into minimalism.

It was deceptively simple. And rigorously challenging. Both artistically and technically. And everyone pulled together. There was no blueprint really. We had to turn an abstract concept into a story. A story that would tease a brand. One of the biggest brands in the world. And in my opinion we achieved it. We pushed each other. We questioned every shot. We pounded on the details until we had something that would satisfy the challenge we had all laid out for ourselves: Disney Interactive, Ant Farm and Zoic. How do you re-introduce the world to one of its most iconic characters? How do you do so in a way that’s both familiar and new? A way that’s reassuring to the essential brand promise of Disney, yet teases a new vision? An extension of brand’s flagship character into territories never before explored? How do you make it “Epic”?

One last note about color. The Disney brand isn’t actually known for a minimalist aesthetic when it comes to color. It’s not a “Target” or an “at&t” working with a very refined palette to readily identify itself (few children’s brands are… color being such a huge part of childhood). Yet it definitely has a color aesthetic. A known color aesthetic. Disney’s use of color has helped distinguish it from other children’s brands for over 70 years. And it has managed to both evolve and stay consistent during that entire span. Yet it’s hard to put your finger on. You just know it when you see it.

That’s branding.