The project
Following on from the runaway success of our recent work with Madewell on drop 1 of their Alexa Chung collaboration, we teamed up again to deliver a fresh take for drop 2.
The team at Madewell had a beautiful idea centred on a bespoke pack of Alexa Chung playing cards. This time round however, we had only four weeks to deliver, and sadly, no access to Alexa. The pressure was on to create that difficult second hit.
What we did
To create a new world for this film, we had to find a way to build on our existing footage of Alexa whilst creating something that felt significantly different. We explored pure CG with a psychedelic, kaleidoscopic approach, but decided we wanted this film to be an extension of the original world rather than a complete reinvention. The plan: combine the original footage with newly made CG and footage shot with a hand model.
The model was a professional card handler, which allowed us to get incredible detail and even slow-motion elements to cut into the CG footage. We worked these elements together in Houdini, After Effects and Premiere, often having to adjust our usual processes to hit the pressing deadline.
The result
Having an understanding and responsive client made a huge difference to the project, and we managed to deliver in three and a half weeks. This included delivery of the cutdowns and bespoke renders for alternative aspect ratios.
We overcame acute time pressures and creative constraints to deliver work that has outperformed the already successful 1st film. This is a testament to our drive and passion for excellence. When you boil it down, there’s no trickery in how we work, just passion, experience and the ever-present drive to do the best for our clients… well, perhaps there is just a touch of magic.
