Shilo announced their role in producing an engaging new broadcast/web spot for Mountain Dew's new Green Label Art Shop Series campaign. This project was directed by Shilo's Evan Dennis, who worked in close collaboration with creative director David Hohman, art director Campbell Hooper and their colleagues from integrated marketing agency TracyLocke to create compelling content authentically supporting Mountain Dew's innovative campaign and the all-star talents assembled.
The :30 broadcast/web spot promotes Mountain Dew's new signature product design from professional skater, actor and artist Paul Rodriguez and famed artist Don Pendleton. Meticulously crafted by Dennis and the other artists of the Emmy-winning Shilo, the spot artfully blends stunning, street skateboarding cinematography with mesmerizing animation brought to life from Pendleton and Rodriguez's original designs.
"I was thrilled to have this opportunity to work so closely with an amazing duo like Paul Rodriguez and Don Pendleton," Dennis began. "I've been skateboarding my entire life, and it has been a huge factor in who I am as an artist and individual. I've always been greatly inspired by the art, style and culture of skateboarding."
Dennis also provided additional details on his design-infused storytelling approach to the creation of the spot.
"Paul has a unique ability to execute very complicated tricks with such style that he almost makes them look easy," he explained. "Since his collaboration with Don is the core of the story, everything we did on the locations and in the design and animation, was focused on showcasing that talent and translating Don's artwork into a visual display of inspiration."
Together with director of photography Max Goldman and a fast-moving crew ready to run and gun, Dennis spent a full day on LA-area locations from Pacoima to downtown and East LA, shooting Rodriguez skating the streets. The team employed the RED One Digital Camera system, capturing their footage in 3K resolution for HD project finishing. Colorist Tom Poole of Company 3 provided color-correction for the RED's raw files, setting a look that Shilo's artists then matched in the lighting and texturing of their designs and animation.
"We translated the geometric shapes and characters of Don's artwork as a reflection of Paul's skateboarding, thus leaving behind graphical trails along ledges and rails driven by the angles of the trick, the board, and the skater," said Dennis.
Shilo's artists also incorporated several new techniques into their pipeline. Among those, their 2D animation was run through a 3D pipeline using Autodesk Maya, allowing them to extrude their animation in 3D space and give it a unique dimensional realism in the composite.
"We love taking risks and trying something new and original," added Dennis. "We really just wanted to have fun with it and reflect the sensibility of Paul, Don and Mountain Dew."
The agency's credits also include director of broadcast production Monica Victor and producer Kiri Carch. The spot features the music track "The Funk" from artists Oh No. Sound design was handled by Tom Goldblatt of Audioengine. Complete project credits, and behind-the-scenes project details, are available upon request.