Swedbank "Under The Oak Tree"
Channel: Stash Magazine
Date: 2014-04-16

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Tvc :50
Agency: COLONY AGENCY 
Director: STEVE HARDING-HILL
Production: AARDMAN ANIMATIONS
Animation: AARDMAN ANIMATIONS http://www.aardman.com

The Aardman production crew breaks out a series of almost-forgotten traditional production techniques on this complex stop-motion spot for a 190-year-old Swedish bank. 

What techniques and just how traditional? Watch the nicely-done "making of" on the left for full details.

Aardman director Steve Harding-Hill: "I loved working on the production because I'd never done a job to such a massive scale where I'd been given so much creative input.

"Our approach to the character design was to make the characters detailed and expressive, rather than simple and cute. While the animal characters are human in their stance and their personalities, their features are naturalistic and detailed. The puppets were covered in authentic looking fur and a traditional flocking technique was used to add realism. We shot all the animation in camera and added a few subtle post effects like the falling snow.

"The environment that was created by the team of scenic artists, set builders and prop makers is similarly highly detailed and textured. The scale was created by using layered sets; digital photography and cinematic lighting created a depth of field, creating the sweeping wide vistas seen in the ad. This was combined with detailed vignettes of other environments like ponds, hilltops and roads which make the Swedbank world even more rich and full of life. 

"We shot the commercial using two scales - this is because the size of puppet we usually use would require an enormous tree for the wide shots of the vista. This scale is preferred for use as it is easier for the animators to work with. Therefore we used large-scale puppets for the close-up shots, and small-scale puppets for the wide shots. In total we had seven large-scale puppets and two small-scale. For the shot where all of the characters gather under the tree we shot the animation using the large-scale puppets and composited this into the wide vista. 

"The puppets had to go through a process of research and development to achieve the required look of fur and feathers for our characters. This was eventually achieved using a combination of techniques such as flocking where a texture is applied over the cast then cut to the desired length and painted. We also added extra pieces of longer fur/ feathers around the face to complete the naturalistic look.

"Costumes were created for both scales of puppets for each of the eras. These were sewn by our model making department and had to be tailored to the puppets to make sure that they could move according to the required action. 

"The sets were created by carving polystyrene blocks which were then covered by various textures. For grass we would cover the block in fur and then paint it before adding extra elements such as replica flowers and moss. To create the winter set we used a combination of cotton wool, foam and artificial snow.

"The sets would take between one and three full days to dress. We started with spring and summer setups which were then converted to winter and autumn respectively. We had a total of five set dressers working on the production to turn around four shooting units as quickly as possible. Two worked on the job full-time with the others coming in for the major redressing periods. 

For Colony Agency Creatives: Martin Batholf, Rickard Villard, Noel Pretorius

For Aardman Animations Producer: Jason Fletcher-Bartholomew Director: Steve Harding-Hill Production coordinator: Maggie O'Connor Production assistant: Danny Gallagher DOP: Mark Chamerlain Lighting: Nathan Sale Camera assistant: Erica Pownall Animators: Dave Osmand, Inez Woldman, Martin Davies Assistant animator: Kate Timmons Rigger: Nick Herbert Art director: Sarah Laborde Character design: Felicie Haymoz Set design: James Grant Storyboard: Theresa Whatley, Jo Hepworth, Eve Coy Model makers: Alexis Hoskins, Johnny Tate, Sarah Edwards, Gary Losh, Grace Deberker, Terrie Payne, Sue Black Set dressers/prop makers: Rachel Bowen, Kath Miller, Rob Slagter, Sue Black Scenic artist: Fred Grey Assistant scenic artist: James Adams Sets: Sion Lane Props: John Wright CGI supers: Bram Ttwheam, Jim Lewis Visual effects: Bran Ttwheam Compositors: Paule Quinton, Valeria Romano, Spender Cross, Tom Readdy



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