John Orozco couldn't stop as a kid, erupting across park playgrounds and household furniture in an endless sequence of flips and bounces and jumps. So when his sanitation worker father found a flier seeking aspiring gymnasts while on his rounds in Manhattan, he took his young prodigy to a strict coach who guided him all the way to the Olympics. SMOG conveys this story in a primarily red, white and blue animation heavy on geometric angles and typography that reinforces key inspirational words and messages.

"John's story really sounds like a fable, so we wanted to tell it in a simple way," stated SMOG. "We also wanted a slightly different feel for his father's story and his coach's, as they each have different roles - the father is a big protector and believes in him, while the coach is his partner and fights beside him. Each character has a different angle for John, so they had to look different in the animation while still being connected to get the whole picture."