Chemical Effects Wraps Up Holiday Spotwork for Chevy, GMC, Southwest

Visual effects company Chemical Effects wrapped up its ‘launch’ year with a series of high-spirited holiday spots. GSD&M Idea City, Leo Burnett and MacLaren McCann all tapped the company’s creative handiwork in campaigns for Southwest Airlines, GMC and Chevrolet, which are airing this month in the US and Canada.

Press Release from Chemical Effects

Santa Monica, CA --Visual effects company Chemical Effects wrapped up its ‘launch’ year with a series of high-spirited holiday spots. GSD&M Idea City, Leo Burnett and MacLaren McCann all tapped the company’s creative handiwork in campaigns for Southwest Airlines, GMC and Chevrolet, which are airing this month in the US and Canada.

For a whimsical series of three :30 spots promoting Chevrolet’s holiday sales event, MacLaren McCann and director Nick Piper (also Chemical Effects’ creative director) took the concept of holiday shopping to the dealership floor, inventing a scenario where car shoppers could ‘try on’ cars like clothes, literally flipping through them — while sitting in them — at the touch of a screen. To create the playful effect, Piper and Chemical Effects used computer generated (CG) models of each of the hero vehicles to achieve the dramatic car-flipping action. To transition seamlessly back and forth between live action and CG burly crew members rocked the vehicles by hand.

For GMC’s “Most Wonderful Time” and “Nutcracker” spots out of Leo Burnett, Piper and Chemical Effects turned their talents to creating a whole new mood for the Sierra. Delving back into footage shot for an earlier campaign, the creative team turned the truck from a hard-driving, terrain-crushing vehicle to a nimble, festive frolicker, enjoying rather than conquering nature. Visual Effects Supervisor Tim Rudgard and the Chemical Effects team added elegant plumes of airborne snow surging from beneath the truck’s tires and brilliant lens flares, and extended snow across the environment to give the landscape a pristine feel.

Taking an opportunity to remind holiday travelers about Southwest Airlines’ ‘bags fly free’ policy, GSD&M Idea City and directors The Hoffman Brothers took a ‘70s-cop-drama approach on its series of national spots. Featuring a S.W.A.T. team of Southwest employees in various scenarios where they free bags held hostage by a competing airline, the spots include key shots of competing airline jets — recognizable by their white bodies and blue/red markings, but with branding blurred. The actual planes shot were Southwest’s own distinctive blue and red aircraft. Enter Chemical Effects to color correct this key story element and create a nifty crash zoom-in on an official-looking in-camera badge that becomes a stylized emblem for the Bags Fly Free patrol.

“These spots gave us the perfect opportunity to show what we can do,” said Chemical Effects’ Creative Director Piper. “We brought together a fresh team of artists and producers to launch Chemical Effects about six months ago and since then we’ve been able to work on some exciting projects with really great clients. These holiday spots are all spirited and upbeat and challenged us creatively in different ways. We had a lot of fun working on them.”

The GMC spots began airing across the US in November and run through January. The Chevrolet spots began airing in Canada in November and also run through January, and the Southwest spots are airing nationally in December. See spots from the campaign here: http://www.chemicaleffects.tv/chemical.html

About Chemical EffectsChemical Effects, launched in 2010, directs, creates, animates and integrates visual effects for the world's most successful commercials. Their collective creative work spans SuperBowl ads and Cannes Lion awards; spots for Pepsi, Toyota, Apple and other brands; music videos for Michael Jackson, Kylie Minogue and Lenny Kravitz; clients including GSD&M, TBWA/Chiat Day, J. Walter Thompson and more. Visit them in Santa Monica or at www.chemicaleffects.tv

Credits:

GMC Chevrolet“Season’s Best Event”

Agency: MacLaren McCannProducer: Revital GrunbergCreative Director: Sean DavisonGroup Creative Director: Nancy Crimi-LamannaArt Director: Marc MelansonCopywriters: Nancy Crimi-Lamanna, Andre Bell

Production Company: Imported ArtistsDirector: Nick PiperDP: Simon MestelExec Producer: Suzanne AllanProducer: Marie Robertson

Offline Editorial: Stealing TimeEditor: Alex EatonProducer: Denise Shearer

Telecine: Alter EgoColorist: Eric Whipp

Visual Effects: Chemical EffectsCreative Director: Nick Piper3D Animation: Rusty Ippolito (Make VFX)Flame Artist: Tim RudgardExec Producer: Sandy BeladinoProducer: Liz Hiza

Audio: Keen Music__________

GMC Winter Event“Nutcracker”

Agency: Leo BurnettExec Producer: Erik ZaarCreative Director: Chris McCarthy

Production Company: BackyardDirector: Nick PiperDP: Zubin MistryExec Producer: Kris Mather

Offline Editorial: General EditorialEditor: Matt DunlapExec Producer: Robert Parker

Telecine: New HatColorist: Beau LeonProducer: Wyatt Valentine

Visual Effects: Chemical EffectsCreative Director: Nick PiperFlame Artists: Tim Rudgard, Shauna Prescott, Dan LorenziniFlame Assist: Jorge TanakaExec Producer: Sandy BeladinoProducer: Liz Hiza

Audio: Finger Music______________

Southwest Airlines – “Good Cop Bag Cop Campaign”“We’ve Got a Runner”

Agency: GSD&M Idea CityExec Producer: Monique VeiletteProducer: Maria IvicicCreative Director / Art Director: Bryan PudderCopywriter: Clay Hudson, Bill BayneGroup Creative Director: David CrawfordChief Creative Officer: Mike Wilson

Production Company: HarvestDirector: The Hoffman BrothersDP: Roman JakobiExec Producers: Bonnie Goldfarb, Scott HowardLine Producer: Mark ConleyProducer: Rob Sexton

Offline Editorial: Cut & RunEditor: Jay NelsonAssistant Editor: Sterling RobertsonProducer: Carr Schilling

Telecine: New HatColorist: Beau LeonProducer: Wyatt Valentine

Graphics: Superfad

Visual Effects: Chemical EffectsCreative Director: Nick PiperFlame Artist: Pete MayorFlame Assist: Jorge TanakaExec Producer: Sandy BeladinoProducer: Liz Hiza

Audio: PLAYMixer: John BolenComposer: Matt DownsProducer: Sara Hartman