Santa Monica-based visual effects studio provides invisible effects for Carl's Jr. “Au Naturel” ad.
Sometimes it's about what you don't see. In its inaugural project, the team at Santa Monica-based JAMM Visual offered their invisible effects expertise to the head-turning Carl's Jr. “Au Naturel” commercial. The spot features model Charlotte McKinney strolling through a crowded farmers market in what appears to be nothing more than her birthday suit.
If you think this straddles the line of too-much-for-television, then you understand the creative intent; JAMM artists worked closely with RSA director Jake Scott and agency 72andSunny to ensure that the piece would be as revealing as possible:
The project involved a good amount of invisible work in post-production. VFX artists added, nudged and removed elements to reinforce the piece's implied nudity as McKinney makes her way through the market. This included CG water, hair, crowd duplication and wardrobe manipulation to get as close as possible to the line of acceptability without crossing it. In many cases (notably during the CG water spray) visual effects were utilized to dial in the appropriate amount of obscuring elements so the creative team could maintain control over what you do and don't see.
For the artists at JAMM, the challenge was not the creation of visual effects but the seamlessness of their use: to never take focus off the subject matter at hand -- which, after seeing the finished product, was pretty unlikely.
Source: JAMM Visual
Formerly Editor-in-Chief of Animation World Network, Jennifer Wolfe has worked in the Media & Entertainment industry as a writer and PR professional since 2003.
