Celluloid Finishes Earth Share PSAs
Colorado animation studio Celluloid has just completed work on two public service announcements for Earth Share, a federation of America's leading non-profit environmental and conservation organizations. Working with advertising agency Foote, Cone and Belding, director James Wahlberg and live-action production company Visitor, Celluloid, led by executive producer Jan Johnson and director Paniagiotis Rappas, provided the animation on both sixty-second spots. The first, titled "This Is," is based on a series of 30 paintings by designer Alan Brewer. Celluloid first created pencil animation of the project. Then, Celluloid art director Jenny Kincade, working with a group of fine artists from the Denver art community, created the step-by-step scenes using watercolor and gouache on watercolor paper. Once completed, the paintings were scanned into computers by a team of digital artists. "It is rare to have the opportunity to create a 60-second animated PSA," according to Johnson. "This length is wonderful because we are really able to tell a complicated story with a very organic look. Using animation, we were able to provide continuous movement through time and space, as well as different parts of nature. The result is a whimsical and painterly piece of which we are very proud." The second spot, titled "Projections," presents color images from nature projected on concrete walls of an unnamed city. During the PSA, people walk through the city, unconscious of the world around them, while the narrator -- Harrison Ford -- notes that it is about balancing our choices and the importance of supporting environmental causes. At the end of the piece, a small, curious girl opens a door of a building that magically leads to a colorful, natural world. A plant, growing from the seed of the good idea that is Earth Share, sprouts from a pile of soil cupped in the girl's small hands. According to Wahlberg, "With 'Projections' I wanted to create an experience of contrasts, and by playing with color and rates of motion, we present two worlds that are never quite in sync. The idea was to draw attention to an important issue, and -- rather than force the response -- hopefully inspire people to act." Celluloid is best known for developing the animated series SOUTH PARK with its creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. Celluloid produced the show's precursor THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS, as well as the pilot for Comedy Central.