Our Company | About Us | Services | Our Clients | What's New | Events

June 2003

FOR AUDIOENGINE IT HAS TO BE HEINEKEN

The new :30 spot "Waitress" for Heineken promotes both the great tasting malt beverage and the recent release of the highly anticipated film, The Matrix Reloaded. Mixed by

Bob Giammarco for the international market and Rex Recker for the 5.1 surround theatrical US release, the high-energy spot features the ultimate super-waitress.

She tries to make her way through a crowded club. When the leather-clad throngs block her way, she tosses the tray of Heineken into the air, runs up a wall and catches the beer on the other side of the crowd in an effects-heavy Matrix style. Suddenly, a tough guy leans over, says something untoward and smacks the waitress on her backside. She flings the Heineken into the air, leaps up in a crouch position, kicks the sleazy character into the club wall, and lands in time to catch the bottles and present them to an admiring pair of club-goers. All of the action occurs to a pulsing, throbbing techno beat and the action sounds of the incredible waitress. It's all about the beer. And it has to be The Matrix Reloaded.

Visit the audioEngine Website
More Info: audioEngine

POP SOUND HELPS L.A. KINGS SEARCH FOR MOST VALUABLE PLAYERS IN FIGHT AGAINST MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS

Entertainment Ad Agency BLT & Associates has called on the experts at POP Sound to complete the audio mix for the :60 National Multiple Sclerosis Society/L.A. Kings spot. Mixer Zac Fisher brought his talents to this intense and hard-hitting glance at the strength and discipline required to win at hockey -- and to fight against MS.

L.A. Kings player Craig Johnson is seen in a series of brief and explosive shots, pounding across the ice, scoring a goal, and erupting in celebration with teammates. He tells us that because his mother lives with Multiple Sclerosis, he has fought hard as well in the challenge against the disease. Quick shots of Johnson suiting up with skates, stick, gloves and helmet convey the hard work of his game, but Johnson wants viewers to know that the hard work can also lead to fun, as we see people enjoying the MS Walk and challenging two-day 150 MS Bike Tour. We see Johnson again scoring a slamming goal and his team erupting in jubilation. Johnson wants us to understand that this kind of reward and gratification can be found by joining the MS Support Team. "All of us," says Johnson, "can become a most valuable player in the game."

V12 SCORES WITH BOLD NBA GRAPHICS & BRANDING PACKAGE

Basketball fans have undoubtedly noticed vibrant and energetic activity surrounding this year's exciting season -- a new branding and graphics package for the NBA season being broadcast on ESPN2 and ABC. The visual style and animation was conceived and created by award-winning company V12, led by Creative Directors David Hwang and David Sparrgrove.

Utilizing a palette of bold colors that reflect both team and NBA logos, V12 combined motion graphics and animation with striking black-and-white action and portrait shots of select players for eye-popping effect. The company continues its collaboration with ESPN through the conference finals and playoffs, creating appropriate graphical elements for competing teams, players and games.

RADIUM AND TOYOTA TAKE FLIGHT IN VISUALLY COMPELLING SPOT

The visual effects team at Radium recently wrapped postproduction on an eye-catching campaign for Toyota Motorsports via ad agency Saatchi & Saatchi/Los Angeles. "Light & Strong" focuses on a Toyota Racing Development Engineer and his unique world -- he makes the laws of physics obey his needs. The spot opens on the engineer alone, working on a weekend evening. He makes a paper airplane that soon takes on unusual properties, breaking through walls, water coolers and bookshelves. The lightness of the airplane belies the strength and power of the engineer's creation.

Shot in a beautifully designed set with very dramatic lighting, creating the illusion of a paper airplane that seamlessly and photo realistically fit into the scenes was the vision given to Radium by Director Ago Panini. The CG plane had to take on many properties for it to appear real. It had to be both "Light & Strong," as in the title of the spot and it had to react to the many different lighting cues in the original photography. As the airplane's perspective changed through its rolling, each individual surface had to have the proper light properties of highlights, shadows, transparencies and reflections. The airplane animation was choreographed for each scene based upon on set reference photographs and stand-in models. The lighting was accomplished by starting out with HDR lighting techniques, then adding additional CG lights to complete the scene. Additionally, all surface reflections and shadows were composited in to complete the natural look that the airplane had in its environment. Compositing on the spot consisted of replacing blue screen windows, CG airplane and debris elements for breaking-through-the-wall shots, and final scene-to-scene color correction.