The Briefing Room

Bicoastal production/design studio Blind helps usher in a newly re-branded and re-named Syfy Channel (fka SciFi) in the animated :15 IDs, “Horse� and “Windmill,� working directly with NBC Universal/Syfy Channel, NYC. Making the ordinary extraordinary, Blind’s cleanly rendered :15s feature a horse morphing into a rocket ship, flowers into windmills, a Winnebago into a castle and a lion into megaphones. The 4-ID campaign illustrates the channel’s July 7th content shift from science fiction only to science fiction and additional non-sci-fi shows such as the political mystery/drama, Warehouse 13.

In “Horse,� an animated white stallion gallops up to a hitching post; a SciFi sign set against a stark white cove hangs in the background. The horse skids to a stop, and rears as jet wings with blazing engines sprout from his torso. The jet/horse then blasts off, leaving in its wake a cloud of white smoke that knocks down the sign. The smoke clears just before the animal blazes past again, closer now to give the viewer a sense of dimension, and we see that the old sign has been magically replaced with the new Syfy logo. The tag, “Imagine Greater,� closes out the spot.

“Windmill� opens on a darkened house, a dangling SciFi sign hangs overhead. We see rows of animated flowers sprouting from a white backdrop. The flowers soon morph into spinning flower/windmills that generate enough wind and power to blow away the sign and extend a root to the neighboring house. The root alights the dimly lit home brighter than Times Square at New Years and the tag appears, “Imagine Greater,� under a new Syfy logo, closing out the spot.

Additional IDs “Castle� and “Lion� round out the campaign.

GIVING THE WHITE ABYSS DIMENSION: TECH NOTES

Lead by Creative Director Richard Eng, Blind completed the 4-ID campaign in 4 weeks, collaborating closely with Syfy. Says Eng, “Making sure we conveyed the concept of the new tagline ‘Imagine Greater’ in a playful and engaging way, but with a minimum of elements, meant endless tweaking. Working with Syfy’s Brian Everett and Ben Cochran, we came up with a handful of deceptively simple character animations that show the transition from the old logo to the new and reflect the magic, mystery and whimsy of the new channel.� Eng and his team of designers, including Lead Designer/Animator Michael Schaeffer, used a combination of Maya, Softimage XSI, Cinema 4D, After Effects, Photoshop and Illustrator to create the IDs.

Concludes Syfy’s VP of Creative Marketing Michael Engleman, “On the eve of launching a whole new look and feel for our Syfy brand, Blind has proven to be a nimble, thoughtful and skilled partner. As our brand grows, I look forward to future collaborative efforts.�

See Blind

Blind has been turning out award-winning design since 1995, reinventing itself a few times along the way. What remains constant at this bicoastal design/production powerhouse is an ability to engender surprise.

By delivering beyond expectations, Blind’s visual creative team has built an uncommon level of respect in the branding community. Leading brands such as McDonalds, XBox and Scion, and recording artists including Gnarls Barkley and Justin Timberlake turn to Blind for attention-grabbing design, motion graphics, animation, editorial, visual effects, print and broadcast design. With live action capabilities, Blind can produce projects from conception to reality.

Tapping into diverse intellectual and creative resources to come up with compelling ideas, Blind pushes beyond the expected, offering clients a new way to see.

Credits:

Client: NBC Universal/Syfy Channel

Title: 4 x :15 IDs, “Windmill�, “Castle�, “Horse� and “Lion�

Airdate: Currently airing

Production/Design/VFX Company: Blind Visual Propaganda, Santa Monica/NYC

Creative Director: Richard Eng

Exec. Producer: Nick Litwinko

Producers: Meredith Binder, Nick Litwinko

Designers: Mike Schaeffer, Richard Eng

Technical Director: Rich Magan

3D Animation: Justin Kurtz, Jason Goodman, Eddy Estevez, Rich Magan, Mike Schaeffer

3D Modeling/Rigging: Piotr Glabinski, Eddy Estevez, Rich Magan

Lighting/Texture: Eddy Estevez

2D & Compositing Lead: Mike Schaeffer

2D Compositing Artists: Bowe King, Richard Eng

Storyboard Artist: Colin McGreal

Advertising Agency (In-house): NBC Universal/Syfy Channel, NYC

VP Creative Marketing: Michael Engleman

Director of On-Air & Off-Air Marketing: Kate Leonard

Creative Director: Joe Loskywitz

Senior Writer/Producer: Brian Everett

Copywriter: Ben Cochran

Project Manager/On-Air Promotions: Kari Shackelton

Tools used: Maya, Softimage XSI, Cinema 4D, After Effects, Photoshop, Illustrator

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For more information, contact: Virginia Scripps, Kim Orchen Cooper Press Kitchen 310.821.1698