Stardust Studios and SEK & GREY Oy team up for Fantasia

Bicoastal U.S. creative production company Stardust Studios has teamed-up with Helsinki-based advertising agency SEK & GREY Oy to create a :40 theatrical/broadcast brand spot for Paulig Presidentti, the prestigious coffee brand launched nearly 80 years ago by Finland's leading coffee roaster, Gustav Paulig Ltd. The 3D animated spot entitled "Fantasia," was created exclusively for distribution in Finland.

Paulig's premium coffee brand Presidentti is one of two flagship Paulig brands introduced in 1929, and its signature colors of green and gold have long been used in both packaging and advertising. The company's long history of innovative advertising, promotional and customer service initiatives have made the Paulig brand family synonymous with uncompromising quality, professional pride and warm,enjoyable moments. According to Stardust creative director Alan Bibby, this year, SEK & GREY's creatives wanted to create something that took the revered brand to a new level of interest – without sacrificing any of its elegance or other important qualities.

To begin, SEK & GREY creative director Mikko Petaja, copywriter Jusa Valtonen and executive producer Olli Korpiala (of production company Front Desk) presented Stardust's creative team in New York with initial storyboards, as well as selected Presidentti advertising elements from the recent past, each of which featured the brand's color palette and golden cup, and conveyed the idea of coffee enjoyment that lifts people above their everyday lives.

"They had certain things that they wanted in the spot," Bibby
explained, "which ultimately had to be all about transformation... a moment of solitude where one's mind wanders, going on a journey, where one thing leads to another and another, until it all comes back to the coffee."

After reviewing the agency's boards and getting briefed, Bibby said, he and his colleagues were psyched. "Their concept was really intriguing and inventive," he said, "and they conveyed a sense of excitement while keeping it elegant and subtle. What also excited us what the level of creative that they'd already sold through to the client." Stardust's storyboards were designed by Jon Saunders, Kim Dulaney, Chi Chi Bello and Bibby, earning Stardust the project.

With the job awarded, work began quickly, involving a great deal of interaction between New York and Helsinki. To develop the project, create and master their final animation,
Stardust's artists used Maya, Real Flow and Adobe After Effects, as well as a 2D equivalent to traditional cel animation. As the work progressed, motion tests and other
materials were posted for review every couple of days. "There was constant feedback," Bibby said, "and as everything came together, they were really happy. It became a total labor of love for everyone involved, and the artists kept working on it until it was the level that everyone wanted to see."

In the finished spot, on a field of dark green, a golden
droplet appears and splashes down into dark liquid, forming a
golden wave that instantly transforms into a lion's head. The golden liquid pours down over dark mountains to a waterfall, where particles stream into a lake before soaring comet-like into a dark green sky above a forest, and exploding like fireworks. One of the fireballs takes the form of a glowing golden bird, which soars past, leaving a wake of floating feathers which become butterflies, and then, a field of golden flowers. An elk runs through the field, and golden particles mix with the northern lights, before the brand's golden cup appears, with the campaign tagline, "Maailman parhaista ahvilaaduista," (which translates into, "from the best coffees in the world"). The spot features a rich orchestral score throughout, which was composed by Tuomas Kantelinen, and mixed at Helsinki's Soundtrack Studios by Mikko Oinonen.

"Making the animation stay true to and articulate the
beautifully designed frames was a huge effort that paid off
immensely," Bibby concluded. "Finishing the entire spot in
full HD was a huge endeavor, as was working with a remote client. In the end, it's a beautiful piece which grew and
changed over the length of the project while staying true to
the initial vision. Every one of our designers and animators
put a huge amount of effort, time and artistry into it under
intense pressure, and we feel the results speak for themselves."

For SEK & GREY Oy, Jorma Saksa is the account director.

Along with Bibby, Stardust's project team also included
executive creative director Jake Banks, senior producer Michael Neithardt, line producer Mark Mutschler, lead designer Jon Saunders, designers Kim Dulaney and Chi Chi Bello, CG director Carl Mok and many 3D, 2D and effects artists.