press release
Cingular 'Evolution'
Eyeball and Expansion Team Join Forces With BBDO for Cingular's S710 Camera Phone.
'Evolution', traces the histories of both the telephone and camera.
NEW YORK - Design based production company Eyeball announces the completion of its latest commercial for ad agency BBDO and client Cingular Wireless. Using split-screen symmetry, the 30-second spot, dubbed "Evolution," traces the histories of both the telephone and camera. The spot culminates with their union in a sleek, compact package: Cingular's offering, the S710 camera phone, manufactured by Sony-Ericsson.
Looking to tap the spirit of the Eyeball's creative punch, BBDO storyboarded the concept for "Evolution" then had Eyeball do the heavy lifting. Using advanced 3D modeling skills, Eyeball was able to seamlessly morph a telephone and a camera through various stages of their histories. Logically concluding with the S710 camera phone, the spot positions Cingular as the premier communications provider for the technologically savvy. The ultimate product is a commercial that challenges the perception of cell phones as accessories, bringing them into the realm of practical but stylish necessities.
"Our treatment of the hero camera-phone as a slick, sexy object to be taken seriously, rather than a playful, handy accessory, was a unique approach," says Julian Bevan, associate creative director at Eyeball and one of the lead creatives on "Evolution." "We took a lot of inspiration from feature films and especially car commercials."
Placing the sequence of phones and cameras from the past on a white background, EyeballNYC starkly contrasts them to the S710 by capturing the new product with restrained lighting on a dark backdrop. "We have accumulated a lot of technical knowledge modeling cell phones in 3D, all of which helped us streamline the modeling, lighting, and texturing process," says Bevan.
For the spot's audio, Eyeball collaborated with Expansion Team. The New York-based music collective produced a lively soundtrack for "Evolution," complementing the spot's commanding imagery with a captivating sound design.
Upon settling on a hard, driving rock sound, the actual music came easy for the distinctive talent behind Expansion Team. "I wanted to build a lot of tension in the beginning of the spot," says Alex Moulton, the company's creative director. "When the spot visually arrives at the S710, the music bursts with energy and kicks in hard." Some distorted guitar and a transformer scratch does the trick. It also doesn't hurt to enlist the talents of Jose Luis Pardo from Los Amigos Invisibles, a member of Expansion Team's talented roster of musicians and the person responsible for the spot's incredible guitar line synched to the arrival of the S710.
Explains Moulton: "We all wanted to have that feeling of being at a rock concert, when the band starts playing their first song, you're filled with that undeniable swell of emotion and can't help smiling while nodding your head."
With the project completed, EyeballNYC notes the benefits of the tricky project. "This was a real technical challenge for our 3D animators, and overcoming it was extremely gratifying for all involved. We learned that almost any object can be slick, sexy, and cinematic as long as you treat it that way," says Bevan. "I think the end result is fantastic. We were thrilled to collaborate with BBDO on this project."
