National TV Complete Beautiful Spot For American Express Platinum

Not To Scale's Directors National TV have just finished work on a 'crafty' claymation spot for Ogilvy London.
Or have they? The 30" spot takes us through ingenious transitions (surely now National TV's calling card) showing us some of the exciting things you might be able to do with the free cash back on offer.
National TV's Directors, Chris Dooley and Brumby Boylston, worked closely with Ogilvy London's creative team Libby Young and James Sexton who were very certain that they wanted the viewer to have a "did they, or didn't they?" feel about whether it was actually done with clay or not.
Technical Director Kevin Walker had the headache of making sure all the models and animation performed in such a way as to feel totally believable and not "too CG".
Shooting the elements for real would have left the agency and client little room for ongoing changes and edit discussions so bringing the script to life in Maya was quickly agreed as the best possible option for all eventualities.
The spot retains the tactile feel and charm of real claymation with an extra sprinkling of the magic possibilities available only with animation. For instance, a clay camera flash cleverly becomes the tissue wrapping around a beautiful bouquet of roses.
God is in the details, and the secret was making sure all the natural imperfections that you'd come across if shooting with clay were kept in, with fake finger prints, dents and bumps being added.
It was also ensured that everything had the structure that it would need to have, if made from the clay, hence the roller-coaster has girders laid on top of blocks of clay or virtual clay as it were.
With further upbeat charm helped by the jaunty beats by music company Hear No Evil and the mischievous voice of Crystal Maze oddball Richard O'Brien the film delivers a fresh and fun feel to a brand that has had a whiff of the very grown up.
Further information is available at: www.nottoscale.tv.
(KMcA)