Electric Theatre Collective Adds Flora MacLeod as Art Director
October 13, 2026
Australian creative agency Howatson+Company merges 3D, 2D, VFX, and generative AI into a fun and fuzzy mock-stop-motion treatment for this set of films anchoring a new campaign for pet care retailer Petbarn.
Gavin Chimes, CCO at Howatson+Company: The brief was to build on the brand’s most recognizable equity, its characters Petey and Barnadette, and create the world we all imagine our pets live in.
That meant turning Petey and Barnadette from static mascots into active creators who could live across social, e-commerce, email, stores, retail media and campaigns.
“The brief was to build on the brand’s most recognizable equity, its characters Petey and Barnadette, and create the world we all imagine our pets live in.”
The creative challenge was keeping the characters consistent and full of personality across every channel, when competing with entertainment means publishing is a daily endeavor with no room for inconsistency.
The technical challenge was making that volume possible without compromising between budget and outcome. We built a custom technical pipeline that brings together 3D modeling, 2D animation, VFX and custom generative AI tools to allow continuous, high-speed asset generation. For a similar budget to previous years, the team has created hundreds of bespoke assets rather than one or two.
Client: Greencross Vets (Petbarn)
Production: Howatson+Company
CEO: Chris Howatson
CCO: Gavin Chimes
GCD: Chris Cheeseman, Simon Friedlander
Senior Creative: Maddy Semit
Creative: William Loveder, Phoebe Gribble, Olive Jones-Evans
Chief Production Officer: Holly Alexander
Executive Story Director: Paul Meates
Producer: Charlotte Breene
Head of Post Production: King Yong
Senior Editor/VFX Lead: Kyle Brandse
Senior Motion Designer / 3D Animator: Dave Sujono
Senior Motion Designer/2D Animator: Steffie Yee
2D Animator (freelance): Josh Trotter
Senior Editor/Colourist: Fraser Kelton
Editor/Colourist: Justin O’Donnell
Head of Music and Sound: Shane Vancuylenberg
Composer/Sound Designer: Robbie Balatincz
Head of Design: Trent Michael
Design Director: Greg Beer
Senior Designer: Cory Lo
Designer: Harry Chambers
Designer: Henry Leng
Junior Designer: Phil Reyestan
Studio Lead: Simon Merrifield
Finished Artist and Designer: Patrick Rivera
Fashion Retoucher: Melanie Erler
General Manager, Media: James Turner
National Investment Director: Jamie Nelson
Media Manager: Alice Madden
Senior Media Executive: Nicholas Glass
Group PR and Influencer Director: Michael Rossiter
PR and Influencer Account Manager: Grace Powers
Senior PR Account Executive: Isla Watson
Senior Operations Manager: Lydia Askew
Audio: Howatson+Company
Voice of Petey: Daniel Connell, A List Management
Voice of Barnadette: Amy Kersey, Sophie Jermyn Management
