Nexus_Slack Animals | STASH MAGAZINE

Smith & Foulkes: Slack “Animals!”

Following on the heels of Giant Ant’s fabulous 1930’s animation update, Slack pivots 180 degrees in tone and technique for this frenetic :60, opting for a cast of collaborative CG animals from the masters of such things, Nexus directors Smith & Foulkes, thru TBWA \ CHIAT \ DAY. [Watch]

PES_Honda Hands RPG | Stash Magazine

Behind the Scenes with PES on Honda “Paper”

Take a peek at four months of intensely detailed work by Oscar-nominated stop-motion star PES and “dozens of animators and illustrators” as they recreate the evolution of Honda products with thousands of hand-rendered drawings on real live paper with pre-vis and VFX/finishing by a52. [Watch]

Nexus RPA Honda | STASH MAGAZINE

Smith & Foulkes’ Latest for Honda

Nexus directors Smith & Foulkes‘ history with Honda is long and award-laden (we ran Honda “GRRR” on the cover of Stash 03 in Nov. 2004) and this latest pair of spots, which break today thru agency RPA, finds the directing duo’s signature charm and gentle humor applied to the launch of the HR-V Crossover. [Watch]

Nexus_Channel 4 Grand national | STASH MAGAZINE

Smith & Foulkes: The Grand National 2015

Channel 4’s promotion for the annual UK steeplechase spectacle known as Crabbie’s Grand National Festival takes a mythological turn as Nexus directors Smith & Foulkes and 4Creative craft a classic adventure/fairytale of “The Outsider,” a unicorn foal with runty wings and a twisted horn, overcoming impossible odds. [Watch]

NEXUS_CANCER | STASH MAGAZINE

Smith & Foulkes: “It’s Payback Time, Cancer”

Nexus directors Smith & Foulkes brew up two-minutes of apocalyptic fun for a serious cause in this broadcast and cinema spot boosting awareness for Stand Up To Cancer, the partnership between Channel 4 and Cancer Research UK, billed as a ‘killer night of fundraising.’

Smith & Foulkes: “The initial brief was to turn the table on cancer, depicting the disease as a civilization spreading aggressively – unable to prevent its own Armageddon in the style of a disaster movie.

“The main challenge was how to visualize the cancer cells. We wanted to steer away from the obvious route of showing cells as a bunch of grotesque alien germs, but we were also acutely aware of not making them too human or cute.”

“We also had to find a way to illustrate the new therapies, drugs and scientific breakthroughs that are fighting Cancer. We wanted their arrival to be initially magical and mysterious. so we used a glowing blue orb, an unexplained light descending upon a shadowy world.

“Disaster Movies rely heavily on vast visual spectacle and a cast of thousands, so working within our time constraints we decided to recreate this using 2D matt paintings to show a sense of the city without having to model every building.

“This gave it an illustrative and richly textured feel. Modeling and animating our cast in 3D gave us the flexibility of performance we wanted, and made them stand out from their environment.” [Watch]

NEXUS_TALKTALK | STASH MAGAZINE

Smith & Foulkes: TalkTalk “The Mission”

The first of four new TalkTalk ads thru Chi&Partners finds Nexus directors Smith & Foulkes applying their signature charm and wit to unlikely 3D heroes on an epic mission.

Smith & Foulkes: “The initial idea for this spot started as a mantra shouted by a crew of household objects demanding better and cheaper TV.

“But the challenge was not just about incorporating the emotional connection seen in previous TalkTalk spots into the script, but also about providing pure cinematic entertainment – so we took a slightly different approach, using the cinematic potential of a group of friends setting out on an epic quest to find a house with TalkTalk TV.

“This gave us the comic scope to show our heroic group’s most over-dramatic adventures in a quiet corner of suburbia.” [Watch]

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