CONCEPT PHASE
The hero of this campaign is the fire that lives inside Bertucci’s signature brick oven. In addition, the client had chosen a swing-style, dance-inspiring piece of music by the Brian Setzer Orchestra called “Gimme some Rhythm.”
With these elements in mind, we decided to do an in-depth exploration and present a range of concepts. We brought on a couple of our design compatriots to flesh out five concepts and to present style options (around 30 in all).
From this pool of ideas and designs we honed a single tightly focused creative concept. Then it was time to take the relationship to the next level.
PRODUCTION
In order to create this CGI world, R&D was integral in building realistic flames, environment and motion. The brick oven is unique to Bertucci’s so to replicate it we dropped in on a Bertucci’s restaurant and took dozens of reference photos. Back at the shop we used the photos to accurately model and texture our CG oven.
From the beginning, we knew we wanted our flames to dance. We developed a method to render particle-based flame elements that react to specific frequencies of an audio file. End result: dancing flames.
For the live action shoot, we tapped director Richard Klug of Redtree Productions. The actors – actual Bertucci’s servers and chefs – had to imagine that a Bertucci’s restaurant was heating up with unwieldy, frolicking flames. Green screen, pizza, the RED, tracking marks; fun for all.
Once we had the live action assets, Accomplice’s Kevin Moore created the animatic. He meticulously layered everything and timed out the necessary components, creating a rough composite.
Then animation / compositing began. Our team stylized the look of the environment, then layered together CG, stock footage of flames, green screen footage, and graphic elements. We adjusted the flames until they looked just right. Finally, we polished the details: mimicking the reflection of the flames on the ledge of the oven, the back wall, and any other surface affected by the light. And then we were ready for prime time.