Imaginary Forces

Imaginary Forces Creates An Animated Factory for Lexus

Collaboration with Team One Makes For Elegantly Designed Work

Los Angeles, CA (May 16, 2007) Design and production studio Imaginary Forces has created a sleek and lyrical new spot for the Lexus line of what the carmaker calls "luxury utility vehicles," conceived by Lexus’ agency Team One of El Segundo, CA.

In "Animated Factory," delicate, silvery lines glide across a trio of Lexus vehicles. The lines form into the shape of robotic arms, each holding an item which represents an aspect of the car's construction—a French horn represents acoustics, a satellite dish represents ingenuity, a chaise lounge, design. "To reach perfection," says the voiceover, "it helps to draw from every discipline." The soundtrack, created by Hum Music, further adds to the languid, balletic feel of the piece.

"We had originally envisioned it to be much more mechanical, almost as if you had dropped all of these metaphorical objects into the car on the actual assembly line," says Lou Flores, ACD at Team One. "As we started seeing what was possible, it started feeling a little pedestrian. That's when we called upon Imaginary Forces and asked them to take another look at it, so that it might be more emotional and visual, to help us get the message across in a more unique and striking way."

"With their aesthetic and high level approach, the objects felt as if they were coming directly from the engineer's imagination which was more in line with the Lexus philosophy," adds Tyler Doupe, who wrote the spot. "Their work really benefited the project."

Michelle Dougherty, who directed for IF, notes that special care went into the design of the various elements laid into each vehicle. "We tried to figure out how we could visualize items for Lexus that were elegant yet also modern and relevant to the performance and features of the vehicle," she says.

Imaginary Forces' producer Kathy Kelehan says that part of creating the depth of emotion in the spot began with shooting the cars. "The agency wanted it to have a dramatic look," she says. "We shot the cars on 35mm on a stage, and lit them with a dark, moody tone, which was further enhanced in post. The lines were actually animated in 3-D space using Maya, rather than being created in 2D and laid on top."

Sean Koriakin, IF's lead art director on the project, led a team of animators in executing the intricately detailed work. "The animators had to make sure there was constant motion and activity on the screen, and a lot of choreography to the movement," he says.

"We're all very pleased with how it turned out," says Leah Bohl, Team One's producer. "Michelle’s vision, diligence and intelligence is reflected in her work, and we were all very happy with the collaboration."

Animated Factory Credits:
Client: Lexus
Agency: Team One
Copywriter: Tyler Doupe
Associate Creative Director: Lou Flores
Executive Creative Director: Chris Graves
Group Creative Director: Jon Pearce
Executive Producer: Jack Epsteen
Producer: Leah Bohl
Designed & Produced by: Imaginary Forces (IF)
Director: Michelle Dougherty
Art Director: Sean Koriakin
Head of Production: Ben Apley
Producer: Kathy Kelehan
Designers: Rob Bollick, Joan Lau, Brett Krauss, Wilson Wu, Ryan Zunkley, Michelle Dougherty
2D Animator: Patricio Motta
3D Animators: Ryan Bosworth, Gene Arvan, and Ben Lopez
Editors: Danielle White, Walter Louie
Inferno Artists: Rod Basham, Matt Spencer
Live Action Producer: Randi Feinberg
Director of Photography: Pieter Vermeer
Coordinator: Heather Dennis
Music Company: Hum
Creative Director: Jeff Koz
Composer: Hirotaka Matsuoka