Nice Shoes has made a foray into re-branding with an in-store film and two spots for Timex that made their premier Baselworld 2011, the World Watch Jewelery Show in Switzerland. The New York-based creative post studio has been working direct-to-client over three months to help creatively reposition two of the watch giant’s brands, Nautica and Ecko Unlimited.

Each piece uses a mix of CG, motion graphics and live action to showcase the watches’ unique detailing and inner workings in a newly re-positioned context; Nautica retained its sporty lifestyle look but elevated with a sophisticated and timeless all-American feel, while Ecko Unlimited moved away from luxury glam to a sleek, hard-edged tech vibe.

“Our aim was to evoke a sophisticated and irreverent feeling,” says creative director Aron Baxter, who also directed the Unlimited spot. “It’s a little more mature than they had previously conceived. We had very in-depth focus groups with Timex on the new direction to make sure we hit particular marks with each spot.”

For the in-store display spot, Nice Shoes created a motion graphics pieced based on a light grid and onyx surfaces that takes viewers on a kaleidoscopic journey through different facets of the watches and lifestyle culture.

For the first two months, creative directors Baxter and Brian Bowman worked on nailing down the concepts before ramping up production in the third month. The animation teams created everything in Cinema 4D and Maya and then used Nuke, After Effects and Flame for compositing. The job also marked one of the biggest collaborations between the company’s VFX and Design departments.

“The VFX and Design teams completely synergized and worked as one,” says Bowman. “It was very rewarding to see everybody ⎯ especially new members of the team ⎯ meld together and complement each other.”

“Our clients encouraged us to ‘turn up to 11′ and we dully obliged,” adds Baxter.

“It was an absolute pleasure to work in collaboration with Nice Shoes,” noted Bob Evans, Timex VP Creative Services. “They took time to understand our final delivery needs, while offering some great creative options to help us achieve those goals. The entire process was well-managed and really gave me great ease of mind that they would deliver nothing short of a masterpiece. The best part was watching the artists grow with creativity throughout the entire project – this is why I look forward to working together on future projects.”

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Credits
Client: Timex
VP of Creative Services for Timex Fashion Brands: Bob Evans
Project Manager: Vanessa Neri
Brand Director: Stephen Scholz
Senior VP Fashion Brands: Tricia Norton

Spot Title: Timex Nautica
VFX, Design and Animation: Nice Shoes
CD: Brian Bowman
Producer: Christos Mountzouros
Editor: Dana Bol

CG Artist: Ryan DeCarlo
Compositor(s): Joe Lawrence, Kristin Koch
Assistant Editor: Tony Dolezal

Spots Title: Marc Ecko Art Basel 2011
Design and Animation: Nice Shoes
CD: Aron Baxter
Producer: Jen Cadic
Editor: Dana Bol
Assistant Editor: Tony Dolezal

Storyboard Artist: Carlos Ancalmo
Designer(s): Kristin Koch, Kit Lam, Matthew Lane-Smith
CG Animators: Jim Collins, Man Kim, Matthew Lane-Smith, Andy Mai
CG Lighting TD(s): Jim Collins, Ryan DeCarlo, Man Kim, Boaz Livny, Andy Mai, Thomas Smith
Compositor(s): Mario Caserta, Ryan DeCarlo, Kit Lam, Josh Laurence, Matthew Lane-Smith, Vin Roma, Bryan Rosenblum, Elsa Tu

CG Watch Models: March Made

Music Produced by BANG
Composer: Derek Menzies
EP: Brad Stratton
About Nice Shoes
NYC-based Nice Shoes is a full service, artist-driven design, animation, visual effects and color grading studio specializing in high-end commercials, web content, film, TV and music videos. Since its inception in 1996, the studio has prided itself on consistently reinvesting in its talent, technical backbone, and client experience to set the standard of excellence both creatively and technically. Key company principals include: CEO/Partner Dominic Pandolfino, Head of Production Mike Donovan, CDs Brian Bowman and Aron Baxter, Colorists/Partners Chris Ryan and Lez Rudge, Senior Producers Pat Portela and Christos Mountzouros, VFX Artist/Partner Rich Schreck, and CIO Bob Keske.

For more information please visit www.niceshoes.com.

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