Toons on Tour: From Game World to The Real World

The Istanbul-based gaming company Peak came to us with a simple brief: they wanted a fun short film to promote its addictive mobile game, Toon Blast. Challenge accepted!

We've always thought that there’s something magical about putting cartoon characters into the real world. We loved the idea of letting a bunch of Toons loose in the city. What might that look like, and how might they react? In order to achieve this visual effect, This Thing of Ours harnessed a mixture of live action, soft-shaded frame-by-frame animation and 3D elements.

The result of our collaboration was a high octane 30-second film featuring Wally, Cooper and Bruno, who all feature in the hit puzzle game. The film follows them as they take to the streets of a US city in their car and caravan on their way to a disco dance-off, turning heads as they go. They win a trophy, draw the attention of local law enforcement, and finally escape back to the Toon Blast world.

Alex Robinson, Motion Director, This Thing of Ours, said: “This was a dream project for me personally - and for the whole This Thing of Ours team. 

“Visually, we wanted to push frame-by-frame animation to its limits. Soft shading is a more complicated way of colouring characters. Instead of a simple fill in-between the line work, we removed the lines and developed a soft shaded look using a combination of frame-by-frame and compositing, describing the form of the characters and creating the illusion that they are 3D.”

“This kind of brief comes with endless challenges when it comes to production, but seeing the finished product makes it all worthwhile.”

Check out the 'Behind the Scenes' video below for an insight into our process and the evolution of the film. 👇

Özberk Şahin, Performance Marketing Specialist, Peak, said: “Toon Blast has been a real game-changer since its launch and this innovative new film reflects the way it has pushed boundaries in the gaming world. 

“Working with This Thing of Ours, we’ve harnessed a mix of live action and animation to create something truly original for our community.”

Since its launch, the video has garnered over 2.9 million YouTube views, and counting. The project has also garnered the attention of the press, being featured in publications as listed below.

CREDITS

​​This Thing Of Ours
Coffee & TV
Always Outdoors