W!LDBRAIN Spoofs Macho Action Movies in New Coke Campaign
Award-Winning Animation Studio Animates “Ninja” and “Bullfight” Commercials Via Z Publicidad/Mexico

SAN FRANCISCO, CA - March 24, 2005 ñ W!LDBRAIN Director Gordon Clark recently completed “Ninja,” the second animated spot in a comedic campaign for Coca-Cola via Z Publicidad/Mexico. The first spot, “Bullfight” aired last month and “Ninja” began airing XXX. The two :30 spots are geared to a Spanish speaking audience and are currently airing throughout Latin America.

W!LDBRAIN used a loose, painterly technique with watercolor textures in the animation. They wanted the characters to look cartoon-like while maintaining a more adult vibe.

"Z Publicidad wanted the spots to be funny for grown ups as well as kids," said Gordon Clark, Director, W!LDBRAIN. “They gave us witty scripts and allowed us the freedom to create. Because there are so many clichès in macho action movies, it was a challenge to cut down our ‘spoof’ ideas.”

Horns blow and roses fall from the stands in “Bullfight” as a matador stands fit for battle. In one corner a black bull busts through a door as another brown bull stands opposite. The matador finds himself surrounded by two teams of bulls and the crowd goes wild. Not knowing what else to do, he sits on the ground, sucking his thumb as the bulls kick him about. An aerial view reveals a soccer field of bulls kicking the matador across the field. The sports announcers toast each other with cans of Coke and the spot ends with an animated bull bicycle kicking the matador and scoring a goal.

“Ninja,” an homage to 70s martial arts movies, opens with an army of Japanese warriors in training. A band of silent ninjas sweep through a forest of bamboo and confront the army. The master of the army pops out of his outfit and shows his fancy sword work but when he stops -- the army behind him falls - the master accidentally split everyone with his sword! He runs screaming but quickly returns with geisha-like make-up and woos the band of ninjas by throwing them cans of Coke. The spot ends with the master and a ninja drinking Cokes amid a romantic flurry of hearts.

The spots were animated traditionally and inked with brush pens. The characters and background elements were rendered with U.S. Animation and then composited in After Effects.