Freeform
Iconocrash
Freeform asked us to create a series of fun, festive animations to keep the holiday spirit alive during primetime breaks for their annual 25 Days of Christmas lineup. Using their existing iconographic characters, we brought them to life in a variety of playful and unexpected holiday scenarios.
"Now I am become Death, the Destroyer of Worlds."
Challenge
With no audio, these animations had to rely entirely on visuals to convey emotion and be instantly clear. Designed to run for four minutes alongside ads, the content needed to be engaging enough to hold attention without distracting from surrounding messaging.
solution
Using Freeform’s icon library, we paired characters like Cat and Dog, Gingerbread Man and Nutcracker, and Snowman and Yeti in playful holiday face-offs inspired by classic Tom & Jerry mischief. We added limbs and expressions, animated everything in After Effects, and finalized the look in Illustrator. Though the original was silent, we later added a fun soundtrack for internal use.
The process
In the next sections, we’ll share a behind-the-scenes look at our process from kickoff to completion, highlighting key decisions along the way. We'll explore character studies and art direction, all created using Adobe Illustrator and After Effects.
the process
In the next sections, we’ll share a behind-the-scenes look at our process from kickoff to completion, highlighting key decisions along the way. We'll explore character studies and art direction, all created using Adobe Illustrator and After Effects.
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Solution
A limited color palette, 2 all-caps typefaces, and abstracted, 3D interpretations of the network logo serve as the cornerstones of Defy’s brand identity. The motion language of the network is snappy and dynamic, but with a subtlety that pulls you in and guides your attention to the shows’ content.
character studies
Though the main “faces” of each character were already at our disposal in icon form, we needed to expand their range of emotions in order to depict more expressive reactions in each scenario. Along with creating a set of 5 emotions for each icon, we also added limbs to each, allowing the characters to participate in these various actions in a clear manner.
Rigging systems
In order to streamline the animation of our icon characters, we created a system of rigs combining the use of Joysticks and Sliders, and Rubberhose. Joysticks and Sliders was used to ease between facial expressions, while we used Rubberhose to control the movement of the characters’ limbs. An example of this system can be seen in the images below.
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Art Direction
Before finalizing each storyline, we explored possible environments for the interactions. Inspired by classic “cat and mouse” dynamics like Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner, we developed our own take on that style, using the reference images shown below.
make it christmas
Building off of that initial style exploration, we began to define how these scenarios would play out in more Christmas-y. At this time, we began to build a better grasp on the interactions between the characters, and decided it would be best to limit each pairing to one larger environment that could then be broken down into smaller areas for each storyline.
keeping it light
The final step was color blocking each scene using Freeform’s 25 Days of Christmas palette. We tested both night and day looks, starting with a darker nighttime style but ultimately choosing a light, cheerful daytime vibe. Pale blue backgrounds keep things soft, while saturated colors highlight key actions and props.
PROCESS
Building a new network takes a lot, so we’re sharing a glimpse into our visual and conceptual process. Below, you'll see early explorations in typography, color, and art direction that shaped our direction.
Challenges + Solutions
Animated sequences of photos and documents were created to convey information and visually connect the investigative dots of the narrative. It was imperative that these graphics felt realistic and authentic to the story being told.
Title Sequence
The title design needed to be simple, clean, and focusing solely on the men whose lives were irrevocably impacted. MAMMAL adopted a minimalist approach, emphasizing emotional resonance by switching between old family photos to their mugshots. Similar to the document and photo sequences, the use of paper textures grounded the visuals, creating a raw and tangible connection to their stories.