We’re incredibly proud to announce the launch of the 2008 Telus Gift Guide.
This year, we wanted to answer one simple question — “Which cellphone is right for me?” To accomplish this, we created a Rube Goldberg contraption we’ve called the Magic Machine. Oh, and don’t be afraid to play with it a few times… the video sequences are different depending on the features you select. Magical, I know.
written by Jeremy Bell
Wow… just wow. wow.
I’m usually the last guy to appreciate gratuitous Flash animations, but this is so terrific, for so many reasons.
It’s incredibly compelling – I won’t tell you how much time I’ve spent watching it.
And the tone, the mood – just perfect. Has already gotten me into the Holiday spirit.
And, it really does benefit the brand – unlike, say, that cool dashboard app that Sprint is using. I love that thing too, but it doesn’t incline me to feel more positively about Sprint. For some reason, this really connects.
So, great job.
Any chance you’ll let us in on some of the secrets of how you made it? Is it all CG animation, or is there some stop-motion as well? What tools did you use? Did you do it all in house, or are there other teams that deserve some credit?
Thanks Matt – It’s funny that you mention it, but I’m working on a little “behind the scenes” post that will shed some light on how we put it all together. However, I can quickly answer your questions now:
* It’s all CG animation
* There no stop-motion or practical shots
* We used 3ds Max for all of the modeling and animation
* It was all done in-house
That’s all for now… I’ll go into greater detail in the next post.
Great job guys, best holiday site yet :)
I don’t get it, why would Telus drop 6 figures on something that ultimately shows a phone I wanted to see 3 minutes before watching gratuitous CG (Albeit wonderfully done, quite similar to the Honda Civic commercial a few years back) animation?
I’m not knocking the execution or aesthetics of the site, I just don’t understand the purpose? Why is Telus behind Rogers in market share? Product and lack of quality product, not high end web design.
Sorry, rant over.
Hi Andrew — I can appreciate that your perspective, however it was never created to be a utilitarian “phone selector”. It was intended to be a form of entertainment. Something that’s simple, approachable and fun.
I also don’t think anyone is arguing that high-end web design (which I’ll take as a compliment… thank you) builds market share. However, it does help build brands. And last I checked, Rogers isn’t exactly well-loved.