ARIZONA
ARIZONA
ROLESCLIENT: University of Arizona
AGENCY: VisionPoint Marketing
DIRECTOR OF CONTENT: Mack Garrison
PRODUCER: Ashley Targonski
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Cory Livengood
Sr. ART DIRECTOR: John McGowan
DESIGN: John McGowan & Will O’Connell
ANIMATION: Will O’Connell, Sam Bass, Zak Tietjen, John Flores
AUDIO MIX: Ben Azevedo
DETAILSThe University of Arizona wanted a video that could stop a scroll and leave a lasting impression and the results spoke for themselves: 3.5 million YouTube views in the first month. In partnership with VisionPoint Marketing, we set out to create a 30-second piece that captured the university's academic ambition, athletic energy, and century-long history, all without feeling like every other school promo out there.
In partnership with VisionPoint Marketing, we set out to create a 30-second piece that captured the university's academic ambition, athletic energy, and century-long history, all without feeling like every other school promo out there.
DISCOVERYThe University of Arizona needed a single piece of content that could do a lot of heavy lifting: celebrate tradition, energize prospective students, and visually represent a campus that feels unlike anywhere else. Fitting all of that into 30 seconds meant every frame had to work hard.
We pitched a mixed-media style built on texture, collage, and bold graphic elements. Rather than treating archival footage as a limitation, we leaned into torn edges and layered visuals to give the university's history a kinetic, almost tactile quality. Animated sound waves tied the visual language back to the legendary "Bear Down" mantra. Punchy color and seamless transitions between live-action and animation kept the energy high from first frame to last.
IDEATIONWe kicked things off with a moodboard, curating visual references and inspirations to align on the overall direction before a single frame was designed.
From there, we moved into style frames: static designs that let us pressure-test the look and feel before committing to animation. We explored a few directions before landing on the right one. Below you'll find our two proposed treatments, plus a few designs that didn't make the final cut.
PRE-PRODUCTIONBefore diving into full animation, we built an animatic: an early-stage rough cut that times out the visuals against the audio. It's where you start to get a real sense of pacing and how everything is coming together. A lot evolved between this version and the final product, but you can see the bones of the piece starting to form.
One of the real logistical challenges on this project was managing the sheer volume of client footage. To keep the selection process organized and the client conversation productive, we created a stringout: a compiled render of our favorite clip candidates so everyone could react to the same shortlist at the same time
PRE-PRODUCTION cont.
The final piece earned immediate praise from university leadership and students alike, and 3.5 million YouTube views in its first month of release. We're proud of what the team accomplished on this one, and we're looking forward to the next chapter with VisionPoint and the University of Arizona.
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