Galaxies swirling into pasta on a plate. Parmesan raining down like meteors. Olive oil dropping into the void... This experimental juxtaposition is at the heart of the launch campaign for Barilla's Al Bronzo pasta.

Under the slogan ‘Pasta is born again’, director Philippe André introduces a stunning Big Bang of flavour, bringing a new pasta dimension to tables around the world. The creativity escalates in a climax on the notes of Léo Delibes’ Lakmé opera, chosen to celebrate the fresh new start for a pasta that reawakens senses, memories, and emotions.

The client wanted an epic, cinematic ad, based around an enigmatic mystery, where the viewer wouldn’t know for a while what the ad was for, with food often visible only through experimental juxtaposition before the final reveal towards the end. The key brief – stand out and be unique in the food advertising space.

Making a connection between the real pasta and the space pasta was one of the main creative challenges for the Glassworks VFX team. The pasta and the seasoning had to look beautiful and realistic in outer space, and this was not an easy feat. It was especially important to find the right movement, speed, scale and lighting for all the elements.

After thorough testing with director Philippe André in the pre-production phase, it was decided to use a mix of 3D, 2D and in-camera work to create the visuals. CGI pasta fields and celestial bodies feature alongside real-life water and colourful clouds, all blended in with cosmic 2D backgrounds and 3D textures.

Colour, backgrounds, and lighting all had to be coherent in this abstract scenario. Lighting, for example, was carefully studied to achieve the right balance between space light (strong and directional) and flattering product light.