Blur Unleashes Beast for The Kraken Rum

In a departure from the 2D woodblock print style of previous spot efforts, the new, entirely CG :30 commercial for The Kraken Rum directed by Tim Miller of Blur Studio provides a visceral portrayal of the legendary sea creature for which the Caribbean spiced rum is named. 

 

Having seen Blur Studio’s standout work on The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo opening titles, ad agency Dead As We Know It approached the prolific production studio to create equally compelling visuals for The Kraken Rum. Using the inky liquid aesthetic as a jumping off point, Director Tim Miller crafted the spot, which features a violent kraken attack, that still maintains a sensual, inviting and mysterious feel. Only seen in quick, frenetic close-ups, the kraken was designed with reference to actual octopus tentacles and eyeballs for a photo-real look to the movements and destruction. Blur began working on the project in July 2013 and delivered two and a half months later.

"Blur was not just the right company to pull off this piece, but the inspiration. Their skills and artistry allowed us to create something that was dark and horrific, while at the same time luxurious and sexy,” said Mikal Reich, Executive Creative Director, Dead As We Know It.

Credits

KRAKEN BLACK SPICED RUM “Black Ink” :30/:15

CLIENT
Client: Proximo Spirits
Senior VP Marketing: Elwyn Gladstone
Marketing Manager: Kristin Shirtz

AGENCY
Agency: Dead As We Know It
Executive Creative Director: Mikal Reich
Creatives: Ella Wilson, Charmaine Choi, Kirsten Larson, Andrew Kay, Jesse Adelman
Senior Producer: Kirsten Larson

PRODUCTION
Animation, VFX & Design: Blur Studio
Director: Tim Miller
CG Supervisor: Jerome Denjean
FX Supervisor: Kirby Miller
Producer: Tiffany Webber
Executive Producer: Al Shier
Layout Supervisor: Franck Balson
Character Modeling Lead: Mathieu Aerni
Character Modeling: Alessandro Baldasseroni, Daniel Garcia, Chris Grim, Alex Litchinko, Jesse Sandifer
Rigging Supervisor: Jeremie Passerin
Rigging Development TD: Enoch Ihde
Rigging Lead: Jennifer Hendrich
Rigging: Steven Alley, Justin Callanan, Brent Wiley
Animation: Isaac Fernandez, Jason Hendricks, Bryan Hillestad, Nick Whitmire
Cloth Supervisor: Jon Jordan
Cloth Lead: Luis Lopez
Cloth: Justin Callanan, Don de Castro, Tyler Fox, Dyllan Lu, James Marcus, Lennon Montejo, Jace Timmer
Environment Modeling: Jinho Jang
Prop Modeling: Zack Cork, Colin James
Lighting and Compositing Lead: Colin James
Lighting and Compositing: Simon Blanc, Darren Butler, Peter Wildman
FX: Brian Alvarez, Matthew Benson, Wayne Hollingsworth, Matt James, Matt Radford, Brandon Riza, Brandon Young
Technical and QC: Jennifer Hendrich, Jon Jordan, Luis Lopez
Concept Design: Leopard Snow
Production Coordinator: Jessie King
Production Assistant: Amanda Powell
Tools and Scripts: Brendan Abel, Jeffrey Beeland, Mike Hendricks
Programming and Systems Administration: Jeremy Donahue, Paul Huang, Matt Newell, Duane Powell, Perry Randall

POST
Finishing House: Artjail

MUSIC
Company: Yessian
Executive Producer: Mary Ellen O’Brien, Marlene Bartos
Music Track License: “Beyond the Sea”
Song Writers: Jack Lawrence, Charles Trenet, Albert Lasry
Performer: Bobby Darin
Publishers: Range Road Music, Inc., France Music Corp.
Label: Warner Music Group

SOUND DESIGN
Company: Jafbox Sound
Designer: Joseph Fraioli

AUDIO MIX
Company: Heard City
Mixer: Keith Reynaud