The Machines Are Taking Over!
A series of ordinary household appliances are given a surrealist spin in an exhilarating motion project by NOMINT director Tony Zagoraios. MA(D)CHINES is the intricately crafted animated short which sees a series of otherworldly scenarios play out in the entertaining 36-second film.
In the CG spot, viewers are treated to an explosion of intricate animations where ordinary household appliances take centre stage. In the fantastical short, an electronic hand blender whirls above a giant teacup suspended between icebergs by tiny orange clad figures and ropes, a TV sits on a dusky launchpad at a mission control centre whilst a rocket thrusts through its core and miniature workers flee from the blast, a monster truck toaster revs its engine in a Nevada style desert as little onlookers cheer from the ground and a smoothie blender mashes up its fruity filling atop a rock on a tropical island as beach goers catch rays.
The passion project was dreamed up by Tony and a team of animators at his Athens-based studio, Yell, who each collaborated to create the motion film. Tony says: “We wanted to create surreal compositions, but the approach was to create beautiful images that tell a story just by looking at them.”
The story-telling of each frame was achieved by the minutiae detail in each scene. This included the hilarious troops of dancing characters, little vehicles, buildings and stylistic touches. Tony explains: “The animations made us laugh every day! Adding the human characters really evolved the natural and mechanic elements – the ‘space tv’, ‘seablender’, ‘helimixer’ and ‘cartoast’ became much funnier as the characters changed the scene. Those details completely elevated the film to become more humorous.”
As Tony and the team at Yell fine-tuned the sophisticated scenes with meticulous detail their challenge was to know when to stop. Tony says: “We had to set a deadline for ourselves. Our obsession for perfect pixel images could go on forever. So, it’s very difficult when you want to achieve a picture-perfect result. Although I love the phrase ‘The devil’s in the detail’ – that’s what I’m always aiming for!”.
Tony has collaborated with commercial brands including EA Sports, Virgin, Vice and Nissan. The award-winning director’s animated back catalogue spans a diverse range of styles, including two-dimensional and three-dimensional, mixed-media, illustration and motion graphics.
He says: “I try to make sure the animations styles I work on are diverse. This helps me to express what I have in my head without the obligations of following a specific style. Over the years I have pushed myself to constantly evolve and stay open to new opportunities. This allows me to explore new techniques and styles.”
Tony Zagoraios is represented by NOMINT worldwide. MA(D)CHINES is available online now.
