3 amazing uses of CG in commercials

For the last few months, 3D enthusiasts all over the globe have been nominating and voting in the 3D World CG Awards. Now, the results are in, and one of the biggest stirs was caused in the hotly contested CG commercial category in the Creative section.

Read on discover the winner and runners up in this category, and what makes them tick...

01. SSE Maya

The Mill took seven months to create a ground-breaking piece of work to showcase the actions of leading renewable energy company SSE. The team collaborated with adam&eveDDB and academy director Frederic Planchon to create the 90-second spot that depicts an entirely CG orangutan climbing up buildings and experiencing all that a big city has to offer, before going back to the forest to nurture its baby.

The dedication of the VFX team's work shines through. The Mill's Dan Moore said: "We looked through hours and hours of footage of orangutan to try and work out how they move, how they gesticulate and how they emote."

The team used reference from primate impersonators to create the photorealistic CG ape, which enabled the animators to capture the very essence of the creature. An extraordinary amount of work went into the character, from building an anatomically correct skeleton and developing a fully functional muscle system, to working on the simulation of the hair so that it would respond to gravity and wind. Each wrinkle was sculpted by hand, before compositing the orangutan onto live-action plates.

02. Game of War: Fire Age

This spot for Machine Zone's Game of War: Fire Age video game for iOS and Android, is a live-action interpretation of the game that includes a photo-real, fire-breathing hydra, a digital army, dazzling simulated effects and matte-painted environments.

"One of the biggest challenges was the schedule for completing such a large amount of VFX – a nail-biting 11 days from final edit to delivery," noted VFX supervisor Benjamin Walsh.

The tight turnaround didn't impede the quality of the visuals: "I'm particularly blown away by this piece as to what they were able to achieve in quality and production value, really delivering something that felt grandiose, sexy and appealing," says Allan McKay, Hollywood VFX and TD.

03. Honda Endless Road

Like all great VFX, this smooth-looking spot belies the hard work that has gone into making it. Directed by Gorgeous's Chris Palmer for McGarry Bowen, the film shows a Honda CR-V driving on an 'endless road' – it is truly hypnotic and slightly dizzying.

It was created using a three-dimensional Droste Effect (whereby a picture appears within itself, and so on), which meant that the Endless Road could go on forever and ever.

Find out more about all the winners and runners up of the CG Awards in the latest issue of 3D World – on sale now!