My Way

Rise of the Mythics

2024 Reel

For Us, Utang na Loob

Hunky Horseman

Japanese New Year

Animation Action Contest

I Love You, Colonel Sanders!

I Love You Colonel Sanders! A Finger Licking’ Good Dating Simulator, was developed at our Los Angeles studio and published to PC & Mac via the Steam store.

The announcement of the game “took the gaming community by storm,” as Paste Magazine put it, and the release proved to be even more successful.

Only a day after its release, the game had already garnered a large and diverse fanbase across the web, with hundreds of players recording their live performances of the game and some even dressing up as the Colonel himself.

The game has received 95% positive user reviews, with many calling it “the best game [they’ve] ever played,” as well as being highlighted by sevral online publications; Eater likened the graphics to “a highbrow shoji anime.”

If you haven’t played I Love You Colonel Sanders yet, the game is currently available for PC & Mac via Steam.

(Still) Slightly Exaggerated

Got Me Like

“I spent summers in high school working for our local Baskin-Robbins, so it was pretty surreal to once again work with this great brand. Bringing a fresh and new youthful voice to an iconic brand, we embraced all the joy and fun that comes with eating ice cream! The goal was to stand out and bring an edgier vibe than what the brand is traditionally known for. “

– Trevor Conrad, Director

Star-Lord ‘Zero to Hero’

Burger Vigilante

Summer Nights

Where I’m From

Directed by Marie Hyon and made in collaboration with Adobe and 72 & Sunny, “Where I’m From” looks at what it means when members of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community are asked the question, “Where are you from?” while distilling images the artists have made using Adobe.

The spot features eight different Adobe artists who share their personal stories and experience through their artwork: Rebecca Hsu, Nishat Akhtar, Hanna Lee Joshi, Meiko Arquillos, Jiaqi Wang, Shxpir Huang, Don Muna, and Shyama Golden. Psyop co-founder, Marie Hyon, directs the spot and serves as the “ninth artist,” fusing her award-winning creativity and renowned vision with her lived experience as a member of the AAPI community.

“People have stories that you can’t see on the surface, and so I hope ‘Where I’m From’ drives viewers to have empathy and awareness when interacting with people who are different from themselves,” said Hyon. “The artists featured in this project are just a small snapshot of the creative community hoping to inspire cultural change through their work, and I am thrilled to be able to help champion their stories.”

Fear

Naomi Osaka Capsule

Mur-o

Burna Boy

Mural

“Who hasn’t dreamed about graffitiing an entire city? Sending your spray painted creatures on a wild goose chase through the vertical expanse of a concrete jungle, that’s even more fun than duct-taping your roommate to the wall. We had a great time collaborating with Golden Wolf on the animation and even a better time filming in wonderful Buenos Aires. We even got to shoot with a fancy laser scanner system that we used to create a super detailed 3d map of the locations we shot it. Overall it was a wildly fantastic production. Now we just gotta refill our spray paint collection.”

– Todd Mueller & Kylie Matulick, Directors

“First of all, to get all the corny stuff out of the way, it’s been a real dream come true for myself and a lot of the Golden Wolf team to work on something like this for Coke. Having been hugely influenced by Happiness Factory and all the early Coke stuff from Psyop, it’s always been a client we wanted to get together with, so a big thanks to Todd, Kylie and the team for getting us on board!

What was particularly rewarding about the spot was working with T & K on defining the characters’ personalities and how their individual styles would affect how they move and act. For example, Jessica the cloud is a “throw up” so she’s messy and erratic, whereas Desmond the robot is a wheat paste poster, so he’s a bit slicker and more agile.

We loved being on board for the live action shoot. It was great to see the evolution from the original footage to the final result, with our 2D characters composited seamlessly into the live action. We’re so excited that they’re finally out in the world!”

-Ingi Erlingsson, 2D Animation Creative Director

PRESS

Ad Age: Cute Mural Creatures Escape Their Concrete Prisons In Search Of A Cold Coke – Brand Debuts Tale of Escaping the Heat During the Winter Olympics in South Korea

It’s Nice That: W+K Portland’s Charming New Spot For Coca-Cola Features Three Graffiti Characters

Laughing Squid: Thirsty Street Art Murals Shimmy Up City Buildings to Pursue Their Goal of a Refreshing Coca Cola

Wonderfilled Bedtime

Ninjago Legacy Shorts

A lone warrior arrives at the shores of a grim, desolate wasteland. He is determined to reach his destination, but first he must face the danger that lurks in the shadows…

Lego reached out to Sun Creature to produce a short for the 10-year anniversary of their Ninjago franchise. The mandate was clear: rethink the artistic direction of Ninjago and include a dragon! And so they did. The result is a cryptic and epic short, that not only presents a new and darker visual direction for the franchise, but also teases the existing fans and challenges the perception of the brand.

Stylistically Sun Creature wanted to draw inspiration from the cinematography of Kurosawa’s samurai films of the 60s. They wanted to keep it consistent throughout the film, but also allow themselves freedom to break the rules as the narrative progressed. They wanted to find a balance between big establishment shots with lots of details, contrasted with more simple backgrounds for action driven shots. In each shot it is either the background or the action that drives the narrative forward.

This project was created with a small, nimble and highly skilled team and was directed by a good friend of the house, Ben Marsaud.

‘Sabah’ Teaser Trailer

A Coke is a Coke

“As millions of families, friends and rival fans huddle around screens big and small for the Big Game kickoff, Coca-Cola will remind them that togetherness – and differences – are beautiful.”

Learn more at the Official Coca-Cola Website

Nacho Fries

Network Idents

Apple Whiskey

Anthem

Shredder’s Revenge

Summertime

Be Free

Advent Calendar

FLEE Trailer

Johnnie Blonde

National Institute of Yerba Mate

INTERACTIVE STORYTELLING + GAMING

Lockdown orders are being lifted. Vaccines are being distributed. The day we’ve been waiting for is nearly here: our re-emergence!

Every day, more people around the world are stepping out of their homes, back into the world and now it’s your turn. Like a baby fawn, eyes blinking in the morning sunlight, legs wobbling under the weight of your quarantine 15, you must find your footing once again as you set out into the brand new (but actually old) world.

This open-world adventure filled with fun characters and challenging mini-games gives you the experience of what it’s like to re-enter the world after a year-long stay inside.

We Got The Meats

Butter Royale

Born This Way

More than the animated hero piece for LUX’s #IStandWithCaster campaign, Born This Way is a collective statement on how one’s craft can transmit deep emotions and generate empathy towards those fighting the odds, challenging the establishment in the name of equality, and rising above through sheer tenacity.

Produced with their sister company, Final Frontier, and created with agency Wunderman Thompson Singapore, Le Cube presents this cel-animated, action-packed, emotional piece that represents what South African Olympic gold medallist Caster Semenya stands for — fighting for your place in the world, no matter who you are.

Plumeria

Max Pt. 2

The Chase

CRCR lathers up a flurry of anime-inspired action/comedy in this Head & Shoulders spot animated by WIZZ in Paris through agency Forsman & Bodenfors Singapore for the Japanese market.

“From the get go this was a great client brief. The agency / client deck we received already had so much thought put into it. The creative team had spent so much time building the main character, his back story and the world in which he would exist and evolve. It’s rare to get a brief that makes you want to immediately jump on it and win the project.“

“For us the challenge of pushing CRCR’s 2D world that bit further and collaborating with our great partners Red Knuckles to build these very realistic backgrounds, and bringing these 2 worlds together was something that we’d been wanting to do for some time and the H & S brief lent itself perfectly to this.”

-Amanda Stubbs, EP

“The main challenge was to create a look and feel that was 2.5 D – somewhere where we mixed 2D animation with elements that were in 3D and very realistic backgrounds. The intense pace was also quite challenging to keep up over the 75 seconds for The Chase.“

-Amanda Stubbs, EP

Thinking of You

Igor + Valentine partnered with friends at Hudson Rouge to create this animated spot for Lincoln, featuring the iconic voice of Matthew McConaughey. It was a real privilege to do something a bit different for this brand, which has historically leaned on live action.

“We always try a few different things as we get into the design of a project. Some things don’t end up working because there is too much color or we need to simplify and let the moment breathe. But – they are always fun to look back on.”

-Igor + Valentine, Directors

The Fly

This 60-second spot is part of a larger campaign by the state of North Carolina — Count On Me NC — that calls on business and individuals to pledge to join the fight agains Covid-19, by preventing the spread of the virus in simple ways – washing hands / keeping distance / wearing a mask.

CountOnMeNC.org for more on the campaign.

Together

Art brings us together Community brings us together Collaboration brings us together Imagination brings together Artists bring us together

This project was a collaboration between Igor + Valentine and Young Arts to create a film that explores the idea of togetherness while promoting art within the film for purchase to raise money for YoungArts. With a series of 18 bird designs created by a mixture of Young Arts alumni, mentors, and established artists, Igor + Valentine teamed up with the folks at CALLEN to tell a story of a few hero birds bringing eggs to a cage to hatch and reveal different artists’ designs. The birds come together in a nest to sing and dance, finally leaving the cave to fly together around the sun.

The film’s overarching message of togetherness is one that felt vital, and more valuable now than ever. Unable to connect physically with other people as we normally would, Igor and Valentine decided to explore a deeper element of togetherness that celebrates the beauty of our differences and the coming together of people across race, gender, religion and all other things that divide us. What they achieved is a film that underscores powerful messages of solidarity and interdependence.

“We tried to subtly infuse this film with that larger idea… the value of coming together, and how beautiful that can be, not in spite of, but because of, our differences.”

-Igor + Valentine, Directors

With the end goal of the film being to sell individual frames from the animation to raise money for Young Arts, Igor + Valentine had to approach animation differently, as not every moment of action works well as an isolated still frame. As a result, they had to be especially strategic about their compositions, trying to minimize the amount of in-between moments and frame as many of the birds in a scene that could work as a printed still.

The biggest challenge, however, was figuring out a way to bring together 18 different styles of birds, created using various techniques, into one unified film with a cohesive visual language. Drawing inspiration from author/illustrator Jon Klassen, known for creating environments that are minimal yet still full of depth, Igor + Valentine made the birds stand out against their backdrops, ensuring they were highlighted in each frame. They then introduced more collage and mixed media techniques as the glue that melded the different styles of birds together into one cohesive look, while still maintaining each artist’s unique design through the birds’ different environments.

“All of these birds coming together, despite all looking very different, is a celebration that we hope resonates”

-Igor + Valentine, Directors

The Suitcase

It’s In Our Spirit

“We wanted to create a call to action, to break out of our lockdown screen obsessions and take a breath, a whiff, a step into reality to look around and appreciate the real world and real people around us.”

Dirk Nowitzki: The Maverick

As Dirk Nowitzki’s career comes to a close, W+K Amsterdam and Nike approached Wizz’s CRCR to retell the incredible story of his career in the legendary form it deserves. After 21 years in the NBA, Dirk has changed the game forever. He is the league’s highest-scoring European, the first big man to shoot threes and the original stretch four – in short, a legend. So the team decided to tell his story the way epic legends have been told for thousands of years: with a book.

To spread the story even further, they turned the book into an online film, transforming the illustrations into moving animations, and getting one of Dirk’s best friends – NBA legend Steve Nash – to narrate it.

Grandma’s Cats (Are Trying to Kill Her)

Castle Glu Sorcerer’s Arena

Camp W

Camp W is a story-rich visual adventure game about friendship, mystery, and (not) fitting in.

Camp W puts you in the role of a young Witch experiencing their first ever summer away from home at sleepaway camp. But there’s a twist! (Isn’t there always?) Though you’re from the Witching Realm, where magic is commonplace, you’ll be enrolling at a summer camp for Humans who have long since forgotten that Witchcraft exists. While summering in the Human Realm, you’ll have to conceal your identity and make sure not to get caught practicing your craft. Make friends, cast spells, and uncover secrets during your first ever summer away from home.

Doodle Monster

Climate Change

Same But Different

Dive Into Anything

SOS

Chuck Taylor II

Doomsayers

Spiderman ID

Care

At the start of April 2020, we were tasked by the creative team at Sedona in collaboration with Che Proximity, to produce an animated story that depicts the unique struggles of people working during this difficult time, specifically young moms. With the goal of shining a light on these unsung heroes, Psyop developed a heartwarming story that captures the intimacy and connection between loved ones that are forced to be apart during these trying times.

The story follows Esme, a nurturing mother, a caregiver, someone that provides for the community. As an essential worker at a market and a new mother, this time is particularly difficult for Esme as she struggles to balance work and life. As her workday unfolds, a pattern and rhythm is developed that highlights the challenging nature of her repetitive and physically demanding job. Esme stocks and restocks the shelves at the market until she is able to steal a moment of privacy in the intimate confines of the storeroom where WhatsApp allows her to connect with her family and be with them.

“We wanted to craft a story that conveyed the intensity of the moment, and the deep importance of feeling connected to loved ones in these times which are often so isolating. It was important to me that the animation be nuanced, reflecting the stillness of our world and the uncanny tension all around us. It was refreshing to see a brief that spoke to the heart of the moment. How people who are otherwise often overlooked in our society have become our heroes.” -Eve Strickman, Executive Producer

The 2D animation and cinematographic style of this piece were very purposefully chosen with the intention of creating a sense of realism similar to live action films. The delicate quality and fine lines of the 2D style perfectly capture the fragility of the world at this moment in time, while the sparing use of camera movement emphasizes the quiet stillness that everyone is feeling around them.

The project’s quick turnaround time combined with having to navigate newfound obstacles that come with working from home were the biggest challenges faced while making this project. The restrictions of Covid, however, allowed for a newly effective working relationship to develop between the studio, agency and client that was much more collaborative and communicative. And despite the time crunch (the project was pitched in only one day over Memorial Day weekend), the team was able to churn out an incredibly powerful piece that speaks to this unique and unparalleled moment in history where time with loved ones has become both precious and uncertain.

“We seek space to console one another in these isolated difficult times. WhatsApp provides us with moments of intimate private connection with our friends and family. Our work, our families, our lives have changed in ways we never would have imagined, and being able to connect one on one, quickly and easily makes navigating these changes a little easier.” – Marie Hyon, Director

The Path, An Ionian Myth: Spirit Blossom 2020 Trailer

On the journey to his afterlife, a hero is lured off his path by evil spirits. Soon a series of events unfold, sure to leave you on the edge of your seat.

In close collaboration with Riot Games, Sun Creature directed and created this three-act short story full of mythical references, unpredictability, drama and of course the mandatory heart-pounding action scenes.

ACT I
Our hero wakes up on a shore confused and scared. As a fox guides him through serene and beautiful nature, we begin to sense an eerie and ominous presence. The world reveals its dark and dangerous sides, as an evil spirit attempts to lure the hero off his path.

ACT II
Our hero steps off his path and is surrounded by darkness immediately. The horrors of his death are revealed to him as the demon feeds on his despair and anger, awaiting the perfect moment to strike.

ACT III
As the two are confronted, darkness dissipates. They are trapped in the hero’s soul, frozen in time. The demon appears out of a sea of anger. The fight is epic and aggressive and the outcome will surprise you.

This project got us excited right from the get-go. The folktale storyworld and the anime style of animation are both near to our hearts, so we didn’t spare any effort making this film as epic as we possibly could.

In close collaboration with Riot Games, Sun Creature directed and created this three-act short story full of mythical references, power, unpredictability, drama and of course the mandatory heart-pounding action scenes.

The three acts each have their own visual expression, mimicking the hero’s emotional state as the narrative progresses.

The visual style is cinematic and inspired by East Asian art and culture, adding history, myth and lore, and creating an array of truly captivating scenarios resembling the feeling of walking through an ancient fable.

We were greatly inspired by anime references known for mixing moments of stillness and contemplation with extreme movement to create contrast and shifts in intensity, giving the film its spectacular and versatile look and feel.

Gogol Bordello

Series Trailer

Rainbow Six Siege

Be Mine Tonight

Dot: Alive Inside

Augmented Reality

ReCore E3 Trailer

Adidas x Bape

As a sports buff, I had the extraordinary pleasure of unveiling Adidas’ latest football inspired collaboration with legendary streetwear brand Bape for Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta. Spearheaded by the wonderful folks at Kamp Grizzly, we created a Saturday morning inspired animated series to help launch the new gear. The three part series is narrated by non other than Atlanta native Quavo and features a plethora of my favorite NFL athletes. With this many folks involved, the project was a true collaboration all the way around.

140 Hours Inbound

There is Mambo! There are Pink Flamingos, and there’s a taste of all you can do in 140 hours in Miami.

Hyatt’s The Confidante Hotel created a Twitter competition where people would describe their best way to spend 140 hours in Miami. Our job was to give life to the best tweet.

Drink Right, F*ck Right

The new campaign for responsible drinking from Brazilian beer SKOL (AB-Inbev) brings a edge and very realistic concept: “Drink Right, F*ck Right”.

To get the public’s attention and build a dialogue, Wieden+Kennedy São Paulo had an insight on a subject that has never previously been mentioned in campaigns: sex. Hard-partying types with a harder fact – binge drinking and alcohol abuse in general leads to underwhelming sexual performance.

We created a non-stop animation with so many movements and elements to recreate the feeling of trying – and usually failing – to remember a crazy drunken night. There are more elements and movements than it’s possible to handle, not least in bed.

25 Years

Cartoon Network has always been an inspiration for kids everywhere.
So much so, that even many grown-ups who work in animation do it exactly because of how much they loved Cartoon’s creations when they were young.

That’s why it was such a gigantic honor for us at Le Cube, after we too were not so long ago just kids sitting in front of the TV amazed by what we saw, to create the channel’s 25th-anniversary celebration film.

Senna, In the Heart of Brazil

If you want to take a peep into our souls in one of our projects, this is it. This is the kind of project for which Le Cube exists.

Senna is more than a Formula 1 racer; for Brazilians, he is a hero, an icon of overcoming hardship, stubbornness and good character. Sadly to say, he died young, in a race in 1994. But his legacy lives on. Part of this is thanks to the Senna family who opened an NGO called “Instituto Ayrton Senna”; their mission is to help in the education of Brazilian children and keep the image of Ayrton Senna alive.

For the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, the “Instituto Ayrton Senna”, together with JWT and us (Le Cube), have prepared a beautiful message from Senna to all the Brazilian Olympic athletes, pointing out the importance of winning at home. Ayrton Senna lost eight times before winning the Brazilian GP, and when he did, it was with a lot of effort. Still, he faced it unflinchingly.

Take a look at what is, perhaps, our masterpiece. And, always remember to do your best and put all you have to accomplish what you want, just like Senna.

First Blood

RGA Shanghai’s latest collaboration with Final Frontier and Le Cube is a berserk animation for Boxing Cat Brewery’s new Amber Lager, a theme-song-cum-opening-credits action film about a superhero cat boxer intent on ridding China’s cities of mundane liquor, one haymaker at a time.

Back to the Stars

We’re proud to share our latest project made for China with our homies from Final Frontier – a short film for Ritz-Carlton, Sanya made with Saatchi & Saatchi, telling the real story of hotel guest Soviet Cosmonaut Vladimir Kovalenok. It’s a touching tale of love, loss, and soul-searching.

In Your Hands

Followfood isn’t just another sustainable food brand; they are a real movement for raising awareness in consumer habits around the world. In this PSA, we teamed up with Tank Tank Hamburg to raise the awareness that food consumption habits matter and change our planet for good or for evil.

For “In Your Hands” film, we developed an art showing a contrast between the sad planet made by bad decisions and the hopeful world in humankind when changing consumption habits for sustainable choices. It was a challenge to don’t end up showing cliche portraits of waste and animal cruelty since they are always so powerful. Who follows Le Cube’s work knows our obsession with elegant designs and fluid movements, so for this animation, we work hard in finding a way to generate bad feelings portraying a sad world but with distinctive designs, with uniqueness and aesthetic solidity. After so many years doing animation, we know clearly that our way to impact the world with powerful and meaningful messages is to show unique designs that transmit Le Cube’s soul and heart.
We hope by watching this film, you give a second thought on the next time you do your groceries, thinking that your choices impact the whole world.

Artifishal

La Mer

“In the spirit of Albert Einstein, we wanted to create a film that will challenge our imagination. We love the story of Dr. Max Huber and the myth behind his journey to find the cure to heal his burnt skin. We believe the myth is more powerful than the reality. Our film focuses on the poetic legendary tale rather than the reality and its facts. Besides, reality leaves nothing to the imagination. For the first La Mer film, we focused on introducing Dr. Max Huber and telling his story. For the follow up film, we focus mainly on the fascination of exploring the unknown. Curiosity is the key to staying young. And the wonders of nature inspire the curious ones to seek out its secrets, and question what is beyond or beneath the surface. La Mer Part 2 is inspired by light and the transforming effect it has to surfaces. This element of change is magical to us, from the spectacular colorful displays of a sunrise, to the northern lights, to the illumination of light on the surface of water or ice and even beyond the surface. Inspired by Dr. Max Huber, we will tell a story of one traveler who represents us all.”
-Marie Hyon, Director
Marie Hyon
Director

-ALBERT EINSTEIN

“I AM ENOUGH OF AN ARTIST TO DRAW FREELY UPON MY IMAGINATION. IMAGINATION IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN KNOWLEDGE. KNOWLEDGE IS LIMITED. IMAGINATION ENCIRCLES THE WORLD.”