Ken Stuart is chief technology officer for EK3 a London ON based media technology company and maker of the N-Box.

Michael Churchill is executive producer for The Studio Upstairs, an animation, design and visual effects company located in Toronto.

With less than a few thousand sets across the country and television still considered just a fad, the first animated television commercial was broadcast. It was September 1941 when the Botany Lamb first danced its way across television screens promoting Botany Mills ties and forecasting the weather. With this medium literally starting with animation it should be no surprise that animated commercials were an early staple of television broadcasting.

Much has changed, however. Thanks to audience fragmentation in a 500-channel universe and the introduction of the set-top box and PVRs (sometimes referred to as commercial killers), advertisers are beginning to second-guess the effectiveness of television. One solution is to look at using alternative methods to reach the consumer.

So, what is the future of the animated commercial?

Welcome to the world of narrowcasting, a world in which content is king. Narrowcasting, unlike television, is viewed out of home, usually at a relevant point of contact with the consumer.

With narrowcasting’s ever-growing popularity, animation may have found a new market niche. Here’s why.

Narrowcasting, as opposed to broadcasting, is, as the prefix suggests, a narrowly focused mix of media created for a specific viewer (or set of viewers). In theory it means that you receive different media content than your neighbor. One example of this would be video billboard displays that are replacing the traditional posters found in public washrooms.

It’s every guy’s dream, a TV in the bathroom. It’s also a good example of how many advertisers who traditionally depend on static-paper media can now take their message to consumers digitally. And it is a logical choice for animation and motion graphics. Such digital displays sense when a viewer approaches and begin to play a spot in DVD-quality audio and video. Many of the interested advertisers to date have been alcohol and tobacco companies because of imposed advertising limitations.

One example of how animation is an effective solution for this medium is a current campaign being run by Brown and Williamson through BatesUSA for Kool cigarettes. The spot, entitled ‘Pulse,’ is being aired in the U.S. on N-Boxes, thin-profile video units created by London, ON-based technology company EK3 to mimic posters.

The 30-second spot, produced by Studio Upstairs, literally animates Kool’s print ad. It takes the viewer through a high-energy, high-flying, pulsating trip complete with product, dry ice and pyrotechnic effects in an infinitely large, abstract nightclub environment.

The commercial was created entirely using animated CGI and designed to reflect the current print campaign that is targeted at male nightclub and rave patrons. Strategically placed over hand dryers and urinals, the technology senses when someone approaches the unit and begins to play the spot. Talk about a captive audience. No channel surfing going on here. This is one example of how narrowcasting and the use of animation proved effective in reaching this elusive demographic.

But why animation and not live action?

In the early days of the television commercial with its eye-catching appeal, relatively low cost and deep talent pool, animation was a preferred way to advertise. The same holds true today for the narrowcast medium. With software and hardware becoming more advanced and less expensive and a steadily increasing work force of talent entering the industry, animation for the narrowcast medium is a logical choice.

To keep the medium fresh and up to date content needs to be rejuvenated – a lot of content. This likely won’t mean that 10 times as many live-action commercials will be shot. That is simply too expensive. Instead, animation and motion graphics will be used extensively as a cost-effective means for producing the content needed.

Animation and the tools that assist in creating animation have matured to a point where it is cost effective to supply these media with new content and allow the creative talent a new place in which to display their artistry.

-www.ek3.com

-www.thestudioupstairs.com