ESA || Growthbusters
Our studio was commissioned by the European Space Agency to create a series of
testimonial videos called Growthbusters, which focused on TCarta and AstroCast: two
companies that have received ESA funding and gone on to display industry-transforming
innovation and success.
The objective of this series was to convince national donors and delegates to continue
funding the Agency, and to encourage small businesses to apply for the grant. We
achieved this by highlighting the success stories of these ESA-funded companies in wildly
different sectors, ensuring that our choices both engaged our viewership and impressed
on them the enormous possibilities of space technology.
The main challenge we faced was presenting highly technical data in a visually engaging
way. For example, TCarta uses detailed metrics and electromagnetic satellite data to
measure the depth of the ocean floor. Making this information palatable to the layman,
especially without a proper script or established tone of voice, required us to devise a
creative strategy from our own research and insights. We visually simplified the message,
even adding a dash of humour by including a man on a boat sending a ruler to the bottom
of the ocean. We used this simple imagery to provide a contrast with complex satellite
networks, incrementally building upon an initially very simple central idea.
Our design approach involved using strong and colourful branding logos and guidelines to
visualise diverse space-based services and bring potentially dry concepts to life. The
themes of the video didn’t call for much character creation, but we nevertheless turned
what could have been a fairly unimaginative animation into something both inspiring and
easily comprehensible.
This project was a great opportunity for us to hop onto an immensely impactful project that
pushes the limits of human technological achievement. After all, our studio is all about
making the future happen, today.
Get in touch if animation is the right fit for your next project.
Credits:
Account Manager - Natasha Wheatley
Production - Natasha Wheatley, Camilla Zucchi
Art Director - Thomas Gutteridge
Animation Director - Thomas Gutteridge
Designer - Mathilda Holmqvist
Animators - Nick Edmondson, Rob Scott, Joao Vasco Leal
Copywriters - Natasha Wheatley, Sophie Newstead
