Nerf Super Soaker
This has been one of the most fun and fast-paced projects I've worked on to date.
The production team (Visual Nomad), ad agency (Uproar!) and client (Hasbro) were all wonderful, warm and down to earth people. I love when the people you work for not only mesh well creatively and there's a mutual respect on set but they're also fun people you'd be down to surf or eat dinner with.
It was so much fun waking up on the Santa Monica beach and driving to the Valley to body paint & hang with kids and Super Soakers in a gorgeous sunny park! Seriously- best gig EVER!!! ;) We painted all the kids and 2-3 sets of clothes for each of them. I really do have a dream job and I realized it on this project.
I learned a lot and was really thankful for my talented body paint assistants- Melissa Hoffman, Michael Rosner and Candace Simmons i.e. "Wenchi"
CREDITS: Video Created by Visual Nomad, courtesy of HASBRO
Kevin Neilson Nerf/Uproar
Nerf is company take makes toy weapons, like squirt guns, and foam weaponry. The target demographic for this project was 10-14 year old boys.
Problem:
How kids play with the supersoaker. To be inspired to do more than just even the typical "blasting." They wanted to show a different interpretation on strategy; a unique play experience with their product and a new reason to find their brand fun. They needed top minds for a creative concept. When playing, that kids could, not just hide, but literally camouflage into their environment. The sneaky kids have the advantage over the other team.
They wanted to also portray the performance of water blasting and not just a regular squirt gun.
It doesn't tie into body painting in all senses, especially since it was kids, but since it is a competitive category with similar toys, they wanted to stand out.
Solution:
To show kids that super soakers blast more water. As the blast each other, even by the end of the commercial, some of the camouflage is washed off, which shows the power. Body painting served as a vehicle to demonstrate the awesome capabilities of the super soaker blaster. Kids don't paint themselves to this degree, technically they could, but it is a way to inspire them.
They wanted to show the kids that Nerf is better than the knock off brands. Not using a super soaker only gets you wet, not soaked. Nothing soaks like a super soaker.
The media was for a national commercial. 2 15 second spots and 1 30 second.
Results:
It is hard to make a good judgment on sales, because any commercial like this also drives sales of other water blasters. When super soaker advertises, other companies get a lift for it and they know it.
Testimonial:
The biggest fear was if they could get it all done in one take. Trina painted the clothes a day before the shoot and managed all of her time well. They were also at the mercy of daylight. At some points, since he does have a fine arts background he was tempted to help out, but didn't want to step on any toes.
His favorite part: To see all of the kids get a kick out of it. He felt like it motivated teens and tweens to get excited for the product. It was, hands down, such a creative, unique project. You would never think bodypainting and squirt guns would ever cross paths. It was very worth while. Enjoyed watching the director work with Trina and how she managed her team. Watching chaos turn to goodness and all work out.
To recommend to friend: Let Trina be a part of the creative process and put her fingerprint on it. It will make it more cohesive. And always ask Trina about her stories on past experiences painting!