Write a short summary of what happens in the film.

In this world, thought bubbles are physical objects. And they are annoying. Floating above your head, distracting. They are in the way, clouding your mind, preoccupying you, blinding you. In this world, those ideas are almost a curse. But there’s a cure. Set them free. Start making them. Put them into a prototype with ProtoPie. Our film tells the story of Dave, a designer in San Francisco, who wakes up with a bright new idea. Oh no. Not again. He tries to get it off his mind, but it’s one of those good ones that just won’t let you go. We see his journey of frustration and excitement trying to deal with an idea stuck in his head – and we see his thrill when he finally embraces it and rushes off to his design studio where he transform it into a prototype and share it with his colleagues.

Cultural / Context information for the jury

For developed this film for universal appeal to designers around the world, but with a particular focus on the North American design community. The setting, personalities, characters and behaviors were all inspired by real places and real people in San Francisco.

Tell the jury about the animation used and summarise any relevant challenges or techniques.

Designers don’t want to see another ad. So we worked diligently to not make one. We approached this film with the same narrative and design focus of an animated short. We employed the world-class storytellers and animators at Psyop to help craft the narrative and build a visual style that is simultaneously relatable and stunningly beautiful. Every character design took cues from different personalities in the Bay Area design community, and every detail, down to the shoes on characters’ feet and the objects on their desks were inspired by real photography captured at design offices in San Francisco. With remote teams working in the midst of COVID-19, we collaborated across Los Angeles, Seoul, Amsterdam, Toronto, Paris and New York to ensure the best possible work uncompromised by the pandemic – we even organized a socially distanced orchestra to record the score.