Pitch Perfect: Company Research

In order to gain inspiration for our own company and to find out who our competition was, I have researched a handful of 2D animation companies, both large and independent. I started my search by thinking of advertisements that were especially creative/narrative driven to accommodate for the interests of both Emma & Joe, and Ciara.


Adam&EveDDB
The first I thought of was the Christmas John Lewis advert "The Bear and The Hare", so I started my research there. The company that produced the animation is Adam&EveDDB and I soon found that they are not at all a small company, but in fact have around 200 employees.

They have worked for a large range of clients, the majority seemingly being for products but have done the odd piece for different charities. Though, it is not just animations they have produced for their clients. They have made illustrative ads for different clients and campaigns, and a lot of their work is also live action, so seemingly have a wide range of skills and capabilities.

Client List and Company Overview

Overall: The company doesn't seem to be focused in terms of media and their approach to briefs, but instead seem more inclined to produce advertisements. 

Martin Agency
I found out about Martin Agency from a featured ad I saw on one of my social medias about Oreos, and really liked the art style so wanted to find out more about who made it. I discovered that Martin Agency have produced many advertisements and illustration ads for Oreo before, but I just didn't realise who they were produced by.

Client List and Company Overview

Wonderfilled Oreo Advertisement

The company is again a very large one that employs over 500 people from around 27 different countries, and much like Adam&EveDDB they produce a variety of work that seems to lean more towards advertising, though they state that they have capabilities in strategic planning, digital work and data analytics.

Distant Future

An Animation company that specialises in 2D and 3D animation, producing work to ensure "audiences remember their experience". A large company that has produced work for the BBC, National Railway Museum, Twenty Twenty Films and other clients, ranging from logo animation to motion graphics and visual effects. 

Farnell Element 14 - Distant Future

Fettle
A small animation company based in Pennine Yorkshire, made up of three creatives that have a "passion for character animation, strong design and telling great stories". They have won a number of awards and produced work for clients such as Cbeebies and Citv.

Children of the Holocaust and DOG

Kilogramme

Founded in 2005, Kilogramme is an award winning animation design company based in Manchester. They focus on 2D and 3D animation and will "take you from initial concepts and ideas, right the way through to the finished product". 

Bitesize Logic Gates

Blue Zoo
Blue Zoo is an multi BAFTA winning animation production company that are based in London. They specialise in character animation, and produce work across all digital platforms.

Showreel 2016

Studio AKA
This independent studio is based in London as is known internationally for their "idiosyneratic and innovative work, expressed across an eclectic range of projects".

Sally's Story - NSPCC 

Jellyfish Pictures

A company that specialises in animation, CGI, motion graphics and VFX, with a team of more than 100 artists in their offices in Noho and Brixton. They provide a range of services from advertising to TV and film industries. 

Comic Relief

Golden Wolf

Golden Wolf is a "solution-focussed production company bases in London's Shoreditch".  

Vandroid - Graphic Novel Trailer

Here is just a small selection of companies and work that I like. I found when I was researching that generally the studios either specialise in a certain media or method, and apply this style to a range of different types of animation/briefs (for example, charity work, advertising, tv and film), or they have a particular client or output in mind but create the work in a variety of different ways. The latter was more common with larger studios, so I think we will be able to be successful by being open minded about the briefs and clients we take on as a company, yet being somewhat restricted by method. 

I also like these studios not just for the work that they produce, but because of how they presented themselves online. The way they introduced themselves was very professional yet friendly and inviting, especially Martin Agency. In their about me they say "We are creatives, UX planners and number crunchers. We are mustaches, fixed gear bikes and cardigans. But we are also Jeeps, top 40 lists and the occasional selfie. Our goals are not just about dollar signs or rewards for our shelf (though we like those, too). Our real goal is to help clients find and tap into new energy for their brands", and I like that they have been able to get across their values and goals as a company while keeping the character and 'funness' of the company and employees. I would very much like to encorparate this into our own company, especially as we are striving to be fun and narrative driven.