Press Release

Motorola’s “PEBL” communicates its message subtly but with the look and feel of an nature film. The message, weaved through the raw but breathtaking cinematic imagery, is that Motorola’s new PEBL phone is the product of natural design ‘ simple and perfect. With nearly every moment created through the use of photoreal, computer-generated graphics, the spot is a trip through the ages-a time lapse through thousands of years of evolution.
Following up on the successful launch of the RAZR phone, Motorola was in a position to capitalize on the anticipatory buzz surrounding the phone manufacturer’s next design. Motorola’s agency, 180 Communications, Amsterdam, recognized that the introductory spot needed to convey the genius behind the PEBL’s design and create a buzz worthy of “the next big thing.” Executing such a spot was left to Venice, Calif. digital production studio Digital Domain and well-known feature film and spot director David Fincher, via bicoastal international Anonymous Content.
The collaboration between Digital Domain and Fincher has yielded numerous striking and award-winning commercials such as “Nike Gamebreakers,” Hewlett Packard’s “Constant Change” and Heineken’s “Beer Run”-spots genuinely unlike anything that came before them. “PEBL” would be no exception.
“PEBL” opens on a meteorite spinning in zero gravity and hurtling through the earth’s atmosphere. Down on the planet surface, the burning rock streaks out of the sky and pounds into the ground, leaving a ball of dust and smoke in the air. In its resting place, the elements gradually erode the meteorite. Rain, wind, and the hot sun take their toll shrinking and softening the rock’s surface. Eventually, the ground beneath it gives way. The meteorite tumbles into a valley where, over time, a glacier encases it in ice and
pushes it into the ocean.
“We worked closely with David [Fincher] to give the spot a documentary feel. The goal was to convince the viewer that there were filmmakers with tripods and cameras out on the edge of a glacier documenting the evolution of the phone,” said Ed Ulbrich, Digital Domain’s Senior VP, General Manager. “Our artists explored the details of this kind of look to give every shot its own filmic treatment and a stock footage feel.”
Ages pass and the dark grey rock is smoothed and rounded as the tide carries it to and fro, eventually pushing it into shallower waters…. The final shot depicts the new Motorola PEBL lying on the shore among thousands of soft, rounded, grey rocks. A pair of bare feet step to the scene and a hand reaches down for the PEBL. A soft whisper is heard before the commercial fades to black, “Hello Moto.”
“'The PEBL’s design is simple and elegant,” added Ulbrich, “and the advertising concept behind the PEBL emphasizes the same benefits. Because the concept was so good and the directorial talent was at the highest level, we felt we had an opportunity to help create something very special.”
Credits
Agency: 180 Communications
Creative Director: Adam Chasnow

Art Director: Antero Jokinen

Copy Writer: Niklas Lilja

Senior Producer: Tony Stearns
Production Company: Anonymous Content
Director: David Fincher

Executive Producer: Dave Morrison

Head of Production: Jeff Baron

Producer: Robin Buxton

Visual Effects and Animation: Digital Domain
SVP / Executive Producer: Ed Ulbrich

Head of Production: Michael Pardee

VFX Producer: Lisa Beroud

Digital Production Manager: Chris House

VFX Supervisor: Eric Barba

CG Supervisor: Jay Barton

Digital Artists: Tom Allen. Gordon Chapman. John Cooper, Jim Gaczkowski, Cody Harrington, Brad Herman, Richard Morton, Terry Naas, Chris Yang, Youngsam Suh

Lead Compositor: Jonny Hicks

Matte Paint Artists: Joseph Farrell, Marc Perrera, Daniel Thron
Nuke Compositors: Krista Benson, Janelle Croshaw, Greg Teegarden

Pre-Vis Artist: Chris DeSantis
Editorial: Rock Paper Scissors
Editor: Angus Wall

Producer: Scott Friske
Sound Design: MIT Out Sound
Sound Designer: Ren Klyce

Sound Design Producer: Misa Kageyama