A smart mix of humor and urgency from London’s Blue Zoo Animation and GOOD Agency makes an entertaining and effective case for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), the UK’s largest nature conservation charity.

Blue Zoo director Dane Winn: “Our goal was to create an emotional connection with the audience; making them laugh, reflect, and act. The charismatic characters we’ve introduced carry the weight of their message with a hopeful note, encouraging viewers to support the RSPB’s mission.

“The four films aim for a tactile, miniature set look inspired by the works of Wes Anderson, an influence that also extended into the cinematography. The characters were designed for efficient modeling, rigging, and precise performance without over-complicating the assets.
 

“Our goal was to create an emotional connection with the audience; making them laugh, reflect, and act.”

 
This project marked our first use of Blender rigging by our in-house team as we continue integrating Blender into our pipeline leveraging its geometry nodes system to create the intricate groom for all characters and environments. We optimized our workflow by designing everything to frame, creating fast 3D blockouts of the scenes followed by paint-over designs that the CG team closely matched.

“We utilized various techniques to achieve specific effects. For example, the plastic bag hitting the hedgehog combined a cloth simulation with shape keys for the comedic nose poke effect. Unable to simulate the rubbish falling timing perfectly, we keyframed each piece manually. The sewage splash involved a Blender liquid simulation with additional dripping geometry for the animation resolve.”
 
 

 
Client: RSPB

Agency: GOOD Agency London
ECD: Bryn Attewell
Copywriter: Pav Rao

Production: Blue Zoo Animation
Director: Dane Winn
CD: Grant Berry, Damian Hook, Tom Box
Art Director: Grant Berry
Producer: Chantal Baldwin, Rachael Exton
CG Supervisor: Arthur Tibbett
Creative Director: Grant Berry, Tom Box & Damian Hook
Head of Production: Lizzie Hicks
Storyboard: Joe Kinch
Designer: Grant Berry & Joe Kinch
Assets: Sophie Jameson, Lisa Mae Evans, Cassandra Haulot
Animator: Dane Winn, Sarah Tribe
Rigger: Leo Blackmur, Vasil Shotarov, Matt Jenkins, Ana Maria Savastre, Rhulani Rengane
Lighter/Compositor: Robin Danielsson, Jack McEntire