Coalition of the Willing: Simon Robson talks animation and crowd sourcing in advertising

Engine’s multi-award winning director and creative director Simon Robson (Knife Party) recently spoke at a showcase industry event on animation in advertising and the increasingly popular technique of crowd sourcing.

The event, hosted by Engine at Hoyts Cinema Paris saw Robson present his ideas and experiences to a theatre of creatives from the advertising, production and post production industries.

Click here to see more of Coalition of the Willing

The main thrust of Robson’s presentation was the effective use ofclever animation and crowd sourcing specifically relating to his uniqueanimated film Coalition of the Willing which he conceived, directed andproduced under his Knife Party moniker.

Robson (centre pic, in check shirt) said: “It’s always an honour to present to your peers and I amvery proud of Coalition of the Willing and its effect on the industryas a whole. The crowd tonight were a very diverse bunch all of whom hadinteresting questions about the different aspects of animation andcrowd sourcing used to make the film.”

Coalition of the Willing involved over twenty of the best animationstudios from all over the world preaching a pro-active environmentalmessage using crowd creativity. Coalition of the Willing also made uppart of 2010’s onedotzero festival, Soho Short Film Festival and OttawaFilm Festival programs and was recently nominated as one of the top 5films in the animation category at the Vimeo Awards.

Engine EP Adam Wells (top pic, at left) added: “It was a great night and a really good wayfor people in the industry to see what an innovative director andcreative director for animation, live action and design Simon reallyis. Simon has a truly unique style and vision and is not afraid to takerisks creatively in order to bring something to a project that otherssimply cannot. As a result of this evening’s showcase he is more indemand than ever.”