Not To Scale New York Captures A ‘Spark of Science’

It’s always fascinating to hear stories from genuinely exceptional people. For their ‘Spark of Science’ series, print and online magazine Nautilus has invited scientists to share the inspiration behind their career paths. The latest installment tells the story of France A. Córdova, the director of the National Science Foundation of the United States, and to visualise the tale, Nautilus asked Not To Scale New York and Director Colin Hesterly to create an eye-catching animation.

We were enraptured by the gorgeous journey through cosmic purples, pinks and blues, so sat down with Colin, Not To Scale NY Exec Producer Eve Strickman and company founder Dan O’Rourke to chat about the inception of the project, the challenges of interpreting another’s words and how the company’s New York base is going.

How did you get involved in the project?

Eve - We were approached by Nautilus because they had been doing some animated videos and really wanted to up the quality. I worked with Len Small at Nautilus to figure out which of our directors would be the best fit for this particular story and the style of animation that they had in mind, and Colin was clearly the man for the job.

How much of the interview were you given to visualise? Did you get to pick a certain section or was this the focus Nautilus gave to you?

Eve - We were provided with the edited interview from Nautilus.

How do you go about designing the initial aesthetics? What influenced the style of the piece?

Colin - When approaching the Nautilus film, we were immediately drawn to the strong, bold imagery of the 1950's and 60's. There's something about the strength and unknown future found in that era that lends itself well to creating dramatic scenery.

How do you decide on how literally to interpret the interview? Are there elements that you feel are too on ‘on the nose’ and have to scale back, or imagery that’s too vague?

Colin - From the get-go, we wanted to open this story up to as many people as possible, and by creating visuals that were less focused on specific details, we were able to encapsulate the experience and create a story that anyone can identify with. Honestly, most people won't walk through the doors of Caltech, but we can all relate to that feeling of walking into the unknown, so why not strip the details and leave the rest up to the viewer's imagination?

When you’re designing the moments in the film, are you conscious on how they will flow into each other? How long does designing the transitions take?

Colin - We are always looking at a film from every angle. Will the colors from this shot match and flow into the next? Should we stay wide or cut in for a closeup? Does this sequence require an elaborate transition or would a simple cut suffice? In the end, it's all about creating a dramatic presentation.

The transitions are pretty straight forward regarding planning. It all comes down to closing your eyes and imagining how to stitch together a bunch of funky assets that shouldn't exist in the same shots, ha. But honestly, it takes no longer than any other part of the design process.

How was the animation process? Was there much back-and-forth with Nautilus?

Colin - The process of working with Nautilus was extremely liberating; we presented a rough storyboard in the very beginning of the project, they approved it within the same day, and we started animation the next. There were a few check-ins along the way, but never any huge notes. It was mostly excitement and digital hi-fives.

As for the actual animation pipeline, we kept it pretty simple and straight-forward. It was just a couple of insanely talented character animators and myself putting the entire film together.

We understand it was a tight deadline. What shortcuts can be taken to hit it but maintain quality?

Colin - To meet the deadline, we realized that not every shot could be character driven. So we prioritized which shots needed the most love and mixed in some more atmospheric, less complicated shots to fill the film out.

Did you speak to France much about the aesthetics? What was her reaction to the finished film?

Colin - I have not spoken with France, but it would be interesting to hear what she thinks.

What’s up next for you?

Colin - Honestly, I am just hustling at the moment; working with Not To Scale on various project briefs, an illustration series, and developing an animated series for kids.

We’ve been following the output of Not To Scale for years now. What was the reason to expand into New York?

Dan - Well, of course, it is a huge English-speaking market producing a lot of great commercial film work, in addition, a large part of our roster already lived in the United States, so it made business sense for us to grow Not To Scale into America. New York is close enough in proximity and time zones, to allow our American directors to have a studio to work from when they are working with European clients and vice versa for our London based Directors, whilst our London management and finance team can also easily offer support and assistance. New York is, of course, a hub for some of the best work being produced in the States and the diversity and strength of the freelance talent pool, keeps our creative stock high. 

What makes Not To Scale a distinctive company? 

Dan - There’s such breadth, strength and depth on the Not To Scale roster. Our studio model has never been about supporting that one “Superstar” director and this, in turn, has forced us to spot and develop long-term commercial careers across our roster, for many emerging and now established directors.

Add to this offering the strength and experience of our production staff, and our ability to finish picture with our own post facilities in Amsterdam, London and New York plus the cultural influence of Directors living in France, Spain, Germany, UK, South America, and both coasts of the States and it’s a unique blend and no surprise that we have been able to grow in a market where some competitors have been forced to contract.

….and what was the gap in the American market you hope to fill?

Dan - To use an analogy that will chime in the States, America doesn’t ever need another coffee shop, but there’s always going to be room for one that does it better than the next guy, one that offers a better service and bean than most. The bad coffee shops will close or improve and so Not To Scale being over there, is better for the health of the market and better for the customers.

How does working with American clients differ from European?

Dan - There are more similarities than differences, but yes, sometimes the messaging or humour is more direct, or a touch more saccharine.  We have adapted to this by ensuring we have American directors to answer the most ‘American’ briefs. At first, perhaps, we got that a little wrong and missed some pitch opportunities by having an English director respond to something that culturally needed a U.S. director, regardless of the particular style or technique.

Have you had to adapt your style?

Dan - No, not really, stylistically I think the film and animation community are into the same sort of references and trends, the internet has obviously bridged the gap globally on both popular and esoteric styles. Whilst the visuals work globally, perhaps on the audio side America still appreciates hip-hop a little bit more than we do, other than that we’re still in sync. ; )

How have you assembled the New York team?

Dan - Last year Eve Strickman joined us to become our new Executive Producer in New York, this dovetailed neatly with us designing and moving into a new studio on the very hip and happening, Howard and Crosby location in downtown SoHo. Eve is a native New Yorker and having worked with some of the best creative shops in town, has deep roots within the film and animation production community in NYC. Part of Eve’s remit has been to grow our East Coast roster and our marketing footprint throughout the States, whilst executing the creative opportunities that come our way. Films like Colin Hesterly’s film for Nautilus are of course paramount to the growth and success of our American business.

What can we expect from the Not To Scale studios in the rest of 2016?

Dan - We are being asked to work more directly with brands and have a good track record here already, working with Burberry, Google, Hermès and many more, and are adapting our structure to cope with this new type of Client. New York are shooting for Huffington Post later this week and this tallies neatly with us being asked to shoot more and more live action, so expect some news around that offering soon too. In America we want to increase our visibility on the West Coast, whilst in Amsterdam, the business has just moved into a new studio, bigger and better, designed to our exact specification on a beautiful canal in Amsterdam. All good.

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