Celebrating this year’s Shark Week, Discovery and The Home Depot have invited a rather unusual, yet fitting guest to join in on a couple’s backyard festivities. A fully CG shark lounges poolside in this concept from Discovery Branded Entertainment executed by The A Team, a creative co(lab). Shark Week 2020 is currently airing on Discovery Channel through Sunday, August 16.
This brand integration project, featuring a live-action set outfitted by The Home Depot, combined a socially distanced shoot and heavy design/VFX. In executing the concept, The A Team’s biggest challenge was determining how to safely shoot the campaign elements during the pandemic.
The teams developed protocols following CDC guidelines, including N95 masks, temperature checks, individualized craft services and distributing personal safety packs. Social distancing wasn’t just for the crew. Prioritizing safety, the agency adapted the creative to keep even the actors–playing a husband and wife–six feet apart and still feel true to the concept. Additionally, The A Team transformed the usual in-person video village to a real-time live stream for network and brand clients spread out across the country, allowing Discovery to feel like they were right there on set.
With the shoot safely secured, the heavy lifting began to bring the concept’s surprise shark guest to life using CGI. The A Team worked on creating a lifelike shark, despite it sunbathing poolside, and delivering authentic movements when in the water.
“As COVID isn’t going away anytime soon, we needed to find a new way to move forward taking all precautions to ensure a safe environment for cast and crew,” explained Nikki Blaszyk, principal, managing director for The A Team. “Each member of our team stepped up from the pre-production and R&D all the way through post.”
