American Dream

Playdead was commissioned by Wondros, a production studio based in LA, to create bespoke animations, helping promote the charity, Home Matters.

The brief was to create a micro-world representative of modern America and a character that symbolised innocence. Samantha, our protagonist, realises how quickly fortunes can change. Seeing the degradation of the community unfold before her eyes, she sees the direct impact of budget cuts on what she depends on most: school, play park and finally, home life.

Our designers achieved the aesthetic by hand-crafting the set and character, using a rotating set and filming in stop motion using GoPro cameras. Elements of the set, such as the books tumbling from the school were added in post production using CGI.

We created 1 x 90 second and 2 x 15 second animations for Home Matters, a national movement that is redefining the American Dream, believing that the New American Dream is one where every American lives in a safe, nurturing environment with access to quality education, healthcare, public spaces and community services. More than half a million people in the United States do not have a home, a quarter of these individuals are children.

We were nominated in the Animation category of the Scottish BAFTA’s 2016 for ‘American Dream’, which is a testament to the thought-provoking work we aim to provide for our clients. It then went on to win a Royal Television Society Award the following year and we were re-commissed by Wondros to create another set of animations.