Ancestry Advert

Little Jack

Toast was invited to pitch for the latest Ancestry DNA adverts. The idea behind the campaign was to produce a range of direct and engaging adverts that focus specifically on what a consumer gets when they purchase the Ancestry DNA kit.

Having used the product ourselves, we knew first-hand that the process of using an Ancestry DNA kit couldn’t be simpler. This, combined with the fascinating potential to uncover where your ancestors came from, was to be at the heart of the campaign’s message.

This was an exciting opportunity for us to follow on from last year’s Ancestry DNA advert we produced, ‘Inspired Journey’. Whereas ‘Inspired Journey’ was a live-action shoot, the idea this time was to produce a range of animated videos so the two could run in tandem.

Animation styles

It was very important to ensure the adverts struck a balance between the explanatory elements of doing the DNA test whilst retaining the charm and character of the Ancestry brand. With all this in mind and the talented animation director/designer Sarah Klan on board, we got to work on bringing the concept to life with 2D animation. First we developed a series of storyboards which showed what style of animation would be used in the final adverts.

The animation process

Once the style was decided upon we produced an animatic which is a kind of moving storyboard which blocks out the basic movement and actions that will make up the final advert. By using this technique it’s possible to get an idea of pacing and whether 30 seconds is enough time to convey all the messages needed in the advert.

Character animation

With the general flow of the advert decided it was now time to bring our character Little Jack to life. A series of short test animation clips were hand drawn and then compiled on computer to produce short moving sequences showing the basic movements our hero would perform. The process of putting together TV adverts takes a large amount of time. By building style frames and animation tests early in the workflow it meant everyone was clear how the animation would look once we entered that stage.

Live action vs Animation

The decision to produce a live action TV advert or go down the animated TV advert route often crops up early in the production process. Each route has its own benefits and restrictions, shooting a live action advert using actors comes with the added costs of actors usage fees. Sometimes the creative concept calls for a character to perform difficult moves or stunts which would be better suited to using an animated character.

We’re delighted that, as a result, Ancestry has seen phenomenal sales increase with DNA kits selling like hot cakes!