Toucan Sam Follows His Nose to a New Dimension
May 1, 2013

Toucan Sam Follows His Nose to a New Dimension

In the latest campaign for Kellogg’s Froot Loops, the iconic Toucan Sam has transitioned into an all-new 3D world, courtesy of the partnership between Kellogg’s, Leo Burnett USA, and animation studio Nathan Love.

The spot brings the character into a vivid new dimension in CGI following a 50-year tenure in the 2D flatlands of the animated world.

Nathan Love worked closely with Leo Burnett to ensure that Toucan Sam would have a smooth flight into his new home. "As the original creators of the Toucan Sam character, Leo Burnett made an ideal partner to help bring him into the next dimension of his journey," stated company Director, Founder and ECD Joe Burrascano.

Nathan Love used Leo Burnett's script to create a remarkably vivid and detailed CG wonderland in Carl the King Crab, which pits Toucan Sam and his adventurous nephews against a grumpy pirate crab guarding tropical island of Froot Loops booty. Everything, from the piles of gold coins to the bowls of Froot Loops cereal, comes across as remarkably touchable and real - a result of Nathan Love's extensive toolbox that includes Chaos Group's V-Ray for rendering, Next Limit's RealFlow to simulate the coins, and Joe Alter's Shave and a Haircut to detail Carl the King Crab's goatee and moustache, among the studio's many software solutions.

"We pride ourselves in developing rich, detailed characters and creating fantastic but believable worlds," notes Nathan Love EP James Braddock. "A lot of people have said that CG is generally colder than stop-motion, but we've always believed that you can add the same amount of warmth with the right amount of love."