LICENSE A FAMOUS CHARACTER
USING EXISTING ASSETS
A popular way to work with IP is by leveraging existing assets.
This opens up incredible opportunities to work with high-quality materials developed specifically for popular theatrical releases, TV shows, animation, video games, and publications. From our experience, it can also save significant time on a production rather than starting from scratch. As you’ll see from these examples the end results are often as cinematic and as authentic as you can get!
CONSIDERATIONS:
There may be additional costs involved with obtaining the assets separate from the IP license, but these costs are often minimal.
Some studios may need to approve the post-production house you choose to work with to bring the assets to life.
Assets will typically not be released until a license agreement has been signed. If timings are tight assets can sometimes be released under NDA whilst license agreements are worked through.
CASE STUDY #1:
ASDA x Elf
We worked with UK supermarket and their agency Havas London to bring Buddy the Elf back for a spectacular joy-filled Christmas campaign. Named the UK’s Best Ad of 2022 the 90’ spot seamlessly integrated footage from the 2003 movie into an all-new production. Framestore relied on meticulous planning and deft-touch VFX techniques. Having skilfully rotoscoped Buddy out of the original film, the team helped fit an entire new world around him that was faithful down to the last eyeline, shadow and cast interaction. Intricate match grading then provided the final festive touch, bringing our modern world closer to the look, feel and spirit of the beloved original film. Born Licensing’s reputation and strong relationship with Warner Bros. enabled us to secure a license for Elf for the first time in marketing. Timings were tight on this campaign due to the heavy post-production process needed to bring this campaign to life so having an existing relationship in place with Warner Bros. was crucial. After negotiating the commercial terms Born Licensing managed all other aspects of the licensing including the extensive creative approvals process and the release of assets so that Havas could focus on the rest of the production.
CASE STUDY #2:
GEICO x Angry Birds
The Rights Holders of Angry Birds allowed The Martin Agency and GEICO to use assets from the popular 2016 film The Angry Birds Movie. Having these CGI assets placed in a live-action setting added a lot of impact and comedy to the spot. The process was straightforward with The Martin Agency appointing a post-production house of their choosing to integrate the Angry Birds CGI assets into live-action footage.
In addition to the CGI assets, the Rights Holders provided size charts and references to ensure the individual Angry Birds characters were in the correct proportion to each other and to their new live-action setting.
CASE STUDY #3:
Direct Line x Transformers
After a hugely successful campaign with Bumblebee, Direct Line followed up with the same approach to work with Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots. Born Licensing helped to facilitate the release of CGI assets from the 2017 Transformers movie to The Mill (Saatchi & Saatchi’s appointed production partner), who then worked to incorporate them into the material with guidance from the Rights Holder.
For example, Born Licensing worked closely with the Rights Holder to ensure the transformation of Optimus Prime into truck mode both looked and sounded authentic. Optimus Prime had to be shown in the correct proportion to the live-action setting. Script, storyboards, and treatments were all reviewed by the Rights Holders ahead of the shoot. After the shoot, turntables and WIP edits were shared with the Rights Holders at key stages of development. As with all character and IP licenses, every detail had to be reviewed by the Rights Holders to ensure Optimus Prime was being portrayed authentically and accurately. The end result was a cinematic delight!