TAXFIX
A hero's journey to pure serenity and an impeccable tax declaration.
My part: Art Direction, Illustration, Animation
Production: Parasol Island
Producer: Gesine Weckauf
Creative Direction: Matthias May, Andrew Morgan
CleanUp: Isa Gross
Production: Parasol Island
Producer: Gesine Weckauf
Creative Direction: Matthias May, Andrew Morgan
CleanUp: Isa Gross
Taxfix had only recently entered the Italian market, connecting professional accountants with taxpayers through their app to handle personal finances. With the annual tax declaration deadline approaching, they wanted to promote their services via a new TV commercial.
The goal was to clearly convey the service's core benefit by explaining the overall process, and above all, the fact that even though everything is managed through an app, users are connected to their own dedicated accountant who personally addresses their needs and questions.
I started the project by developing three distinct concepts together with the creative direction team, each with a different visual approach. Drawing on my broad production expertise, I guided the creative process in multiple directions while identifying viable solutions and technical limitations early on. Following that, over the course of several weeks, I developed styleframes, storyboards, character designs, and the full animation. In parallel, I worked closely with the producer to lay out a detailed production timeline, marking crucial milestones and setting clear expectations for client satisfaction. In order to meet the deadline, create enough room for client feedback, and be more flexible on the production side, we brought on an additional cleanup artist to assist me on the animation. I was in charge of setting up a clear communication and file exchange system within the animation team, and I had to make sure quality was matching the expectations of the client.
The goal was to clearly convey the service's core benefit by explaining the overall process, and above all, the fact that even though everything is managed through an app, users are connected to their own dedicated accountant who personally addresses their needs and questions.
I started the project by developing three distinct concepts together with the creative direction team, each with a different visual approach. Drawing on my broad production expertise, I guided the creative process in multiple directions while identifying viable solutions and technical limitations early on. Following that, over the course of several weeks, I developed styleframes, storyboards, character designs, and the full animation. In parallel, I worked closely with the producer to lay out a detailed production timeline, marking crucial milestones and setting clear expectations for client satisfaction. In order to meet the deadline, create enough room for client feedback, and be more flexible on the production side, we brought on an additional cleanup artist to assist me on the animation. I was in charge of setting up a clear communication and file exchange system within the animation team, and I had to make sure quality was matching the expectations of the client.
my hero
A hero of pure heart that endures the obstacles of the Italian tax system, to find the true path to enlightenment with Taxfix.it
The main idea was to create a character that the audience could relate to. A character that shares their struggles and shows them the solution to their problems. Considering the briefing, target group and a few experimentations, we decided to go with a loose proportioned, human-like, male character. Playing around with cultural stereotypes, we added some likeable attributes, so the Italian audience could identify themselves even more with our hero.
The Casting
Every hero needs villains.
And there are plenty out there. That’s why not everyone of them found their way into the clip. I still feel that some of the candidates had imense potential and had to be mentioned here:
Hero Material
Finding the right archetype for our odyssey, we were seeking out for extraordinary characters that were capable to master the challenge.
Here are some other explorations during the design process of our hero character:
And a selection of early style explorations.
ALTERNATIVE CONCEPTS
Thanks for watching
