The Psyop Drop is our chance to give you a peek behind the curtain. This year, as a gift to us all, we’ve rounded up some of our world class Psyopian leaders to let us in the workshop and share how the magic is made! Please enjoy our offering of words from a few of our greatest Psyop elves, crafting the very best all year round and sending us off with a little something to take into the new year. We hope you brought your wishlist! These folks are always making dreams come true.
FROM: NEW YORK
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: A St. Bernard plushie named Beethoven
While creating both the teaser and trailer for mobile gaming giant Dream Games’ latest release, Briana Franceschini, Head of CG, explained, “Like most game companies tackling cinematics, they weren’t sure how close the final product would match the in-game world. From the beginning, we exhibited our immense respect for their characters and worlds which earned us their trust in our process as we added a little Psyop sparkle with extra details to enhance cinematic qualities, ensuring the greatest output possible. I think that clients return to us for long standing campaigns because of the end quality but also how our team works with them.”
FROM: UNITED KINGDOM
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: Anything Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, specifically Michelangelo
Nick Read, Senior ( and Emmy winning! ) Producer shared his enthusiasm for working with clients like Dream Games on the creative process, saying, “Working in tandem with the Dream Games marketing and product team, we made sure this universe is respectful of the original game IP while also expanding upon it so there’s much to explore.” On working with Psyop as a whole, Nick continues, ”Having this wonderful collection of world-class artists allows you to create an environment where you are able to push the envelope more, not just for the creative process but for innovation’s sake. Part of the DNA of the company is the mentality of deep collaboration - everyone has put their full heart into each job. We’re building out universes with our clients as collaborators, partners, storytellers, truthmakers, and futureseers.”
FROM: MARYLAND
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: He-Man
Tina Pavlides, Head of Production for Live Action, elaborated on this collaborative spirit, noting, “You can’t win anything by yourself, it takes a team. People throw around the word ‘team,’ but it’s important to surround yourself with people who actually make you feel that way. Everyone at Psyop is focused on figuring out how to get it done and in the best way possible.” Tina went on to discuss how the Live Action + VFX teams work together to help give clients a premium experience, "we have always been able to sprinkle extra spice in our clients' work. Live Action worked flawlessly this year with others in the Psyop family to bring some really unique campaigns to life, McDonalds and Aldi are two great examples. We consistently deliver projects that are distinct - a Psyop project looks and feels like a Psyop project because we always strive to level up everything we touch."
FROM: FLORIDA
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: BIG TRAK
CG Supervisor, Chris Sage highlighted the team’s use of emerging technologies for Aldi UK and beyond. “I came to Aldi in 2020. Since then, we’ve had some really great advancements in CG technologies. We’ve been using them to support the design work around Kevin and the new characters they’ve brought into the story. We’re always asking ourselves how we can take advantage of these opportunities to raise the bar technologically. This gives us more avenues for execution as we help our clients work through innovative techniques alongside us.” Chris went on to expand upon Psyop's experience with new tech saying, “In terms of AI and as technology in general evolves over time, you start to feel more comfortable with the fact that these things are just going to be another tool. Technology interacting with storytellers is where the magic happens.”
FROM: MICHIGAN
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: Lego Space Police Set
Fred Ross, VFX Supervisor + Creative Director, echoed this sentiment while discussing the development of the Anheuser-Busch Superbowl teaser presented on the Las Vegas Sphere from earlier this year. “Every project has something special but The Sphere was particularly unique. We as an industry are displaying content in such weird and different ways now. It used to be that we just made content for TV or movies but now there’s Youtube, and TikTok, and 360 degree virtual display spheres which we haven’t seen in the past. So it’s all about creative problem solving which is exactly what I love to do.” He went on to hammer home how the backing of the teams at Psyop help him feel free to discover creative solutions, “Knowing I have top-tier teams at my disposal helps make innovative thinking for our clients feels like a cinch. It reduces the friction of getting to the best end product when you know the team around you is just really solid.”
FROM: NEW YORK
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles action figure ( sensing a trend here... )
Ryan Moran, Head of Animation, reflected on the value of synergy at Psyop citing the team’s work developing Walmart’s new face for the Holiday Season, Lil Roy, as an example, “Lil Roy was such an appealing character right out of the box - it made me excited to do anything with him. Our designers did such a great job during the initial design phase that everyone fell in love with him instantly. This only inspired us to keep pushing. Our team couldn't get enough of working with Lil' Roy, we all felt invigorated to go above and beyond to produce additional animations to explore his fun-loving personality even further and we were thrilled the client ended up using these in the final campaign! It just goes to show that we all want to do the best possible work we can do for our clients but also for the people at Psyop. Everything we do I’m so proud of because it’s not just me that pulled it off - it was our group that pulled it off.”
We not only made it through another trip around the sun but we made it through with something to show for it. We may not have Jingtinglers and Whohoopers, but we do have Dream Games and Coach campaigns! So we’re offering more than a simple phrase - we present to you a bit of this year’s creme de la creme, a few of the films that have us chomping at the bit to do it all again next year.
The Psyop Drop is our chance to give you a peek behind the curtain. This year, as a gift to us all, we’ve rounded up some of our world class Psyopian leaders to let us in the workshop and share how the magic is made! Please enjoy our offering of words from a few of our greatest Psyop elves, crafting the very best all year round and sending us off with a little something to take into the new year. We hope you brought your wishlist! These folks are always making dreams come true.
FROM: NEW YORK
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: A St. Bernard plushie named Beethoven
While creating both the teaser and trailer for mobile gaming giant Dream Games’ latest release, Briana Franceschini, Head of CG, explained, “Like most game companies tackling cinematics, they weren’t sure how close the final product would match the in-game world. From the beginning, we exhibited our immense respect for their characters and worlds which earned us their trust in our process as we added a little Psyop sparkle with extra details to enhance cinematic qualities, ensuring the greatest output possible. I think that clients return to us for long standing campaigns because of the end quality but also how our team works with them.”
FROM: UNITED KINGDOM
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: Anything Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, specifically Michelangelo
Nick Read, Senior ( and Emmy winning! ) Producer shared his enthusiasm for working with clients like Dream Games on the creative process, saying, “Working in tandem with the Dream Games marketing and product team, we made sure this universe is respectful of the original game IP while also expanding upon it so there’s much to explore.” On working with Psyop as a whole, Nick continues, ”Having this wonderful collection of world-class artists allows you to create an environment where you are able to push the envelope more, not just for the creative process but for innovation’s sake. Part of the DNA of the company is the mentality of deep collaboration - everyone has put their full heart into each job. We’re building out universes with our clients as collaborators, partners, storytellers, truthmakers, and futureseers.”
FROM: MARYLAND
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: He-Man
Tina Pavlides, Head of Production for Live Action, elaborated on this collaborative spirit, noting, “You can’t win anything by yourself, it takes a team. People throw around the word ‘team,’ but it’s important to surround yourself with people who actually make you feel that way. Everyone at Psyop is focused on figuring out how to get it done and in the best way possible.” Tina went on to discuss how the Live Action + VFX teams work together to help give clients a premium experience, "we have always been able to sprinkle extra spice in our clients' work. Live Action worked flawlessly this year with others in the Psyop family to bring some really unique campaigns to life, McDonalds and Aldi are two great examples. We consistently deliver projects that are distinct - a Psyop project looks and feels like a Psyop project because we always strive to level up everything we touch."
FROM: FLORIDA
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: BIG TRAK
CG Supervisor, Chris Sage highlighted the team’s use of emerging technologies for Aldi UK and beyond. “I came to Aldi in 2020. Since then, we’ve had some really great advancements in CG technologies. We’ve been using them to support the design work around Kevin and the new characters they’ve brought into the story. We’re always asking ourselves how we can take advantage of these opportunities to raise the bar technologically. This gives us more avenues for execution as we help our clients work through innovative techniques alongside us.” Chris went on to expand upon Psyop's experience with new tech saying, “In terms of AI and as technology in general evolves over time, you start to feel more comfortable with the fact that these things are just going to be another tool. Technology interacting with storytellers is where the magic happens.”
FROM: MICHIGAN
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: Lego Space Police Set
Fred Ross, VFX Supervisor + Creative Director, echoed this sentiment while discussing the development of the Anheuser-Busch Superbowl teaser presented on the Las Vegas Sphere from earlier this year. “Every project has something special but The Sphere was particularly unique. We as an industry are displaying content in such weird and different ways now. It used to be that we just made content for TV or movies but now there’s Youtube, and TikTok, and 360 degree virtual display spheres which we haven’t seen in the past. So it’s all about creative problem solving which is exactly what I love to do.” He went on to hammer home how the backing of the teams at Psyop help him feel free to discover creative solutions, “Knowing I have top-tier teams at my disposal helps make innovative thinking for our clients feels like a cinch. It reduces the friction of getting to the best end product when you know the team around you is just really solid.”
FROM: NEW YORK
FAVORITE CHILDHOOD TOY: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Action Figure ( sensing a trend here... )
Ryan Moran, Head of Animation, reflected on the value of synergy at Psyop citing the team’s work developing Walmart’s new face for the Holiday Season, Lil Roy, as an example, “Lil Roy was such an appealing character right out of the box - it made me excited to do anything with him. Our designers did such a great job during the initial design phase that everyone fell in love with him instantly. This only inspired us to keep pushing. Our team couldn't get enough of working with Lil' Roy, we all felt invigorated to go above and beyond to produce additional animations to explore his fun-loving personality even further and we were thrilled the client ended up using these in the final campaign! It just goes to show that we all want to do the best possible work we can do for our clients but also for the people at Psyop. Everything we do I’m so proud of because it’s not just me that pulled it off - it was our group that pulled it off.”
We not only made it through another trip around the sun but we made it through with something to show for it. We may not have Jingtinglers and Whohoopers, but we do have Dream Games and Coach campaigns! So we’re offering more than a simple phrase - we present to you a bit of this year’s creme de la creme, a few of the films that have us chomping at the bit to do it all again next year.
