Creative Filter faced a unique challenge when Delta Air Lines approached them with a mission to promote their groundbreaking 13-hour flight from Los Angeles to Auckland, New Zealand. Tasked with encapsulating the essence of this long-haul journey, the team needed to craft a promotional masterpiece that resonated with Delta’s audience. Drawing inspiration from a diverse blend of influences including Lofi Girl Videos, anime aesthetics, and the serene beauty of sweeping landscapes, they set off to create an ambient long-play video, on a very short timeline. 

The key? To seamlessly integrate the soothing sound of an airplane into the visual narrative, ensuring a captivating and immersive experience for viewers. With YouTube’s maximum video length conveniently aligning with the duration of the flight, Creative Filter embraced the challenge, ultimately delivering a promotional gem that captured the essence of Delta’s transpacific adventure.

13-hours of animation sounds like an intimidating task…but a task that the Creative Filter team was up for. The creative process began with a series of brainstorming sessions and collaborative discussions amongst the animation team to determine the best style and approach to meet the client’s vision and requirements. The team swiftly honed in on a style that would efficiently capture the essence of the Los Angeles to Auckland journey, without mirroring the exact duration. Key moments were crafted and there was an emphasis put on the importance of iconic landmarks like LAX airport and the scenic beauty of Auckland during the descent into the airport.

A meticulously curated list of key moments to be showcased was created, including moments that ranged from cityscapes to serene ocean vistas for both daytime and night. By studying takeoff and landing video sequences from both locations, the team crafted abstract representations that captured the essence of the experience without the need for precise replication. The process, while time-consuming, focused on building loopable scenes, with each 10-minute chunk taking several days to construct. 

Modular asset creation allowed for seamless adjustments based on client feedback, while foreground animations were crafted as separate loops for easy customization. 

Embracing procedural generation techniques, including AI-driven concepting and landscape generation, Creative Filter achieved a balance between efficiency and aesthetic appeal, resulting in a visually stunning and immersive promotional piece that captivated audiences and reflected Delta’s brand ethos.

What began as a bold and unconventional idea evolved into a rewarding journey for the Creative Filter team. The dedication to crafting a captivating 13-hour ASMR animation for Delta Airlines resulted in a standout piece of unique, promotional content. Now available for all to enjoy on Delta’s YouTube page, with a specially curated 1-hour edit soon to be featured as an in-flight entertainment option. With the successful execution of the project and positive reception, this project stands as a testament to the power of innovative thinking and collaborative effort in delivering impactful marketing solutions.

“What an exciting project…to be able to lead such a creative project for a corporate brand. It was so refreshing that Delta wanted an artsy & fun approach to this piece that is clearly an indication that they have a pulse on content trends.” Eric Lee – Animation Director