Role: Director of Photography, Creative Engineer, Animator, Editor
Method: Stop Motion & Practical FX
Technical Specs: Custom Motion Control, Laser-Cut Basswood Fabrication, & Probe Lens Cinematography
The Brief: To bring the Bota Box “Nighthawk” illustration to life. The goal was to seamlessly transition from the 2D packaging artwork into a tactile 3D forest, navigate to a hero Christmas tree, and collapse the environment back into the box for the final product reveal.
The Solution: I engineered a custom motion control system to manage the complex “Z-axis” move (forward and upward) while using a probe lens to navigate the tight physical space. To achieve the 2D-to-3D expansion, I laser-cut a multi-plane forest from basswood, designing a mechanical layout that allowed the trees to telescope toward the camera and move aside for the lens path. To enhance the practical magic, I integrated tiny LEDs to create genuine “in-camera” light hits and reflections during the Christmas tree reveal.