Apex — Unearth the essence

Roja Dove

MOTION

The Brief

Unearth the animalistic nature and essence of this eau de parfum, harnessing the mood and desire that it evokes.

The Solution

A 30-second, 3D ad-style motion video that showcases the Apex bottle, packaging, and accompanying Apex animal cards, with a captivating jungle environment, atmospheric sound design and abstract animal forms adding texture to bind the piece together.

Background

Roja Parfums wanted to mark the launch of one of its latest fragrances, Apex, with a promotional video and teaser campaign that closely ties together a set of 10 apex animal cards created by the client, centred around rumbling earth, bear fur, snake skin, to excite the senses.

Our Approach

Simplification is key — and with a 30-second limit for the centrepiece, our first challenge was to design a condensed framework edit that hosts all of the key elements that meets the clients’ expectations and upholds the main focus — the product.

We worked closely with the Roja Parfums’ team to analyse the packaging, artwork, and most importantly, determine what would appeal to the intended demographic (a 20-40-something, wealthy, male audience, predominantly based in the UK and US). This phase of collaborative research and conversation ultimately led us to the overall feel and design of the piece.

Using the 10 Apex animals as a starting point, we limited the aesthetics to three, quick, abstract glimpses of textures rather than presenting full animals; the product needed to have the full limelight, with the animals taking on a supportive role for the overall look and feel.

Using hair dynamics, scanned textures, and iridescent lighting, we worked abstract glimpses from the associated Apex animals into the narrative, leaving space for hero shots and transitions for the Apex bottle and packaging.

Cinema 4D and OctaneRender® were our staple tools with After Effects compositing and VFX kept to a minimum by getting as much done ‘in-camera’ as possible.

With bespoke sound design and a creative grade, this 30-second promotional piece pulls you into a stunning, evocative, and immersive world.

Apex Eau Intense

Following their launch of Apex Noir, Roja plans to add two fresher style fragrances to the collection, starting with Apex Eau Intense. They tasked us with creating a new video to promote the scent with a turnaround timeline of just three weeks so they could launch it at an event in Cannes.

Rather than starting from scratch, we transformed the existing inky Apex Noir palate into one suitable for the lighter scent. The new video keeps the existing narrative but takes place at golden hour with re-lit, re-textured elements and a positive vibe fitting for a fresher style scent. The accompanying re-scored soundtrack matches the uplifting mood of the piece.

It looks absolutely staggering. Congratulations to everyone involved in its creation.

Roja Dove PERFUMER & MANAGING DIRECTOR, ROJA DOVE PARFUMS