Zune : Masks

Drawing battle lines between two opposing armies in a panoramic, animated landscape, Los Angeles agency 72andsunny along with New York animation firm Pandapanther have concocted a quirky, vivid Spartan-styled war with Masks, the latest entry in the Zune Arts collaboration project promoting Microsofts portable media player.Yet, unlike the epic, gory, ab-tastic melodrama of direct inspirations like 300 and Braveheart, 72andSunny and PanadaPanther directors Jon Garin and Naomi Nishimura opted for sentimentality, philosophical means to an end and most significantly, not-so-cuddly characters that eventually help define Zunes ethos of sharing amongst friends and the good that comes out of it. Utilizing 72andSunnys concept about Zune and friendships as a launching pad, Garin and Nishimura drew up close to 15 scripts, with Masks finally chosen by the agency as the top pitch. With two warring factions of armored toy creatures that appear to be descendents of Ewoks, the narrative of the animated short weaves from chaotic battlefeaturing bodies purging springs and stuffing instead of viscera, along with a few lost limbsto a climactic, cathartic moment where the leaders of each army switch masks, revealing a kaleidoscopic wonderland from their respective point-of-viewsshifting the story from a battle to a brotherhood.

Zune : Masks

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