Arianee

An explainer film that makes blockchain-based ownership feel simple, human, and right at home in the luxury world.

Making digital ownership easy to understand

Arianee is a blockchain-based protocol that manages digital ownership and authenticity certificates for valuable objects. The film had to turn that technical idea into a story anyone could follow. As art director, I led the team from concept and storyboards through illustration, color, animation, and sound.

The challenge

Blockchain was still a new idea for most investors and clients. The film had to explain it through visual storytelling, short enough to use in pitches and clear enough to follow on first watch.

The team was spread across time zones, so I set a shared process and checkpoints to keep everyone moving together.

A realistic, modern style for luxury

The audience was the luxury industry, so I chose a realistic, modern illustration style over playful tech icons.

We built a wider range of tones within Arianee’s navy and gold, giving the scenes more depth and layers than the core brand colors alone.

Real life makes the technical clear

Abstract scenes introduce the protocol, then the story moves into everyday moments: a meeting, a city, an object changing hands. Grounding each idea in a familiar setting made a technical subject smoother to follow.

Outcome

The team created every part of the film, from scripting and storyboarding to animation and sound design. It won seven medals at the 2020 Indigo Awards, including gold for style frames and computer animation, and was recognized by the 2019 American Graphic Design Awards. It was also my first time directing a motion graphics project.

Watch the film

Client

Arianee

Agency

Orchid Creation

Role

Design Lead

Timeline

2 months

Team

Creative director, 5 motion designers, 2 illustrators, sound designer, project manager

Awards

2020 Indigo Awards: 3 gold, 3 silver, 1 bronze. 2019 American Graphic Design Awards

What I did

Art direction
Illustration
Storyboarding
Color palette
Team lead

Style references and color

References built on bold light and shadow, and a navy and gold palette with soft neutrals.

Palette: whites, gold and black above a column of navy tones beside a column of golds and creams

Reference: a dark hall with light falling through tall windows

Reference: blue and cream skyscrapers seen from above

Reference: two women on a blue sofa in hard sunlight

Reference: a couple on a curved staircase in blue and coral

Reference: a faint network of connected points on black

Reference: a spotlit desk seen from above in teal and cream

Reference: a single glowing moon on black

Reference: a silhouette walking across black and white stripes

Design process

Quick storyboard sketches locked each composition before style frames set color, texture, and light. From there I illustrated every frame, worked with the motion designers on animation, and finished with sound effects and a final review.

Before: six black-ink storyboard sketches of the opening and token scenes

After: the same six scenes as finished style frames in navy and gold

Style frame: a glowing phone card with a gold Arianee certificate in a dark navy interface

Style frame: a man with a phone linked by an Arianee token to a watch and its digital certificate

Style frame: a gold city street with Arianee tokens and cards floating between buildings

Style frame: two people at a table in a sunlit gold office, an Arianee certificate between them

Style frame: two silhouettes on their phones exchanging an Arianee token

Style frame: a navy hand catching a gold Arianee token on a white background

Style frame: gold certificate cards for people and objects linked by a network

Style frame: a cream and gold city skyline with Arianee tokens rising above it

Starting with the protocol

Abstract scenes show certificates and data moving through the network.

Ownership you can hold

Each object gets a digital certificate its owner can keep, check, and pass on.

Structure behind the scenes

Quiet interface layers keep the technology present without taking over the story.

Cities and offices, in layers

Skylines and workplaces built from overlapping planes give the everyday scenes depth and a sense of place.

A certificate for every object

Cards for people and products show authenticity traveling with each item.

Recognized for clarity and craft

The film gave Arianee a clear, warm way to explain a technical protocol to luxury brands, and earned recognition at the 2020 Indigo Awards, with silvers in illustration and storyboarding, and the 2019 American Graphic Design Awards.

7: medals at the 2020 Indigo Awards
3: golds: digital ads and campaigns, style frames, computer animation
2: months from script to final film

Next project Where the Clean Energy Jobs Are