Berlin’s SUCUK UND BRATWURST is the 3D animation-focused creative collective behind the mind-bending Moncler Genius campaign starring Will Smith, Post Malone’s Beerbongs & Bentleys merch, and Rimowa's most innovative imagery.
Chances are you've seen their distinct 3D renderings and designs focused on graphics, regardless of your entry point into fashion. They've teamed up with Nike, adidas, and Alexander Wang as well as delivering logo animations and effects for Dior's Pre-Fall 2019 Collection from Kim Jones.
The four members of SUCUK UND BRATWURST have a key advantage over other creative agencies: They've known each other since kindergarten, meaning they developed a visual language under unique conditions.
Now, as the fashion industry scrambles to adapt to the coronavirus pandemic, SUB's 3D rendering niche represents a way for creatives, models, and designers to collaborate and develop campaigns in isolation.
We spoke to Lukas Olgac, Denis Olgac, Alessandro Belliero, and David Goenner about their biggest campaigns and the creative potential of their practice.
Can you explain the work you did on the Moncler Genius campaign, and the story behind that digital rendering of Will Smith?
Organizing a shoot with such a busy celebrity can be very difficult, especially if the deadline is super tight. That's why we used a 3D scan of Will Smith's face. The challenging part was to digitally dress him up in a full Moncler fit.
Moncler sent us the full outfit to our studio and we had to find a body double with similar shape and measurements to Will Smith. The full look got scanned, around 50-100 cameras took pictures at the same time (each from a different angle). The computer used these images to build a 3D model, then we replaced the head of the body double with the head of Will Smith’s 3D model.
The work on the Moncler genius campaign was a collaboration with Daniel Sannwald. We created the concept with him, built up the digital environments, and placed Will Smith into it. During Milan Fashion Week, Will Smith was at the Moncler Genius launch event dancing in front of our work.
How are you working as a collective while self-isolating?
CGI allows us to work without any physical contact. For example, for the Moncler campaign, the clothing, and models were built up in 3D — we think that 3D animation work is even more requested than before. Now the talent doesn't need to be present at shootings or film sets anymore.
Do you see new opportunities for your 3D rendering practice, as the need for physical distance increases?
A lot of jobs from our friends who are working in the fashion and music industry got canceled, which causes serious problems. To avoid physical contact, CGI is a great tool to use. Life gives new opportunities every day. Social isolation measures have increased the demand for 3D rendering work as companies aren’t reliant on taking photos of products or models.
Your Rimowa campaign was a literal clash of old and new. Can you talk about the appeal of this medium for projects like this?
We really like the idea of combining old and new; it was exciting to show the cabin bag as part of a Renaissance sculpture. There's a great website run by the artist Oliver Laric, it is a platform with a collection of 3D scanned statues based on pieces from institutions like Albertina, Vienna's Kunsthistorisches Museum, Paris' Musée des Monuments Français, and many more. All scans can be downloaded and used without copyright restrictions. For this one, we used “Cupid Disguised as a Shepherd.”
The Alexander Wang campaign has a nostalgic quality. What was the inspiration going into that project?
From the moment we received the very first message from Alex, we were really excited about the collaboration. Nowadays, we work very closely with him and his team on a regular basis. Alex approves every visual output we are doing for the brand before it goes live. The last social campaign had influences from '80s airbrush illustrations.
Back in 2018, you made the official merch for Post Malone’s 'Beerbongs & Bentleys.' How did that opportunity come about?
The internet brings many opportunities and we are aware that it can be toxic as well, but if you know how to use it right it can be an amazing tool. Back in the day, we started with a Tumblr, and for eight years we've been connecting with creatives, following artists/designers, people we look up to, who inspire us, and some of them became good friends of ours.
One of them is Bryan from Los Angeles, also known as 100br, who did the album campaign of Post Malone’s Beerbongs & Bentleys and Stoney. Bryan asked us last minute if we were down to create a merch piece for the tour, we just had one weekend to work on it, because the tour starting the next week. In 2018 we met Posty in person during his concert in Cologne, Germany. It was a pleasure to be part of this amazing project.
Do you have any other projects with musicians in the pipeline?
We are currently working on album artworks for internationally known artists like Swae Lee, Kali Uchis and many more. Stay tuned.
What campaign or project would people be most surprised to learn SUB were behind?
After some time we developed our own visual language and we are showing most of our work on our Instagram Account. If there is a project we aren't sharing on our socials, it’s probably easy to recognize anyway, but sometimes it can be surprisingly funny.
How do you think your long-standing friendship has set you apart from other creative agencies?
Starting early on, already in kindergarten; we've known each other more than a quarter-century. We experienced the world together and grew up together. We are still learning on our path; knowing a person for such a long time simplifies communication. It's easy to understand what the other one thinks without even talking anymore. SUCUK UND BRATWURST means family — we’re in this together till death do us part.
What’s the deal with the Cheese-Croc?
Having fun at home.
