McDonald’s brings NHL stars to the table

In collaboration with Cossette Communication, fast food chain McDonald’s has teamed up with NHL’s biggest stars to relaunch its Star Sticks meals with this playfully crafted, action-packed spot.  

Directed by Chris Balmond through Circle Productions and realised through clever VFX from Freefolk, the film sees NHL stars Auston Matthews and Conor McDavid opening their McDonald’s meals to reveal their very own miniature hockey sticks. In a flash of lighting, the athletes are transformed into figurines and their dinner trays becomes an ice-rink where they skate around giant, food-based obstacles. 

Harin Hirani, CG Supervisor at Freefolk elaborated: “We created fully CG, miniaturised versions of Auston Matthews and Conor McDavid and refined digital scans, that we captured on set, to give them a collectible figurine aesthetic.  

To enhance the stylised feel of the spot, we animated the characters using stepped animation on twos and ones. The FX elements, lighting and ice spray were also designed to conform to this stepped style, requiring sophisticated solutions to ensure they matched the same stylised motion language as the characters. 

The environment combined photographic projection techniques with detailed 3D modelling of seating, tables and background diners to create the sense of a scaled environment surrounding the figurines, as well as developing fully photo-real, CG food assets.”