- Animation painstakingly hand-drawn by seven animators over 1,000 hours
- Used traditional pioneering animation techniques from over 100 years ago
- Required the build of a bespoke rig which no longer exists
- Involved a collaboration of two agencies across two continents
Forged Irish Stout, the Irish stout brand owned by MMA star Conor McGregor, is launching its inaugural St Patrick’s advert this weekend to tie into its first ever St Patrick’s Day.
The animated spectacle marks a significant milestone in Forged Irish Stout’s short history and is a nod to the handcraft involved in every single pint of Forged Irish Stout.
As a tribute to the delicate process involved in bringing Forged to life, Third Mind Design, the Dublin-based agency behind the ad, opted to create the fully-animated advert solely using animation methods that were available 100 years ago to create the likes of ‘Mickey Mouse and Steamboat Willie’.
This meant that each frame was hand-drawn by a team of seven animators, while the sound was scored by the world famous, Dublin based, Windmill Lane Studios having been captured in a real life Forger and The Black Forge Inn Dublin 12.
The ad transports viewers to a cosy tavern where a barman and his patrons become drawn to what sounds like a bell. As they march in unison towards the clanging it becomes clear that the sound is in fact that of a blacksmith shaping steel on his anvil.
As the barman tosses the blacksmith a threepence coin we see it transform into molten metal before being forged into a beautiful claymore sword etched with Ogham Writing. We then see a hand grab what we believe to be the handle of the sword only for it to be revealed to be a bar-tap, symbolising the craftsmanship that exists in both blacksmithing and the brewing process.
The entire story is a dream-like interpretation of what happens inside a pint as it is being poured – chaos, action, excitement and then stillness – a settled pint.
The unique and labour-intensive production process took place over the course of ten months and required Third Mind to build a bespoke camera-rig to shoot over 25kg of drawings which took over 1,000 hours to create, partnering with South Africa-based animators, Pocket Animation and involved a team spanning the globe.
Doug Leddin, CMO of Forged Irish Stout, said “The craft involved In creating the world’s creamiest Irish stout is unlike any other beer process. It’s incredibly labour-intensive and we wanted to pay respect to that by creating a very unique ad campaign by hand.
“This was an incredibly difficult task, but just like the owner of Forged Irish Stout, Conor McGregor, we weren’t phased by the challenge. We teamed up with some of the world’s most talented and creative individuals to create a very bespoke ad, one that we are all very proud of”.
Max Fedorov of Third Mind added: “With its rich narrative, captivating visuals, and unmistakable Irishness, we shot this advert to captivate audiences and entice them into the world of Forged Irish Stout.
“We decided against using the traditional white or paper background for animation, choosing instead to nod to the Forged brand colours of cream and yellow on a black background, which meant an incredibly long production timeline.”
The ad makes its debut online and will be supported by a significant media spend across the UK and Ireland. It’ll also be featured across digital platforms including YouTube and X and supported through the brand’s significant social media channels.
Despite only launching in July 2023, Forged has already been making waves after securing distribution in over 1,000 pubs and bars across the UK, with off-trade distribution in over 400 stores including ASDA.
In Ireland, Forged Irish Stout is available in SuperValu, Carry-Out and Circle K stores nationwide as well as across Molloys, O’Brien’s, Spar, Londis and all major off-licences.
Source: Third Mind
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