I proposed a narrative-led visual approach that leaned heavily into the language of fine art, shifting away from traditional, product-centric car visuals. Instead of focusing solely on sleek lines or technical features, the goal was to craft an atmosphere - a feeling - where the car became part of a larger, emotionally resonant story. I looked to Van Gogh’s The Starry Night not just for its swirling motion and vivid palette, but for its ability to convey mood through abstraction. Its movement, intensity, and raw emotion became a metaphor for how the campaign could function - expressive, memorable, and unconcerned with realism.

I envisioned the luxury cars not in sterile, studio-lit environments, but drifting through surreal cityscapes - rich, hand-rendered interpretations of New York at night, alive with movement and mystery. Skies swirled in blues and golds, buildings shimmered like brushstrokes, and reflections rolled across the cars like liquid paint. Each location was selected for its iconic weight - Times Square, the Empire State Building, the Brooklyn Bridge - then deconstructed and reimagined through an oil-painted lens. These weren’t just backgrounds; they were emotional contexts that gave the cars a place within an almost dreamlike world.

The artwork began in Photoshop using a set of custom brushes I developed to emulate real oil textures. Every frame was composed with layered brushstrokes to replicate the tactile depth of canvas. Vehicles were drawn separately and carefully integrated into each composition, ensuring they matched the surrounding style without losing their refined edge.

In After Effects, I animated ambient elements like skies, glows, and reflections. The motion was designed to be slow and meditative - mimicking the way viewers observe art in a gallery. The lighting was animated in layers, with special attention to how highlights danced across the cars’ surfaces in a stylized, non-literal way. Render times were long due to the complexity and texture detail, but the visual payoff was exactly what the client envisioned: a quiet, moving world where brand and emotion met.

Audience response was immediate and enthusiastic — with the campaign reaching over 2 million users organically in the first 10 days. Industry blogs highlighted the creative direction, and the brand reported a 25% increase in campaign-specific engagement compared to their previous digital efforts. More than the metrics, what stood out was how the visual storytelling created an emotional anchor for the product.

This project reaffirmed my belief in the power of design to elevate perception — not just visually, but narratively. Canvas & Chrome became more than a visual campaign; it was proof that when motion design borrows from art history and applies modern technique, it can shift how people connect with a brand.