Recycle, for Pete’s sake

Giving a new brand character

We created a 3D animated character video to make the Minnesota Waste Wise Foundation’s mission more entertaining and accessible.

The Challenge

Create a video that demystifies the plastic recycling process for the general public and encourages them to think twice before tossing plastic bottles in the trash.

The Solution

Create a 3D character and setting based on someone who had a stake in the game: a plastic bottle itself!

The Outcome

A video featuring a plastic bottle named Pete explaining the Minnesota Waste Wise Foundation (MWWF) mission in a fun and cheeky way.

Background

Our friends at the Minnesota Waste Wise Foundation have a single mission: to help businesses save money and the environment — at the same time. MWWF, with support from the Minnesota Beverage Association and the American Beverage Association for a Healthy America, asked us to help create a video that teaches viewers what happens to a container when its useful life is over.

Our work

We decided this plea to recycle might be best received if it came directly from someone directly affected: a #2 plastic bottle. And not just any #2 plastic bottle, but a cowboy bottle named Pete (inspired by the Polyethylene Terephthalate he’s made from). We built out Pete’s personality with a character profile and created a moodboard. Our animator and sound engineer began the meticulous task of bringing Pete to 3D life: first, with an animatic, then a pre-visual draft, a second pre-vis, and then the final — complete with Pete’s final voice, sound effects, and sound design.

Video 1

Video 2