Sprinting to the Finish Line:
Capturing the Evolution of Athletic Performance
For this exciting project, I had the pleasure of collaborating with Flying Duck Studio on a commission from The Open University in partnership with BBC One. The project, titled "Why Do Athletic Performances Improve?", explores how athletic performance has evolved over time, using a fascinating comparison between the 1960s Olympics and today's events. The project was part of a broader research initiative by The Open University and BBC One, with a special focus on advancements in sports.
Working on this project was a true sprint—not just in capturing the speed and motion of Olympic athletes, but in racing against a tight three-week deadline to deliver a 16-second animation, eight illustrations, and social media assets.
One of the central challenges was bringing authenticity to both the 1960s and contemporary athletics. This meant paying close attention to details such as the architecture and background elements, the athlete outfits, equipment, and movements, their body shapes, skin tones, and physical diversity, ensuring that every detail was historically accurate.
Working within a tight deadline, I approached the task systematically, starting with movement tests ensured the runners looked realistic and captured the energy of both time periods. I reused the same animations, tweaking small details, such as colours and slight differences in motion to create individual, distinctive characters while maintaining efficiency.
Flying Duck gave me creative freedom over the animation’s look and feel, allowing me to make design decisions on style, color palette, and texture. This flexibility made the collaboration smooth and productive.
I developed a unique visual style for the animation, experimenting with textures and colours that gave the project its identity, while adhering to the brief’s requirements.
The final animation and illustrations effectively captured the evolution of athletics, from the technological advancements in equipment to the broader inclusion of women athletes. The Open University and Flying Duck were thrilled with both the creative process and the end results.
It was a pleasure to work on such an inspiring project, collaborating with such a lovely team and contributing to a meaningful exploration of sports history.
Credits :
Creative Director: Alixe Lobato
Creative Producer and Sound Design : Josephine Amalie von Bülow
