ORCA Roundup November 2024
November has been a whirlwind month for the ORCA team! We’re excited to share some big news: we’re partnering with Pet Drugs Online, a leading supplier of veterinary medication, and Ware, an innovative platform shaking up the workplace. Plus, we’re taking you behind the scenes of a recent video shoot for one of our top-secret clients. The brand will remain under wraps until January - but we’d love to hear your guesses! Finally, discover which of 2024’s Christmas adverts have caught our eye. Take a closer look at ORCA’s November highlights below! 👇
FRESH FROM THE STUDIO
Announcing Our Partnership: ORCA X Pet Drugs Online
ORCA is thrilled to reveal that we are working with Pet Drugs Online! Pet Drugs Online is one of the UK’s largest and most trusted vet-run suppliers of veterinary medication and animal products licensed in the UK. Every team member is a pet owner and pet lover, committed to providing the best for customers' pets. While we can’t reveal the full scope of our partnership just yet, we look forward to sharing what we’ve been working on together soon - keep an eye out for updates!
Go Behind The Scenes For A Top-Secret Brand’s Campaign Shoot
In November, the ORCA team had the exciting opportunity to oversee the production of a dynamic advertisement for one of our brand collaborations. Tasked with concept development, branding, and creative direction, the ORCA team has poured their energy into crafting a campaign that challenges the typical trends. While we can’t reveal the brand just yet (stay tuned for the big reveal in early January!), we can share that the shoot was filled with playful and quirky moments brought to life by talented actors. The production spanned three unique locations across London and brought together a large and dedicated cast and crew. We’re counting down the days until we can share the final product with you - stay tuned!
Follow ORCA on Instagram for the reveal!
Announcing Our Partnership: ORCA X Ware
We are so proud to announce that we are partnering with Ware! Ware is a community-driven platform empowering workplaces with tools and resources to foster inclusivity, adaptability, and respect. We're excited to share more details about this partnership in the near future.
WHAT’S CAUGHT OUR EYE
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Christmas Ad Showdown: The Best and Worst of the Season
November brings with it a flurry of Christmas adverts, and here in the ORCA office, we’ve been enjoying watching them all and sharing our thoughts on the ones that have really stuck with us. John Lewis’ famous Christmas advert is back in the spotlight, as always, with high expectations and plenty of scrutiny from viewers. Meanwhile, The Entertainer surprised audiences by taking an unexpected, emotional turn with its tale of Ray, a forgotten toy overshadowed by the new Christmas toys. Coca-Cola, however, didn’t quite hit the mark - their AI update to the brand’s classic ‘Holidays Are Coming’ advert left many calling it "soulless." On the opposite end of the spectrum, Barbour won hearts again with its adorable Baa-bour x Shaun the Sheep stop-motion ad. We'd love to hear which Christmas ads stood out to you this year!
OpenAI’s First Artist In Residence’s Work Revealed
Alexander Reben, OpenAI’s first artist in residence, gained early access to the Sora text-to-video tool, which creates one-minute videos from text or speech prompts. A technologist trained at M.I.T., Reben used NVIDIA’s neural radiance field technology to convert Sora's A.I.-generated images into 3-D models. Monumental Labs, then sculpted one of these models into a four-foot-tall marble statue, veined with black and grey.
Photographers’ Perspectives from U.S. Election Day
The world was on edge, awaiting the results of the US election. We’ve gathered a few of our favourite shots from that pivotal day. Clockwise from the top left: Members of the media work at Vice President Kamala Harris' night rally during the 2024 U.S. presidential election at Howard University in Washington, D.C., captured by Kevin Mohatt for Reuters. The headstone of Susan B. Anthony is adorned with "I Voted" stickers at Mount Hope Cemetery in Rochester, N.Y., photographed by Lauren Petracca for AP Photo. Astronauts Butch Wilmore, Suni Williams, Nick Hague, and Don Pettit proudly display their U.S. flag-themed socks aboard the International Space Station on Election Day, as captured by NASA for AP Photo. Finally, voters cast their ballots at the Galleria at Sunset in Henderson, Nevada, photographed by Caroline Brehman for EPA.
Jaguar’s Controversial Rebrand
Jaguar’s recent rebrand caught the eye of the ORCA team and has sparked widespread attention and debate online. The company launched its new era by wiping its Instagram account and sharing a video captioned “Copy nothing.” The clip featured a diverse cast in avant-garde outfits against a vibrant pink landscape. Soon after, Jaguar teased its upcoming EV with close-up images. The rebrand included a new wordmark, “jaGUar,” mixing lowercase and uppercase letters, alongside an updated jaguar cat monogram. Reactions were mostly negative: critics called it overly “woke” and a betrayal of heritage, while some praised its bold step toward a fresh future for the brand. Time will reveal whether these reactions change, as the new branding continues to unfold. In the ORCA office, we’re curious to see whether the public’s perception shifts in the coming months.
NEXT MONTH
As we approach the final month of 2024 (and our team's eagerly awaited Christmas party), the ORCA team is preparing for a busy and exciting close to the year. We’ve got plenty more to share before the year wraps up, so stay tuned for our last newsletter of 2024. See you in December!
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Catch you on the next one! 👋