Engineered for Whatever
We teamed up with SMUGGLER director Henry-Alex Rubin and creative agency adam&eveDDB London to launch Columbia Sportswear’s latest campaign: a bold visual series of four cinematic spots that dramatize extreme, near-nightmarish encounters in nature, set to prove Columbia gear can endure whatever comes.
Shot over two weeks across Austria, Croatia, and Slovenia, the mixed-media campaign
blends live-action with hand-drawn animation, stylized 3D CGI, old-school VHS textures, and high-end
visual effects. Each vignette depicts escalating natural chaos, from a snowplow barreling through a
blizzard to a rope rescue over gator-infested waters, pushing Columbia’s gear to its limits. The lead film
begins with deceptive calm before unleashing a storm of snakes, mudslides, and desert heat.
Framestore worked closely with Rubin and the agency concept and location scouting to shape the
campaign’s surreal tone and high-impact visuals. Creative Director and VFX Supervisor Kamen Markov
led the visual effects, while the Framestore's Design Studio, under David Lochhead, brought a unique
illustrative touch through hand-drawn animation. Every frame was enhanced in post, whether through
matte paintings, CG elements like flying pigs and snakes, or seamless environmental continuity. Even the
snowball and snowplow scenes were meticulously crafted with controlled artificial snow and invisible VFX
to heighten realism and drama.
The result is a campaign that captures the unpredictability of nature while proving Columbia gear is built
to handle whatever it throws your way.