Jobstart

Extravagant props, executive desks, chairs and high-end furnishings consisting of plush carpets, lavish curtains, intricate sculptures and an abundance of flowers were sourced by JAS from all corners of Sydney and bumped (carefully) into the Royal Automobile Club Australia in December 2012 as back drop for CBA’s latest campaign.

Conceptualized by M&C Saatchi, the tag line ‘Get your working life off to a flying start’ was brought to life by our styling team with carefully selected wardrobe and props to characterize a young woman new to the workplace, rapidly reaching CEO status thanks to CBA’s special saving’s package for young workers.

Photographer: Julian Wolkenstein
Stylist: Janai Anselmi
Hair & Make Up: Margo Regan

Agency: M&C Saatchi

Client: Commonwealth Bank

Pump

Earlier this year a massive campaign for Pump flavoured waters hit the streets… seen on buses, billboards, train stations plus more, and JAS was lucky enough to be involved behind the scenes. Janai teamed up with photographer Ian Butterworth to capture the fresh excitement linked to the infused water drinks. Custom spray-painting inflatable boat tow-rings to match pop colour cozzies, and perfecting the ideal water splash! Working on specially built scaffolding in Sun Studios, with mini swimming pools, buckets and mops, it was a wet and wonderful day, leaving everyone looking forward to summer and the sun. A special shout-out must go to the talent who had to bob in icy water all day!

Bulleit Bourbon

And so the legend goes -: In the 1800s Augustus Bulleit produced some of America’s finest bourbon, but whilst travelling across the Western Plains was thought to have vanished along with the prized recipe… until recently... *queue dramatic music* Matt Hoyle captures an intense mood and evocative tone beautifully in this Bulleit Bourbon campaign commissioned by the creatives at Leo Burnett and styled by Pete and Janai. Pete jumped at the chance to rummage through second hand stores, specialist costume shops and props houses for authentic aged wardrobe pieces and props. He sourced everything from cowhide vests and gun holsters to aged furniture and wine barrels to ensure Janai had an eclectic mix of vintage goodies to work with. Using high tech equipment like instant coffee, matches and sponge… He also constructed the perfect series of burnt parchment and antiqued recipes. Hair and Make-Up credits go to the JAS alliance Margo Regan, who agonized over gluing facial hair, cementing wigs, shaping moustaches and dirtying up the Cowboys and Indians with ‘authentic Western filth’. The end result a menacing bunch of mugs. Yee-haa indeed.

Smilemaker - Fantasy Man

We were left a little speechless when presented with a brief that involved naughty toys and minimal clothing. Of course JAS naturally obliged, although locating the perfect spandex posing pouch proved more difficult than first envisaged! The styling team had their hands full… of wood chips and furry rugs, sequined accessories and trimmings galore to bring to life these provocative images shot by Julian Wolkenstein for Smilemaker; an interactive website where the viewer teams their hunk of choice with wardrobe accessories and locations they desire. This particular project married the styling techniques of old, with the advertising means of the present and future. The ‘Interactive Ad’ challenged the JAS team, as for it to be successful the layers of each beautiful image must work alongside the layers of the next, and intermix each time to create a contrived scenario! But with a keen eye for detail and visionary imagination, the job was done. Check out the end result at the below link… Jo has a soft spot for Jungle Wayne… http://fantasyman.comeplaywithus.com

Atacand

Every so often a brief comes along that gets us thinking creatively and a little left of centre. One very brief was that of the pharmaceutical brand Atacand who, for their blood pressure medicine, came up with the tag line “Some thing’s just belong together”. Building a living room in Sun Studios, Janai & Pete adorned it with retro wallpaper, animal hide accessories and knick-knacks right out of the swinging 60’s and sexual 70s. Using talent’s own embellished jumpsuits and capes it was just a matter of fitting the environment around the outfits. Photographer Jeremy Park captured a proud yet comical portrait style with the personalised living space making it appear to be Elvis’s own. A second execution captured in the same style shows the Best-in-Show Bichon-Fris owner and pup caught in a similarly proud moment, surrounded by puppy love mugs, professional photographs, competition ribbons and doilies - total reflections of their universe. A fun and memorable project for all involved.

Opera Australia - La Boheme

In late 2010, Janai, Jo and Nate took on the project of dressing and propping the modern interpretation by Opera Australia of the Italian romance story La Boheme. Set in cold Berlin it is a dramatic tale of love emerging in darker times. The promotional shots were staged at Sun Studios using an existing exposed brick wall and painted flats by Phil Skelton. Photographer Chris Kappa worked with the JAS team on the day to accentuate luscious fabrics in a romantic colour palette such as blood red velvets, light latte linens and coppery metallic’s, inspired from a huge Persian Rug. Timeless antique furniture in deep cherry woods and marbled stone were placed on set, including aged oil paintings and world globes, as well as kitsch vintage pieces such as a toy carousel and bird cage.

The cast’s wardrobe took elements of their surrounding colours and textures into account to help marry them into the environment. Focus was preferred on the cast’s character but each needed an accent of some sort to personify their characters attributes. This included sequin sleeves, cherry red pocket squares and bronze waistcoats. The mood of the play is dark just like many dramatic romances… so black was a strong feature, broken up by deep raspberry and charcoal greys. The men in soft tailored suits and women in courageous necklines and featured sleeves. Each outfit was put together to not represent a particular Era in history, but to come across slightly timeless … Love has no historic date!

Unwired

We worked on these about 18 months ago with Three Drunk Monkey's and Simon Harsent. Location wise it wasn't entirely enjoyable but in hindsight they look great with lots of texture and depth. It is nice to see advertising that does involve complete gentrification of society.

Jacobs Creek

Earlier this year I posted some behind the scenes images of Nate and I garden styling. The image on the left is the end result of our tropical garden balcony creation. The balcony itself was only about 2.5m x 80cm so there was  challenge to fit established palm trees on the narrow ledge. The drummer execution was set built in studio and extensively propped. Note my artistic handy work in the painting - copyright free! All elements were shot by Gary Sheppard and combined in these fictional landscapes.

Coco Republic

We just spent two days shooting at the stunning Coco Republic complex in Alexandria for Good Weekend. I love that Coco Republic have such a consistent style across their brands and that their stores are so well styled. Parquetry flooring, distressed leather and salvaged marine timber are complemented with large scale photographs and a huge range of authentic vintage accessories. Styling props include a life size timber boat and taxidermic peacocks.

My Career

More long lens fun with Adrian Brown and The Furnace for My Career. We also shot a TVC on two of the same days with Jungle Boys

Lindt

I shot this last year with Stephen Stewart for FNL. We created a fictional Swiss Chocolatiers studio at Sun Studios. The brick wall was pre existing, I commissioned all other surfaces and furniture to be built by Alien Construction. I loved sourcing all the props with their industrial yet homely feel. 

HSBC

Late last year we styled the attached campaign for HSBC shot by Sean Izzard and art directed by John Lam. We were in charge of all details from set build and decorating, sourcing mannequins, props and wardrobe. We also created a kit for 13 HSBC branches nationwide to assemble 39 mannequins and clothing as an in store extension of the print campaign.

The campaign has run as web, outdoor, in store and print including broadsheet overlays in national papers.

Tropical Paradise

Nate and I had the pleasure of creating this tropical paradise from scratch recently for photographer Gary Sheppard. We used a range of established palms, scrubs, hanging plants, tropical flowers and vines. Artificial pants and flowers were added to include species that were out of season and avoid wilting in the heat. I am thinking I might change career when I am around fifty and become a floral designer.