Fancy footwork: Nike celebrates brand’s history in campaign film

London – The story of Nike footwear, from its inception in the 1970s to the present day, has been brought to life by a striking animated film.

How many shoes can you show in under two minutes? Quite a few, according to Golden Wolf, the London-based animation agency behind Nike’s latest film, which features 200 pairs of Nike trainers, football boots and running shoes. 

In one minute and 50 seconds, the video covers 43 years of Nike footwear. The film is divided into seven eras: Genesis (1971–1994), Reformation (1995–1998), Golden Years (1999–2002), Enlightenment (2003–2006), Renaissance (2007–2010), Transformation (2011–2013) and Revolution (2014). The video is part of Nike’s Genealogy of Innovation campaign and was released across social media platforms.

Each era is represented with its own visual language and a separate soundtrack, produced by Bristol-based agency Echoic Audio. CGI, 3D scanning and original photography were all used to create the time-travelling, kaleidoscopic and other-worldly film.

This a great example of a brand creating a story and status around its own history. For another example, read our Seed on Herman Miller’s brand history and read our Faction Marketing macrotrend for more on brand storytelling tactics.