HOLLYWOOD — Videogame creative agency Hammer Creative (www.hammercreative.com) conceived, produced, edited and provided post production services for a new, four trailer marketing campaign that promotes THQ’s new Darksiders II title.
Creative director/producer Brett Hocker and the Hammer team spearheaded the new campaign, first conceiving and storyboarding the four trailers behind Darksiders II, including three that are fully CGI. The fourth is an ambitious, live action promo that’s book-ended by CGI content.
Hammer retained The Ebeling Group and director Abdel Abonamous to shoot the cinematic live action trailer, which runs 2:17. Filmed in Prague, Last Sermon begins with the scene of an Eastern European city lying in ruin. An old church miraculously standing amidst the rubble. Inside, actor James Cosmo appears as a minister, delivering a last sermon to his congregants, all of whom stand on the brink of death.
Screams of demons emanate from outside the church, and stained glass windows shatter. The Minister proclaims a day or wrath upon them, but then a bloody sword comes shooting through the front door. The Minister peers through the hole left by the sword and sees Death, who will save them from the army of demons. The Darksiders II logo appears, along with the tagline: “Death Lives.”
Hammer Creative also produced additional behind the scenes content promoting Darksiders II, and supplied all of the post production for the campaign, including editorial, motion graphics, original music, sound design and audio post. The company retained Sydney, Australia-based Plastic Wax Animation to produce the CGI featured within the four Darksiders II trailers.