Klay Thompson’s Comeback Ode Is Visually Stunning While Telling an Honest Story

Athlete comeback story ads (or films, if you’d like) usually follow a linear pattern. First, the devastating injury, then the blow-by-blow of the comeback. The stories are often compelling, sometimes heartbreaking, but generally resolve themselves in the payoff at the end with a return to competition. Last week, Golden State Warriors star Klay Thompson shared a new film of his own journey back from his ACL injury in last year’s NBA Finals. The short, created by Translation (which gained a bit of buzz about its State Farm work during ESPN’s The Last Dance) and for Kaiser Permanente, follows a predictable pattern … to a point. [kickout id="1"] First off, it’s a long ad. Ordinarily, a six-minute ad like this would be considered ridiculously self-indulgent. But the brand and agency give you plenty of reasons to stick around. Yes, the familiar structure is there, but several artistic flourishes and metaphors make the work more compelling. One could also argue that the subject of the film, Thompson himself, is another reason that it’s something different. Though he’s a legit superstar, he’s not often in as white-hot a spotlight as other NBA stars like LeBron James and his Warriors teammate Steph Curry (who fronted another series for Kaiser Permanente in 2018). He’s an interesting cat, and the inclusion of his candid father, former Portland Trail Blazers great Mychal Thompson, makes the short that much more interesting. It’s easy to take work like this and try to overinterpret and deconstruct. And while there are reasons to break down creative motivations from the director, Floyd Russ, sometimes it’s perfectly fine to watch something like this and simply enjoy it. CREDITS: Translation LLC CEO and Founder: Steve Stoute President: Ann Wool Head of Client Services: Susanna Swartley Chief Marketing Officer: Chaucer Barnes Group Creative Director: Alex Kaplan Group Creative Director: Barry Katz Senior Art Director: Dylan Simel Senior Copywriter: Nickolaus Sugai Executive Content Producer: Matthew Flaherty Content Producer: Dustin Grant Account Director: Austin Scherer Account Supervisor: Ciara Travis Account Executive: Bridget Derraugh Chief Strategy Officer: Sandi Preston Strategy Director: Drew Simel Strategist: Megan Mundo Director of Business Affairs: Thalia Tsouros Business Affairs Manager: Maria Elia Business Affairs Manager: Noyle Jones Context Director: Angel Navedo Senior Project Manager: Ali Schurz Tool of North America Director: Floyd Russ Executive Producer: Laura Macauley Line Producer: Andy Coverdale DP: Jacob Moller Production Designer: Dean Backer Editor: Stacy Peterson at Cut + Run, Post Producer Marcia Wigley VFX: MPC, VFX Supervisor Tobey Lindback Cut + Run NY Editor: Stacy Peterson Assistant Editor: Chris Wronka Head of Production: Marcia Wigley MPC Creative Director: Alvin Cruz VFX Supervisor: Alvin Cruz VFX Supervisor: Tobey Lindback Senior Executive Producer: Camila De Biaggi Senior Producer: Elissa Norman 2D Lead: Tobey Lindback 2D artists: Mazyar Sharifian, Renato Carone, Anthony Ricciardi Jogger Studios Online NY Flame Artist: Joey Grosso Flame Assistant: Rachel Driver Post Producer: Mike Tockman The Mill NY Colorist: Mikey Rosssiter Human Worldwide Music, Sound Design and Mix Barking Owl Mix: Dan Flosdorf Senior Producer: Ashley Bento

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Klay Thompson’s Comeback Ode Is Visually Stunning While Telling an Honest Story

Translation follows up its State Farm work with another winner

Doug Zanger

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Doug Zanger