Olipop “Vintage Game Night”
Motion and Still Photography Spec Work.
Overview
“Vintage Game Night” was a nostalgia-driven creative campaign for OLIPOP that reimagined the brand through the lens of 80s/90s gaming culture. The concept blended tactile, analog-era objects with the communal joy of couch co-op gaming, positioning OLIPOP as part of a shared, feel-good ritual.
I led the project end-to-end, from concept and visual language to execution, creating a cohesive world that lives somewhere between pixelated fantasy and lived-in memory. This production combined motion and still photography to help demonstrate advanced campaign level storytelling and production capability, shooting stills and motion simultaneously. I used AI to create a storyboard for production visuals and worked closely with Prop Stylist Sena Rosenberg to nail the set design.
During post, Samer Almadani - DP, and I worked closely on the edit (Doug Helmick) and color (Brandon Jones) to bring the piece to life.
The Idea
At its core, this piece asked: What does connection look like when everything is unplugged from modern noise?
The answer became a warm, slightly chaotic game night:
Friends gathered on a worn-in couch
Controllers tangled across shag carpet
Chips spilled, laughter loud
OLIPOP naturally embedded as the drink of choice
The creative direction leaned heavily into:
Tactility (physical buttons, cartridges, cords)
Imperfection (messy floors, real hangout energy)
Analog nostalgia (pre-internet entertainment)
The visual language was inspired by:
Atari-era gaming systems
Early home consoles and cartridges
Basement/den hangout culture
Landline-era domestic spaces
We built a world that felt:
Warm and saturated (amber tones, tungsten glow)
Lived-in and slightly chaotic
Authentically nostalgic without feeling like parody
Custom Retro Design
A key component was building a bespoke retro interface system, including:
Pixel-style title cards (“PRESS START”)
High score overlays
End-credit screens styled like arcade rollouts
These assets anchored the campaign in a recognizable gaming language while integrating OLIPOP seamlessly into the world.
Set Design & Props
Working alongside prop stylist Sena Rosenberg, we crafted a deeply detailed environment:
Vintage gaming consoles + cartridges
Era-appropriate snacks and packaging
Shag carpet, wood paneling, and cozy furniture
Layered clutter to create authenticity
Every object was intentional—designed to trigger memory and emotional recall
Key Takeaways
Nostalgia works best when it’s tactile and specific
Production design is storytelling, every object matters
Blending graphic systems (retro UI) with live action creates depth
Authenticity comes from imperfection, not polish
The final work delivered:
A cohesive nostalgic universe across still and motion
A strong emotional hook rooted in shared experience
A playful but grounded brand integration
OLIPOP became part of the ritual, not the interruption.
