Scleropathy Animation Case Study: DiD Agency

Project: Scleropathy Animation for Varithena®

MISSION: Edit an animation script for FDA application; Create a visually comprehensive and descriptive animation to explain the MOA of the Varithena® PEM foam.

[vimeo 105160061 w=500 h=281]

SOLUTION: We worked hard to amend an existing script to reduce the overall run time of the animation; Then went through a challenging regulatory process to make sure the script and references were approved and ready for production. Concurrently, we built a really beautiful dynamic system to show the injection of the Varithena PEM CO2 micro bubbles in vascular context. We included an extreme closeup to show the effective delivery of the polidocanol active drug to the epithelium resulting in epithelial destruction.

One of the most challenging aspects of this project was to build a dynamic particle system that could show the injection of the PEM bubbles into the greater saphenous vein. Initial efforts failed after injection reached the first third of the vessel volume. The reason for this was the shear number of particles needed to fill a volume. We solved this by displacing the core of the particle system with a passive collider that kept the overall numbers lower. The next challenge was to get the bubbles to look like semi translucent foam. The rendering process was long when applying geometry and a transparency MIS shader in Maya. The solution was unexpectedly effective; We used a couple different images and replaced the geometry particle output with sprite based image planes! This worked out incredibly well and reduced render times by a gigantic margin. We were able to improve the overall contrast sensitivity of the bubbles to look more like bubbles as well.

This project was a very fulfilling series of complex challenges that pushed our skills and expanded our capability tool sets. The result was an animation that is visually compelling and something our production and creative teams are very proud of. The MOA sequence continues to be visually relevant and has expanded our large database of anatomic models and shaders. This animation can be counted as one of our best productions. Thanks to Angela Mancini at DiD and Sam Gannaway for a brilliant, old school dynamic solution. Thanks Sam.

COMPLETED: November, 2013

BUDGET: ≈ $20,000-$35,000