Michael Ko - DREAM

Let's design

DREAM

A solo-made 3D character animation commercial — crafted to elevate Vagaro's brand identity in the most delightful way possible.

client

VAGARO

Year

2025

CREATIVE INTENT

When Vagaro committed to a P-Max campaign for YouTube and Hulu, the brief was clear — drive traffic and build brand awareness for beauty and wellness verticals.

Rather than defaulting to the expected, I saw an opportunity.

Drawing inspiration from Airbnb's beloved isometric character storytelling, I pitched an ambitious 3D character animation direction Vagaro had never attempted before.

Hand-drawn storyboards and concept sketches were brought to the table to convince decision makers — and bring the vision to life.

When Vagaro committed to a P-Max campaign for YouTube and Hulu, the brief was clear — drive traffic and build brand awareness for beauty and wellness verticals.

Rather than defaulting to the expected, I saw an opportunity.

Drawing inspiration from Airbnb's beloved isometric character storytelling, I pitched an ambitious 3D character animation direction Vagaro had never attempted before.

Hand-drawn storyboards and concept sketches were brought to the table to convince decision makers — and bring the vision to life.

CREATIVE INTENT

When Vagaro committed to a P-Max campaign for YouTube and Hulu, the brief was clear — drive traffic and build brand awareness for beauty and wellness verticals.

Rather than defaulting to the expected, I saw an opportunity.

Drawing inspiration from Airbnb's beloved isometric character storytelling, I pitched an ambitious 3D character animation direction Vagaro had never attempted before.

Hand-drawn storyboards and concept sketches were brought to the table to convince decision makers — and bring the vision to life.

PROCESS & CRAFT

The creative process started with two anchors — Vagaro's brand guidelines and a deep understanding of the audience.

The brand provided the foundation: Brick, Vagaro's signature desaturated red, and Proxima Nova as the typeface.

The audience provided the direction.

With beauty and wellness business owners being predominantly female, the visual mood needed to go beyond brand compliance.

Brick was retained as an accent, while a purplish shadow palette was introduced — colors that naturally align with the femininity, warmth, and aspiration of the beauty and wellness world.

Shape language was equally intentional. Every asset — from furniture to architecture to the character herself — was designed with soft, rounded forms to reinforce the warmth and femininity of the world being built.

The character's red outfit served as a deliberate brand accent — grounding Vagaro's Brick color in the scene naturally and human-first.

That color relationship became the creative spine of the entire project.

The gradient between Brick and purple drove every downstream decision — from the shape language of characters and environments to the shading and texturing aesthetics — ensuring every visual element felt cohesive, considered, and crafted for the audience it was designed to reach.

The creative process started with two anchors — Vagaro's brand guidelines and a deep understanding of the audience.

The brand provided the foundation: Brick, Vagaro's signature desaturated red, and Proxima Nova as the typeface.

The audience provided the direction.

With beauty and wellness business owners being predominantly female, the visual mood needed to go beyond brand compliance.

Brick was retained as an accent, while a purplish shadow palette was introduced — colors that naturally align with the femininity, warmth, and aspiration of the beauty and wellness world.

The character's red outfit served as a deliberate brand accent — grounding Vagaro's Brick color in the scene naturally and human-first.

That color relationship became the creative spine of the entire project.

PROCESS & CRAFT

The creative process started with two anchors — Vagaro's brand guidelines and a deep understanding of the audience.

The brand provided the foundation: Brick, Vagaro's signature desaturated red, and Proxima Nova as the typeface.

The audience provided the direction.

With beauty and wellness business owners being predominantly female, the visual mood needed to go beyond brand compliance.

Brick was retained as an accent, while a purplish shadow palette was introduced — colors that naturally align with the femininity, warmth, and aspiration of the beauty and wellness world.

The character's red outfit served as a deliberate brand accent — grounding Vagaro's Brick color in the scene naturally and human-first.

That color relationship became the creative spine of the entire project.

CHALLENGE & SOLUTION

Two constraints defined this project: time and resources.

Leadership needed results, the budget was tight, and the creative direction was the most ambitious Vagaro had ever attempted — all on a 6-week solo timeline.

The first challenge was speed.

With no time for polished presentations, storyboarding was done rapidly in pen and paper — prioritizing clarity over aesthetics, and — It worked.

The full visual storyline, character design, and shot sequencing were locked within the first week.

The second challenge was production scope.
Two full 3D environments and a fully animated rigged character with dynamic hair was an enormous ask for a single artist.

The solution was strategic compromise — acquiring pre-made 3D assets to minimize modeling time, using Midjourney AI to generate dream-like backgrounds, and ElevenLabs for voiceover.

These micro-decisions weren't shortcuts. They were the reason the project crossed the finish line.

Two constraints defined this project: time and resources.

Leadership needed results, the budget was tight, and the creative direction was the most ambitious Vagaro had ever attempted — all on a 6-week solo timeline.

The first challenge was speed.

With no time for polished presentations, storyboarding was done rapidly in pen and paper — prioritizing clarity over aesthetics, and — It worked.

The full visual storyline, character design, and shot sequencing were locked within the first week.

The second challenge was production scope.
Two full 3D environments and a fully animated rigged character with dynamic hair was an enormous ask for a single artist.

The solution was strategic compromise — acquiring pre-made 3D assets to minimize modeling time, using Midjourney AI to generate dream-like backgrounds, and ElevenLabs for voiceover.

These micro-decisions weren't shortcuts. They were the reason the project crossed the finish line.

CHALLENGE & SOLUTION

Two constraints defined this project: time and resources.

Leadership needed results, the budget was tight, and the creative direction was the most ambitious Vagaro had ever attempted — all on a 6-week solo timeline.

The first challenge was speed.

With no time for polished presentations, storyboarding was done rapidly in pen and paper — prioritizing clarity over aesthetics, and — It worked.

The full visual storyline, character design, and shot sequencing were locked within the first week.

The second challenge was production scope.
Two full 3D environments and a fully animated rigged character with dynamic hair was an enormous ask for a single artist.

The solution was strategic compromise — acquiring pre-made 3D assets to minimize modeling time, using Midjourney AI to generate dream-like backgrounds, and ElevenLabs for voiceover.

These micro-decisions weren't shortcuts. They were the reason the project crossed the finish line.