Finch, Flume and Intel collaborate for ‘Felix the robot conductor’

Finch has teamed up award-winning Australian musician and producer Flume to highlight the creative power of Intel processors inside the world’s latest must have gadget – the tablet.

Intel has collaborated with Finch, and agency The Monkeys, to pioneer an inventive music film project (see two spots below) with Flume – otherwise known as Harley Streten – to launch “Intelligent Sounds”, a technological experiment which sees ‘Felix the robot conductor’, his tablet-powered band members, and their instruments come to life to perform a new Flume track created specifically for this purpose.

Each member of Intelligent Sound’s tablet band was programmed with synthesised notes and triggered to play through on cue, while robot arms were pre-programmed to hit the required notes in time with the final song.

The robots were built in-house at Finch. The process of custom-designing and fabricating each element out of laser cut and 3D printed materials took over 2000 developer hours on a 10 week deadline.

Several apps were designed to listen for sound frequency and volume and to react to certain triggers, creating equaliser and waveform effects on the faces of the tablets.

A video sync app programmed all the robots to hit the notes simultaneously in a track composed by Flume exclusively for the campaign. The tablets were used as instruments themselves – those loaded with xylophone and mini plucker applications were positioned on a plinth in the exact spot where mallets could hit the required, synthesised notes.

Jayant Murty, Intel’s director of brand strategy and integrated marketing for the Asia Pacific, said the short film is designed to be an “entertaining light and sound experience and also to encourage viewers to consider the technology which is at the heart of their tablets”.

“It is common place to have tablets play your music but it’s rare to have tablets create them. Intel technology transforms these devices from tools for consuming content into innovative instruments that allow for incredible self-expression,” he said.

Flume said the Intelligent Sounds project was one of the more challenging and enjoyable of his career to date.

“I love the challenge of writing music for a particular project and a defined theme. I find working within these boundaries inspires, rather than limits, creativity,” he said.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Y35m1OpPAw

Credits
Agency: The Monkeys
Executive Creative Directors: Justin Drape & Micah Walker
Digital Creative Director: Jay Gelardi
Head of Broadcast Production: Thea Carone
Agency Producer: Jade Wannell
Director of Client Services: Dan Beaumont
Content Director: Brad Firth
Senior Content Manager: Priyanka Patel
Executive Planning Director: Fabio Buresti
Engagement Planner: Nikki Stammers
Social Media Strategist: Mat Abet
Social Media Creative: Alice Schofield
Production Company: Finch
Executive Producer: Rob Galluzzo
Director: Alex Roberts
Director of Applied Technology: Emad Tahtouh
Producer: Camilla Dehnert
Artist: Flume
Artist Management: Future Classic

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