World of Coca-Cola - Stories from the Vault
In late 2023, World of Coca-Cola launched a new interactive exhibit: The Beverage Lab. It invites guests to “delve deep into the world of beverages” by showcasing the science, creativity, and innovation that go into every one of Coca-Cola’s products. Guests would be able to learn about balancing flavors and carbonation, test unreleased formulas that are still in development, and get a chance to taste two discontinued beverages: TaB and New Coke.
For the exhibit, Coke wanted videos that would give quick, accessible history lessons on those two blasts from the past titled “Stories from the Vault.” It was important for guests who never had a chance to try these products to have some context for why they were prominently featured within the Beverage Lab. While TaB and New Coke have different levels of perceived success, they are equally important in Coca-Cola’s legacy of innovation and risk taking.
We were tasked with telling these stories.
Photo Credit: Coca-Cola
Our team worked closely with Solomon Group, the company who put together the Beverage Lab exhibit, and the team at Coke to create two one-minute videos, plus a title animation designed to loop between the two Stories from the Vault. Elevation was responsible for the script writing, data collection, animation, design, voice over, editorial, archive, prep, and delivery for each of these assets.
Club Cool
Most of our team is from Atlanta, meaning that Coke runs through our veins. But we were excited about this project for a few other reasons.
First of all, these videos were set to act as a pilot for more potential Stories from the Vault entries in the future. This meant we were responsible with establishing the direction, tone, and style for this short form content series.
But most importantly, creating something that will play as a full-time installation is a unique experience for us.
We are well versed in promos, ads, and events that have a limited runtime in front of an audience.
But these Stories from the Vault videos would loop seven days a week, playing for the hundreds of thousands of guests who visit each year.
The opportunity to create something as part of a permanent exhibit in the heart of the city most of us call home was extremely cool.
Experimental Directions
We initially pitched three possible directions for Stories from the Vault.
Archival: This direction would lean into a timeline style presentation, incorporating old photographs and newspaper clippings.
Beverage Lab: World of Coca-Cola had already worked with MediaMonks to establish a modern style for the Beverage Lab exhibit, blending elements of science and magic. Embracing this aesthetic, this concept would include sophisticated fluid simulations and hyper-realistic 3D backgrounds.
Simple Scientific: This took the modern, minimal style of the Beverage Lab and paired it with 2D infographics with grid patterns and traveling data points.
Simple Scientific became the overarching design direction, but the final result is an alchemy-like blend of all three concepts. Since the videos heavily leaned on Coca-Cola’s digital archives as source materials, the Archival direction gave us a way to weave in historical materials and contemporaneous articles. Since these videos would be two screens incorporated into the larger exhibit, it made sense to rely on the established dimensional Beverage Lab style.
Soda Stories
Story was one of the most important elements to get right. TaB and New Coke products with decades-long histories. There was a lot to include in a very short amount of time. There were three main challenges: the runtime, the tone, and the placement of the video screens inside the exhibit’s queue.
To solve the first issue, our writer James got to work finding an angle that included the themes of the Beverage Lab experience: innovation and experimentation. This would help shape the stories and keep them focused. For New Coke, we settled on a story of innovation being impossible without risk, and how New Coke was a bold and risky move. For TaB, the video would focus on how the soda was a pioneer in the low calorie space, paving the way for mainstays like Diet Coke and Coke Zero Sugar.
Research played a huge role in finding the right angle. The team at Coke provided us with a bevy of documents, transcripts, and imagery on the history of both of these products. Plus, we looked into numerous online articles, videos, and podcasts for added context. James pared down this information into a compelling narrative through the lens of our chosen angles.
The second big consideration was tone, which was especially important for New Coke. The team at Coke wanted to own their history by showcasing a risk that didn’t pay off as they had hoped.
While the launch of New Coke is seen as a misstep in hindsight, the story is much more nuanced than that. The decision to change the formula was driven by extensive taste test data, and the decision to bring Coca-Cola Classic back was driven by listening to what fans were asking for.
It was important to strike a tone that conveyed the nuance while still being accurate to the product’s history.
The final consideration for these pieces was its placement in the Beverage Lab queue. These videos would be playing on a loop as guests made their way through the line. We started each video off with a strong hook to draw the viewer in, and made sure that the story played out as much in the visuals as it did in the narration.
Designing In My TaB Era
We wanted each of these stories to feel rooted in their specific times. This became one of the driving factors of the design of each piece.
The New Coke story took place in the 1980s, and it was important to convey to audiences young and old that it was not a “new” experiment happening right now. We made this clear through frequent flashes of the year on screen, as well as 80s stying.
Similarly with TaB, it was important to play up the fact that its development took place in the 1960s, which reinforced the angle of it as a pioneer for low-calorie and low-sugar colas.
The colors in each video were pulled from the respective product packaging.
The TaB story features the bright pink and orange from the original can’s design, and New Coke leans heavily on the red, black and silver of its packaging.
Both videos used the company’s proprietary typeface, TCCC Unity.
Designed by Brody Associates and Coca-Cola’s in-house design team, the font takes its cues from late 19th and early 20th century Modern typography with its geometric flair and circularity.
Verti-cola
Another unique part of the Stories from the Vault pieces is the aspect ratio.
These videos play on a massive vertical 4K screen that stretches 6 feet tall.
This screen was also installed inside a pill-shaped frame, so we had to create 2160 × 3840 videos with a bespoke title safe area to make sure nothing was cut off from the frame.
To make sure that everything was proportioned correctly, we created a 3D rendering of the room to preview the videos in. This helped us make sure that the view point was at the correct height, that everything was proportioned correctly, and that text was not too small and not too large.
This paid off, as the installation of the video into the exhibit went smoothly. We only had to make minor changes after the install, and it was great to see it in person after spending so much time previewing it in 3D.
Closing the Vault
The Beverage Lab opened in November 2023, touted as World of Coca-Cola’s most immersive exhibit to date. We are thrilled with being able to help contribute to this experience. Our thanks to The Coca-Cola Company and Solomon Group for the great collaboration.
Credits
Client: Solomon Group
Executive Project Director - Early Stage Design Strategy: Erich Fox
Client: The Coca-Cola Company
Creative Director - Digital and Physical Experiences: Scott Hickman
Creative Content Manager at World of Coca-Cola: Erin Lothner
Production Company: Elevation
Executive Creative Director: Stephen Cocks
Art Director: Dianne Frisbee
Producer: Alina Klopach
Senior Animator: Sean Kiley
Designer / Animator: Daniel Cooper
3D Modeling: Brian Davis
Writing / Research: James Grosch