Nexus And Johnny Kelly Are Unexpected Stars Of The Grammys

London animation studio Nexus, and their compassionate stop motion animation "Back to the Start" for US food chain, Chipotle, were the surprise hit at the Grammy awards on Sunday night, getting major plaudits as the show stealer of the night.
Directed by Royal College of Art graduate, Johnny Kelly, at Nexus, the spot made its tv premiere at the awards and features a cover by Willie Nelson of the Coldplay song 'The Scientist'. Already enjoying acclaim since its online launch last year, "Back to the Start" has been named in the top 10 ads by Adweek and its rapturous reception at the Grammys looks set to see it continue on its upward path.
Twitter lit up in response to the first TV showing of the work with many viewers admitting to be being deeply moved by the spot. In coverage usually only seen for Superbowl commercials, the phenomenon was picked up by the likes of The New York Times and The Washington Post where it was described as 'performance of the night' even though not part of the actual show.
The ad has been tweeted more than ten thousand times since the awards and the Youtube views now stand at over five million.
Working with US talent agents CAA and Chipotle (the firm does not use traditional ad agency), this is the first time Chipotle has run an ad on national tv. Charting one farmer's journey full circle from a family concern through to a huge industrialised operation and back again to a more sustainable way of farming, 'Back to the Start' is both charming and moving and was created in support of Chipotle's Cultivate Foundation. Proceeds from any downloads of the song will go to the Foundation.
Viewing Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=aMfSGt6rHos
Nexus are no strangers to making talked about advertising. Their animated musical spot for car client Honda withLondon agency Wieden & Kennedy was named ad of the decade in 2010 by Adweek.