Wakanda’s Next Heroes: A Drone Activation Celebrating STEM in partnership with Marvel & Xbox
The Partnership
To celebrate diversity and innovation in science, technology, and art, Xbox and Marvel Studios teamed up with Hijinx and CMD Agency to launch an inspiring campaign that would encourage the next generation of diverse leaders in STEM and gaming.
Our goal was to inspire young people to innovate and create, drawing inspiration from Wakanda's Chief Scientist Shuri. Through a range of activations, digital experiences, coding initiatives, and inspiring individuals who have made significant achievements in STEM, we aimed to showcase the possibilities and potential within these fields.
The WORK
To launch this partnership, we orchestrated and filmed a stunning 300-piece drone show that transformed into symbols representing every aspect of the collaboration: from the iconic Xbox logo to the Black Panther mask, and ultimately culminating in an aspirational message written in Wakandan: "POWER YOUR DREAMS".
Using cutting-edge technology and artistry, we wrote our message in the stars, inspiring awe and wonder among our audience. Letitia Wright, who played Shuri in the Black Panther movie, provided the narration for this spectacular display, setting the tone for the exciting journey that followed.
The campaign included a range of initiatives designed to promote STEM education and inspire the next generation of leaders in this field. This included a coding initiative with MakeCode, a roundtable discussion led by influential Black female creators, and a unique, Black Panther-inspired Xbox console and accessories.
Through our creative partnership with Xbox and Marvel Studios, we aimed to showcase the incredible potential of STEM and inspire young people to pursue their dreams, no matter how big or small.
Below is the overarching case study for the campaign:
My specific responsibilities throughout the partnership included:
Casting: Cast the drone activation audience with one week’s notice, with a focus on diversity and including a wide range of ages
Production Partner Management: Scoped and secured partner contracts, including drone activation company, on-the-ground crew, and still photographer. Briefed vendors on fast-moving activation designs and logistics, as well as served as central point-of-contact between client, internal teams, and vendors
Scheduling & Budgeting: Adhered to an extremely tight two week-long timeline for the drone activation, as well as managing productions to come in at/under budget
Post-production: Provided feedback and direction on each step of the edit process, including factoring in dual feedback streams from internal teams, Marvel, and Xbox
The results
Across the campaign, we saw our audience engage deeply with the activations, with overall engagement metrics coming to:
3B+ Impressions
5M+ Organic video views
170K+ Students, teachers and not-for profits reached
120K+ Competition entries