Marketing during wartime

For the Ukraine-based Bad Studios, creativity is an act of bravery

Marketers like to cite bravery as an important trait for success in our business. What we usually mean by that is having the guts to present and produce edgy or unexpected creative ideas. But, "marketing bravery" is a long way from real-world courage, as the April Six team learned over the past few weeks from our Ukraine-based production partner, Bad Studios.

As part of our branding and lead-generation work for Payscale, an innovator in the rapidly emerging compensation software space, April Six North America was asked to create a series of five 60-second videos, along with corresponding 30- and 15-second versions. (View examples of the completed videos below.)

Schedules were tight, resources were limited and, with COVID-19 precautions still in place, we would need to produce the 15 videos without the benefit of original footage. In response, the April Six creative team developed a unified approach combining stock footage and royalty free music with newly recorded voiceovers and original motion graphics (leveraging components from the Payscale brand, also developed by April Six).

Pre-production began in December 2021 and, by January 2022, we were in discussions with Bad Studios on video editing and the creation of original motion graphics for the series. Having worked successfully with Bad Studios on previous projects, we were confident its team would deliver the production quality we expected, despite any potential challenges. 

We had no idea how deeply that belief would be put to the test in the weeks ahead. The more we worked with Bad Studios, the more its principals impressed us with their tireless dedication and boundless enthusiasm. What follows is a story that needed to be told; we thank Bad Studios for allowing us to tell it.

It's also worth noting that, in our day-to-day emails and in a handful of live Zoom calls, the April Six team continually conveyed its deep concern for the safety of Anastasia and Lev, and offered to adjust schedules or allow them to bow out of the project entirely. In each case, they thanked the team, but reconfirmed their commitment. These dedicated creators continued to focus on the project while experiencing chaos (and worse) all around them. 

Partnering with the good people of Bad Studios

Bad Studios is Anastasiia Stanishevskaya and Lev Plotnikov (pictured above), fellow Ukrainians who met as students at the Kharkiv State Academy of Design and Arts (KSADA) and founded their Kiev-based animation and design firm in 2019. Their actions following the February 24th invasion by Russia's military constitute an incredible level of poise and professional commitment. Their words are no less inspiring.

"In early February, the foreign media began to report on an impending invasion," says Anastasiia. "This was greeted with a sense of disbelief in our country. We've expected all-out war with Russia for the last couple of years, but most of us never really believed it."

Nevertheless, the life and work partners packed everything they needed in preparation for a quick evacuation. "It felt like training for something terrible that was never going to happen," remembers Anastasiia. "We had to pack and unpack for two weeks."

Just hours prior to the invasion, a previously scheduled kickoff meeting was held over Zoom for one of the early videos in the series. Although everyone involved remained mindful of the project, all those on the April Six team couldn't help but consider the dangerous new dynamic facing our partners (who, by this time, had become our friends).

Not surprisingly, it was business as usual for the fearless Bad Studios team. "We typically proceed on production without any delays following a kickoff," reports Lev. "So, we worked on the project from 7:00 p.m. to midnight. After that, we were awake most of the rest of the night packing. The first two rockets exploded in Kiev as we were finally getting to bed—but we had a plan, so we were able to evacuate from the city in one hour."

"We took our cat, woke up dad and, in 10 minutes, flew out of the apartment, and jumped into the car," adds Anastasiia. "We then picked up two relatives and departed Kiev." 

"By this time it was already dawn," recalls Lev. "As we moved west, explosions continued close enough for us to see 'giant bomb mushroom-clouds' and hear their reactive roar. We acknowledged the fact that we all could die, and we accepted our fates. With nowhere to hide on the highway, the car felt like a gas can on wheels. (The gas tank had been filled in advance—a good thing since we saw kilometers-long lines for fuel)." 

"Driving more than 350km that first day, we bypassed big cities so we wouldn't get stuck in traffic," recalls Lev. "We ultimately waited four hours to enter the city of Khmelnitsky, where we sheltered in an old, USSR-style apartment (and agreed that it was the most gorgeous thing we had ever seen)."

"We were feeling blessed to have a bed, food, and internet access—and so we continued on the Payscale video production," added Lev.

"The explosions were already behind us, but they were still in our heads," says Anastasiia. "Every slammed door brought us back to the sounds of Russia's brutality." The following morning, they loaded up the car and continued their journey to the unknown.

Currently residing in the southwestern city of Chernivtsi (with their kitty Sumrak, pictured sleeping at right), Anastasiia and Lev are still working, creating, and hoping for the best. "As of yet, Chernivtsi has avoided attacks, but the air alert siren often works," states Anastasiia. "We go to bed hoping not to be killed sleeping or buried under ruins, as do our loved ones."

Adds Lev, "We hope that our homes will stay intact, we dream that our country will remain independent, and that those involved in war crimes will pay the same price as their victims."

It is the hope of all of us at April Six that peace comes to Ukraine, and that our friends can return to their home city of Kiev to continue their work and lives in safety.

Contact Bad Studios for information on working with Anastasiia and Lev. Join April Six in supporting UNICEF's mission to ensure Ukraine's children have access to safe water, nutrition, healthcare, education, and protection.