Play-Doh: Air Dry Clay and Slime
.svg)
Play-Doh: Air Dry Clay and Slime
In short
Portal had the pleasure of working with Hasbro on two videos for two different Play-Doh products: Slime and Air Dry Clay. The brief was to bring the products to life through short-form videos that demonstrated what made each one special. A straightforward brief that wasn’t short of challenge. Our job was to create fun, energetic videos that balanced carefully planned production with the authentic spontaneity of children discovering the products. Let’s take you through the process.
Deliverables
Creative concept development
Storyboarding and animatics
Live-action video production
Video editing and post-production
Motion graphics and animation
Sound design
Two toys, two approaches
Play-Doh Slime is all about sensory play. It comes in all sorts of compounds and consistencies, giving children different textures to stretch, squish and twist. That tactile quality became central to our strategy. With the product aimed at younger kids, we designed our video to highlight the real experience of playing with the slimy compound.
On the flip side, Play-Doh Air Dry Clay is aimed at slightly older children and offers a different form of play. The quick-drying clay allows children to shape, sculpt and mould creatures and figures to keep. Hasbro supplied the Portal team with cute clay cows for the project. This gave us a creative starting point for the production, while leaving room for the children to leave their own stamp on what they made.
From scribbles to screens
With two products and a shoot involving children, careful planning was essential. Our team created detailed storyboards for both videos. These mapped out the action, product demonstrations and on-screen graphics before production began. The storyboard images were worked up into animatics to show how the sequence would flow, giving an early sense of how the finished films would look and sound.
The completed animatics were sent over to the Hasbro team for their approval. This process meant important creative decisions could be made ahead of time and would allow the team to go into the shoot with full confidence. The animatics also left room to capture the natural reactions of the children as they played with the products.
Making it pop
For our Slime video, we wanted the graphics to feel as playful and tactile as the product itself. With that in mind, we decided that our motion design would reflect the slime on screen, with the names of each compound playfully reacting to their distinct properties.
So, when the children played with the Super Stretch compound, the word stretchy physically stretched across the frame. The softer characteristics of the Butter slime inspired equally smooth and squishy lettering. Pop! literally popped into view alongside a scattering of bubbles, which floated up the frame, bursting as they went. The accompanying SFX echoed the satisfying action of the Pop slime.
Our approach gave each product variation its own visual language while keeping the video cohesive. The resulting video gave viewers an instant understanding of what makes each slime feel different. It also turned descriptive copy into something colourful and fun.
.svg)
.svg)
Lights, camera, Play-Doh
For the shoot itself, we hired a house for the day, creating a bright, lived-in environment that felt natural for family play. The location gave us ample space for each setup, while maintaining the relaxed and authentic atmosphere that Hasbro were after from the videos.
Working with children added an important layer of consideration. The shoot needed enough structure to capture the planned shots, but be flexible enough for the children to feel comfortable and respond naturally to what was happening. This was particularly important because the Hasbro team wanted authenticity, not the faux fun you often see in this type of marketing content.
That's a wrap
The finished videos combine product-focused storytelling, playful motion graphics and natural performances. The Slime video is energetic and sensory. Close-up play, expressive reactions and animated typography communicate the variety of compounds and the physical enjoyment of playing with them. The Air Dry Clay video takes a more structured approach, showing the creative process from shaping the material to the finished cow.
Both videos keep the product front and centre. Our thorough pre-production phase gave us the control we needed to meet the brief. Meanwhile, the shoot captured the natural personality that the Hasbro team were looking for. The final videos feel polished without tipping over into being overly produced. It all came together to make the products the stars of the show and to look as fun to use as they are designed to be.
.svg)
Round up
If you’re looking for a creative partner to support your next game, you’re in the right place. Get in touch and let’s chat.
Looking for a partner to create advertising and marketing materials for your next game?
.svg)
© Portal Studio 2023