Una historia de Progreso • Glassworks Barcelona

Glassworks Barcelona made projection animation and CG for Una historia de Progreso, a Bankinter commercial tracing Spain’s history. It combines banknote engravings with choreography by Marcos Morau of La Veronal, filmed projections and CG extensions.

Nacho Gayán directed it for the agency Sioux meet Cyranos and the production company Agosto. Glassworks Barcelona designed the projections and finished the film in post, and I was one of the studio's 3D artists, building models and animating the banknote sequences and the high-speed train in CG.

The Film

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Dance, projected banknote engravings and CG animation connect episodes from Spain’s history. The song carries the film across the centuries, from early exploration to contemporary life.

Columbus at La Rábida and a large numeral five, engraved in light among projected stars.

The Banknotes

Historical peseta notes and modern euros supplied the visual references. Glassworks adapted their engravings through cropping, recoloring, mirroring and layering, with portraits such as Goya and Quevedo projected at architectural scale.

The armillary sphere from the reverse of the 1992 5,000-peseta note inspired the opening projection.

A dancer stands inside an armillary sphere of light under the words Cinco mil pesetas.

A pale peseta note with an armillary sphere on a stand and the numerals 5000. — Banco de España, 5,000 pesetas, 1992, reverse. Photo: Ángel M. Felicísimo, CC BY 4.0.

Hernán Cortés, from the 1992 1,000-peseta note, appears in the projected imagery.

Hernán Cortés's engraved face and a Mil pesetas ribbon are projected behind two dancers.

A green 1,000-peseta note with a bearded Hernán Cortés in a hat and ruff. — Banco de España, 1,000 pesetas, 1992, with Hernán Cortés. Photo: Ángel M. Felicísimo, CC BY 4.0.

Don Quixote from the 1951 one-peseta note provided another illustration reference.

Don Quixote's engraved face looms beside dancers climbing a windmill-shaped frame.

A brown one-peseta note with Don Quixote in a wide hat beside the words Banco de España. — Banco de España, 1 peseta, 1951, with Don Quixote. Photo: Ángel M. Felicísimo, CC BY 4.0.

Benito Pérez Galdós from the 1979 1,000-peseta note represents Spain’s literary history.

Galdós's engraved face fills a dark wall beside the outline numerals 1000.

A green and blue 1,000-peseta note with a mustached portrait of Benito Pérez Galdós. — Banco de España, 1,000 pesetas, 1979, with Benito Pérez Galdós. Photo: Ángel M. Felicísimo, CC BY 4.0.

An engraving of the Banco de España building from the 1971 1,000-peseta note becomes an architectural projection.

Green engravings of a grand building cover a façade as dancers perform on the pavement at night.

The green back of a 1,000-peseta note engraved with the Banco de España building. — Banco de España, 1,000 pesetas, 1971, reverse. Photo: Ángel M. Felicísimo, CC BY 4.0.

El Carbayón of Oviedo, from the 1980 200-peseta note, provided the oak-tree imagery.

Dancers run through a night street below an orange tree and lettering projected on a building.

The orange back of a 200-peseta note with a large oak and the words Doscientas pesetas. — Banco de España, 200 pesetas, 1980, reverse. Photo: Ángel M. Felicísimo, CC BY 4.0.

The film also uses the 1937 Bilbao 100-peseta note, with an Art Deco reverse by Nicolás Martínez Ortiz de Zárate.

A close view of an engraved farmer's arms and an ox, shaded in blue-gray.

A worn brown and blue note showing a farmer driving two oxen, with a large 100. — Banco de España, Bilbao, 100 pesetas, 1937, reverse. Photo: Jean Michel Etchecolonea, public domain.

Another shows La Fuensanta, the painting by Julio Romero de Torres on the back of the 100-peseta note of 1953.

A close view of La Fuensanta's face, engraved in red, with pearl drop earrings.

The brown back of a 100-peseta note with a young woman leaning on a large clay jar. — Banco de España, 100 pesetas, 1953, reverse. Photo: Luis Fernández García, public domain.

Making Of

Glassworks designed and made many of the visuals before the shoot, then refined them while testing on set, where Xavi Tribó, Javi Verdugo and Raul Cuéllar supervised. Palnoise was the projection mapping technical director, with Alberto Calahorro on video mapping. In post, the team added CG elements and composited them into the filmed projections, so that set and CG read as one picture. I worked as a 3D artist on those CG extensions, in a 3D team led by Javi Verdugo, with Alex Blasco leading 2D.

Banjo Soundscapes wrote the music as a brand song that steers clear of the usual advertising jingle, and Mavica sings it.

Links

Credits

Client: Bankinter
Agency: Sioux meet Cyranos
Production Company: Agosto
Director: Nacho Gayán
Producer: Miguel Ángel Fernández Belando
Executive Producer: Toni Moreno
Agency Producer: Alba Riart
Choreographer: Marcos Morau
Dancers: Alanna Archival • Max Cookward • Valentin Goniot • Oleg Sofianov • Maeva Lassere • Luciana Croatto • Jade Logmo • Alejandro Moya
DOP: Daniel F. Abelló
Production Designer: Pablo Treguebov
Art Director: Vanessa Ramirez
Costume Designer: Adrián Bernal
Video Mapping: Alberto Calahorro
Design & Motion: Glassworks • Comodo • Martin Mörk

On Set Supervisor: Xavi Tribó • Javi Verdugo • Raul Cuéllar
Creative Lead 3D: Javi Verdugo
3D Artists: Javi Verdugo • Igor Gouziev • Marco Rossi • Kiko Navarro • Germano Mariniello • Gergely Wootsch • Taio Prince
Lead 2D: Alex Blasco
2D Artists: Alex Blasco • Albert Garcia • Gloria Bernabeu • Sito • Juan Listello
Executive Producer: Olaia Casal
Producer: Tomas Muñoz
Projection Mapping Technical Director: Palnoise

Edit: Lucas Nolla
Color Correction: Moncho Sánchez-Gómez
Music: Banjo Soundscapes
Vocals: Mavica

Screenings and awards

Winner 2024: XXVI Premios a la Eficacia ↗Bronze, Best Campaign for an Existing Product or Service • Teatro Real, Madrid • October 24