Nike> "Kid Tiger"

Credits: Agency: Wieden + Kennedy, Portland; Creative Director/Art Director: Hal Curtis; Creative Director: Mike Byrne; Editorial Company: Joint Editorial; Executive Producer: Patty Brebner; Editors: Corky Devault and Peter Wiedensmith; Assistant Editor: Matt Hilber; VFX: A52.

The concept: A three-year-old Tiger Woods displays his golf mastery in front of thousands at the British Open in St. Andrews. After swinging one forceful shot after another, Tiger does his trademark victory dance in front of thrilled fans and parents.

How they did it: Tiger Woods is a tough guy to get a hold of, but luckily for W+K, the golf legend has been developing his on-camera persona since his pre-school days, thanks to a stockpile of home movies. When CD Hal Curtis had a look at the old footage, the concept for "Kid Tiger" was born. "Tiger's early playing days are extraordinarily well-documented. That's very unique," he says. "It would be impossible to create a spot like this for, say, a Lance Armstrong, because the footage simply doesn't exist.

"All of the characteristics you associate with Tiger Woods, the professional golfer, are there," he adds. "The red sweater, the smile, the hat, the signature finish to his swing, even the fuzzy Tiger headcover. All there at the age of three." In order to shape a story around the footage, W+K used the upcoming British Open - of which Woods was previous champion - as a hook. "There's a simple joy you feel when you watch him play as a child," says Curtis. "That's how it happened: can we show him playing the British Open as a kid?"

Joint Editorial editors Peter Wiedensmith and Corky DeVault sifted through hours of British Open footage to find pieces that fit with the older material. "We wanted the story to be told through the language of the British Open, via a telecast," says Curtis. "We wanted the pace, the voice of [BBC announcer] Peter Aliss, all the texture of St. Andrews to juxtapose against this tiny figure swinging a club."

Visual effects company A52 was given the final task of smoothing the transition between 25-year-old video footage and current, broadcast-quality material. "Each sequence is made up of at least two elements, many times three or four, composited as one image. And manipulating those different elements digitally so they could sit well together was no small feat, but they did it," says Curtis.

Finish Line> "Ostrich"/"Eyeballs"

Credits: Agency: Wieden + Kennedy; Production Company: MJZ; Director: Tom Kuntz; Visual Effects Supervisors: Andy Hall, Kirk Balden.

The concept: In a series of 15-second spots, a jogger runs on his treadmill, meanwhile imagining that he is actually running for his life from something comic and ludicrous, like an ostrich or a pair of evil eyeballs.

How they did it: To create a distinction between the real and imaginary planes, live-action footage of actors running in front of a process screen was shot and then juxtaposed with rear-projection stock footage. But not just any stock would do. Director Tom Kuntz and the creative team at W+K wanted footage that had a kitschy, B-movie feel, says A52 VFX supervisor Andy Hall. Sourced from Susan Nickerson of Los Angeles-based Nickerson Research, Kuntz and company settled on footage of a squawking ostrich on the run and a pair of floating eyeballs goofy and menacing enough to make Ed Wood proud. The clips appear behind the respective joggers, as though they are running away from monsters of their own making. "We're seeing inside their head, as it were," says Hall. To help the actors come up with their horrified expressions, Kuntz had the Nickerson footage shown on-set. "To show the illusion of what this person is going through, [Kuntz] went for the Hitchcock-type, rear-projection look of the '30s and '40s," explains Hall. "It's sort of an homage to that style and look; you get a sense that this is the person's imagination running wild."