Miniature Ice Sculptures Make Mario, Batman and Godzilla Even Cooler

StewShearerOld

Geekdad News Writer
Jan 5, 2013
5,449
0
0
Miniature Ice Sculptures Make Mario, Batman and Godzilla Even Cooler

The ad agency TBWA/Hakuhodo has recently received an award for its work on a 3D printed ice sculpture campaign for Suntory Whiskey.

I like my drinks cold. And while it usually just suffices to refrigerate my beverages, the occasion sometimes arises where my cup needs a little backup and I'm forced to head to the freezer for a bit of ice. The thing is, I'm not the kind of the guy who can be content with a simple frozen cube. The ice in my freezer comes in a variety of shapes and sizes that run the gamut from skulls and X-Wings to bullets and Death Stars.

As wide as my selection is, however, it pales in comparison to the epic creations of advertising agency TBWA/Hakuhodo. Last year, the agency used 3D-printing technology along with a chilled CNC router to fashion a series of custom ice cube-sized sculptures for the Japanese beverage maker Suntory Whiskey. The ice cubes included miniature versions of <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/140285-First-Level-Of-Super-Mario-64-Now-Browser-Compatible>Super Mario, <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/tag/view/batman>Batman, <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/escape-to-the-movies/9210-Godzilla-Breaking-Kaiju>Godzilla and more. The tiny sculptures were then doused in cold whiskey to give them a nice shiny sheen. The ad campaign was so well received that it just recently won the Branded Content & Entertainment Lotusy trophy at the Asia Pacific Advertising Festival in Thailand.

The big question, of course, is when someone's going to find a way to mass produce these so we can all cool our drinks with hyper-detailed miniature ice sculptures. Granted, that might sound unfeasible, but then again who, even ten years ago, would have believed we'd be able to machine print ice art like this? I'm sure that with a little ingenuity someone will come up with something. Until then, my freezer awaits.
[gallery=3994]
Source: <a href=http://www.adweek.com/adfreak/suntory-whisky-3-d-printed-worlds-most-incredible-ice-cubes-163782?utm_source=sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=AWK_AdBrand&utm_campaign=Adweek_Newsletter_2015303115>Adweek


Permalink
 

FalloutJack

Bah weep grah nah neep ninny bom
Nov 20, 2008
15,489
0
0
We need one of Sonic The Hedgehog, for one very funny reason.

 

Kenjitsuka

New member
Sep 10, 2009
3,051
0
0
A 3D printer creates by adding molten plastic (or metal)... this is a CNC, which cuts away material to create something.
So, totally different. And nothing new, either.

Also, nice job on going for the Mario gaming angle, and then showing a building in the video clip.

Seriously, I am very cranky now that all the shows have been fired or quit. Feed Dump this very day! :(
 

StewShearerOld

Geekdad News Writer
Jan 5, 2013
5,449
0
0
Kenjitsuka said:
A 3D printer creates by adding molten plastic (or metal)... this is a CNC, which cuts away material to create something.
So, totally different. And nothing new, either.

Also, nice job on going for the Mario gaming angle, and then showing a building in the video clip.

Seriously, I am very cranky now that all the shows have been fired or quit. Feed Dump this very day! :(
Fair enough on the 3D printing bit in the headline. I'm tweaking it.

Sorry the clip featured the building. I too would have much preferred watching Mario get made.
 

Hairless Mammoth

New member
Jan 23, 2013
1,595
0
0
Wouldn't it be easier to make an original design out of a material that doesn't melt at room temp, then make silicone molds that can be peeled away from the fine details and be reused? I'd like to see a non-stop video of one of these ice sculptures being made, just to see if they didn't cheat somewhere.
Kenjitsuka said:
A 3D printer creates by adding molten plastic (or metal)... this is a CNC, which cuts away material to create something.
So, totally different. And nothing new, either.
Well, I'd call 3D printers a subsection of CNC machines with their own custom CAM software. I jokingly call my mini mill a 3D printer that can do aluminum and steel. (It's also funner to watch plastic and razor sharp metal chips fly around that to watch plastic melt.)

But yeah, the machine in the video is a gantry mill or CNC router. The amount of detail in the pagoda suggests a five axis machine is used. This doesn't even look like has a fourth axis (unless the shot at 0:37 that wasn't even a second long was the table rotating, not the camera), so some trickery is going on here for the sake of presentation.
 

ccggenius12

New member
Sep 30, 2010
717
0
0
These look cool, but it's terribly impractical unless you like to water down your booze. With all that surface area due to the details, these would melt relatively quickly. It'd be far more impressive if they ground down some whiskey stones to look like that; they're re-usable and don't water down your drink. Plus, you can serve your drinks LITERALLY on the rocks, and that's definitely worth the price of admission on its own.
 

mooncalf

<Insert Avatar Here>
Jul 3, 2008
1,164
0
0
Kenjitsuka said:
A 3D printer creates by adding... this is a CNC, which cuts away...
Fair call, my dad's engineering his own CNC router and I'll have to show him this cleverness!

It's still a phenomenally classy idea and while I dunno about mass producing them all that apple monitor looks simple enough to be formed in a silicone mold as is already used for creative ice cube shapes.

ccggenius12 said:
...unless you like to water down your booze.
Whisky rocks are great! But read this [http://www.whiskyforeveryone.com/whisky_basics/adding_water_or_ice.html] if you like, a good explanation of water's complex relationship with a complex drink.
 

Evil Smurf

Admin of Catoholics Anonymous
Nov 11, 2011
11,597
0
0
Now I want to 3D print ice penises.
Kenjitsuka said:
Seriously, I am very cranky now that all the shows have been fired or quit. Feed Dump this very day! :(
Relax man, you can watch feed dump on LRR's website.