While fashion brands are experimenting with artificial intelligence, Prada decided to do something a little different: bring back the magic of traditional animation.
For its new holiday campaign, Drawing Prada: Animated by Hand, the luxury house worked with John Pomeroy, a veteran Disney animator known for his work on films including Pocahontas, The Fox and the Hound and Fantasia 2000.
And the result looks like something straight out of a childhood fairytale.
Disney magic meets high fashion.
The campaign stars Sadie Sink, Maya Hawke, Chen Haoyu, Luther Ford and Kelvin Harrison Jr.
Instead of posing against ordinary studio backgrounds, the actors step into imaginary winter worlds filled with hand-drawn animals, snowy landscapes and playful little stories.
In one scene, animated mice try to steal Sadie Sink’s Prada shoes. In another, Maya Hawke appears alongside an illustrated fox.
The animation was created by artists led by Pomeroy, while photographer Glen Luchford captured the live-action elements.
And the best part? It’s drawn by hand.
At a time when AI-generated images are becoming increasingly common in advertising, Prada chose to highlight the people behind the creative process.
The illustrations were drawn by hand, bringing back a technique that defined generations of animated films.
It’s not necessarily a statement against AI. But it does raise an interesting question about what makes creative work special.
When technology can generate an entire fantasy world in seconds, does knowing that a human artist drew every character change how we experience it?
Prada seems to think that human creativity is worth celebrating.
And judging by how nostalgic the campaign feels, there’s still something magical about a pencil, a piece of paper and a little imagination.
