ABOUT

CONCEPT AND BACKGROUND
Working with AnalogFolk, L’Oréal-owned Essie partnered with Untold Fable’s Gen AI Content Studio to develop its first AI-powered TikTok campaign. The campaign promoted Essie’s seasonal nail polish shades while exploring how AI could extend existing brand assets into new social content more efficiently, rather than replacing traditional production. We began by auditing Essie’s existing assets to identify opportunities for AI-driven content, then worked with an AI Creative Director to develop concepts balancing the brief, available assets and AI’s capabilities. Grounding the creative in TikTok audience behaviour, we focused on hyper-real product visuals and satisfying “product candy” moments. Using AI-generated effects and transforming existing photography into dynamic, tactile close-ups, we created bite-sized content designed to drive engagement and repeat viewing. Once approved, Untold Fable commissioned an AI filmmaker from its network to produce the final content.

EXECUTION AND RESULTS
Untold Fable turned Essie's existing photography into 20 short-form motion assets. By combining AI-generated animation, realistic liquid simulations and product-focused visual effects, the team created content that would traditionally have required complex CGI production. The production brought together tools including OpenAI, Stability AI and Google's AI technologies, allowing multiple ideas to be explored quickly. The campaign exceeded TikTok's average engagement benchmark, achieving a 3.2% engagement rate across all the assets published. This included disproportionately high levels of comments and shares, demonstrating strong audience resonance and validation of the effectiveness of AI-generated creative.

THE TALENT
The project was delivered through Untold Fable's Gen AI Content Studio and led by creative director Rebecca Rowntree and AI filmmaker Aaron Vergult. Rebecca brings more than a decade of creative direction experience and specialises in developing concepts, visual identities and creative strategies using generative AI. Aaron focuses on AI production, combining emerging technologies to create content across multiple formats and channels.