Allie Yonick Unveils Otherworldly Jewellery Campaign for Steff Eleoff

Sustainable luxury jewellery brand Steff Eleoff unveils its latest collection with an ethereal campaign film directed by Canadian filmmaker Allie Yonick.

Represented in Canada by production company Merchant, Allie’s film was inspired by jewellery designer Steff’s creative processes - an idea that was quite literally plucked from thin air. Set during a ferocious rainstorm, the 30” cinematic spot shows a woman speeding down a highway. As the storm intensifies, the rain turns to molten drops that pelt her windscreen and echo the forms of the pieces that adorn her ears and fingers. Adopting a futuristic, yet nostalgic aesthetic, the contrasting elements are reminiscent of Ridley Scott’s ‘Blade Runner’ (1982).

For her SS/23 metallic collection, Steff was inspired by a similar drive home that she experienced during a storm. Leveraging the natural beauty of the shapes and forms that surround us, the designer often takes inspiration from nature, architecture and art history and this particular collection is directly inspired by abstract shapes of rain that fell onto her windshield that day.

Often associated with warning, caution but also transformation, the orange colour palette is yet another nod to the futuristic and otherworldly theme of the campaign, further emphasised through model Vanessa Campana’s styling and burnt orange hair colour. Drawing inspiration from Rachael, the Nexus-6 replicant from ‘Blade Runner’, Vanessa looks perfectly ethereal dripping in distinctive silver jewellery from Steff’s latest SS23 collection. 

Working closely with cinematographer Julian Lomaga and virtual production house VP House, Allie used a volume wall to achieve an ‘otherworldly’ aesthetic, ensuring that the cameras and resolution used perfectly complemented the natural lighting provided. Allie overcame the camera movement limitations of the virtual set, by incorporating heavy VFX to create the surreal world. The electrifying orange and pink hues of the sunset and chrome raindrops were all achieved in post-production.  

Allie Yonick, director at Merchant, speaks on the project, “I could totally relate to Steff’s whole creative process in the sense that it can come from anywhere - that's the beauty in creation, it’s not preconceived, but through the doing that the universe kind of brought to us. The most enjoyable part was the energy around it and the support. We all really came together and that alchemy is the best feeling ever. We all wanted the best idea to win, it wasn’t about a specific idea, it just built and grew in this infectious way. Pure joy!”

Steff Eleoff, Jewellery designer, comments, "Working on this project was surreal. We created my brand's first video campaign. Allie’s playfulness complimented my brand's ethos of the art of play through experimentation. Her talents superseded any roadblocks that might’ve come our way, and the whole process was just so much fun from start to finish! She understood exactly the vision I had when creating this collection, and she was able to reimagine it into a moving, living, idea. I actually lived that car ride in the rain, minus some of the theatrics, but I actually took the shapes that fell onto my windshield and designed jewellery based on that moment. "