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Ancestry’s “50-Story Salute” Memorial Day Film
Teaser & Film

Role: Creative Direction, Animation, Design & Editing

OVERVIEW

For the 50th anniversary of Memorial Day, Ancestry wanted to salute 50 fallen heroes. In this 30-second teaser for the larger film, we highlighted the heroic actions of Cpt. Francis Wai was the first Chinese American soldier to receive the Medal of Honor.

Wai was involved in the amphibious invasion of the Philippine Islands. Wai arrived on the beach in the fifth wave and found most of the battalion were leaderless, disorganized, and pinned down on the open beach. Assuming command, he moved through the rice paddies without cover. With deliberate disregard for his safety, he advanced without cover to draw Japanese machine-gun fire, thus exposing the locations of the entrenched Japanese forces. This won them the battle. Wai was killed leading an assault against the last Japanese pillbox in the area.

Ancestry's "50 Story Salute" Memorial Day Film

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Memorial Day becoming a federal holiday, Ancestry aimed to pay tribute to those who gave their lives to safeguard our freedom. I designed the visual concept for this project, focusing on creating a teaser that highlighted the sacrifice of a single soldier. Afterward, I collaborated with the highly skilled team at Schofield Flowers to produce a film that honored numerous poignant stories of personal sacrifices. These stories were shared by loving family members and war veterans who reflect on their fallen comrades.