Meet The Artist Behind The 5 Million Trees Video

After you’ve planted 5 million trees, believe us, you want to make that announcement in style. Through our "Buy a Product, Plant a Tree" initiative, we recently reached this amazing milestone and we wanted to spread the news with a video that was beautiful and handcrafted, just like our products.

To create our 5 Million Trees video, we turned to Riki K, an extraordinary multimedia artist based in Baltimore, Maryland. Combining her talents as a traditional illustrator and digital animator, Riki brought our simple story to life. The video follows Flora, a friend of Éminence, as she transports a magical box of our products from her local spa and into the world. As she bicycles through despairing scenes of wasteland, soil erosion and deforestation, the box brings hope in the form of miraculous leaves that bloom flowers and grow trees along her path.

Here’s a short interview with Riki K. and more about her work:

Tell Us About Yourself

I provide Interdiscliplinary Multimedia Creative Services for clients and collaborators. Thanks to my varied education, experience and curiosity, I not only use traditional design and art skills, but also new technology - my focus being lights and projections. I have designed projections and content for the stage, created brand stories through motion graphics, and recently built a multimedia installation for Light City Baltimore 2016.

In the last 20 years, I have lived in Seoul, Tokyo, LA, San Francisco, Washington DC, London UK, and Milan. Baltimore is home at the moment due to a string of events that has made me an owner of two thoroughbred horses. I am also fluent in three languages and can survive in two others. I’ve been fortunate to be able to travel quite a bit in last 15 years as well! Which all contributes to my sense of design.  

What Was Your Process For Creating The Video?

I started by drawing by pen these rough thumbnails on scraps of paper based on the conversation with the wonderful Éminence team. Once we found the right compositions for each scene, I redrew each composition by hand, using a lightbox to be digitally converted. I then converted the hand drawings to digital images for animation on my computer. 

What Was Your Inspiration? 

The bulk of the idea came to me when I was going to and from the barn where my horses are. The road to the barn was perfect inspiration for this project! I have plenty of trees, farms, hills, and nature around me to study from. 

What Inspires You About Eminence Organics Planting 5 Million Trees? 

I have the privilege to enjoy nature often with my horses and thanks to Eminence Organics, there will at least be a little more of the beauty of nature preserved for future generations. 

Have you seen the 5 Million Trees video yet? Watch and share the video below before April 30 and we'll plant a tree. 

Here’s a short interview with Riki K. and more about her work:

TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF.

I provide Interdiscliplinary Multimedia Creative Services for clients and collaborators. Thanks to my varied education, experience and curiosity, I not only use traditional design and art skills, but also new technology - my focus being lights and projections. I have designed projections and content for the stage, created brand stories through motion graphics, and recently built a multimedia installation for Light City Baltimore 2016.

In the last 20 years, I have lived in Seoul, Tokyo, LA, San Francisco, Washington DC, London UK, and Milan. Baltimore is home at the moment due to a string of events that has made me an owner of two thoroughbred horses. I am also fluent in three languages and can survive in two others. I’ve been fortunate to be able to travel quite a bit in last 15 years as well! Which all contributes to my sense of design.  

WHAT WAS YOUR PROCESS FOR CREATING THE VIDEO?

I started by drawing by pen these rough thumbnails on scraps of paper based on the conversation with the wonderful Éminence team. Once we found the right compositions for each scene, I redrew each composition by hand, using a lightbox to be digitally converted. I then converted the hand drawings to digital images for animation on my computer. 

WHAT WAS YOUR INSPIRATION? 

The bulk of the idea came to me when I was going to and from the barn where my horses are. The road to the barn was perfect inspiration for this project! I have plenty of trees, farms, hills, and nature around me to study from. 

WHAT INSPIRES YOU ABOUT ÉMINENCE PLANTING 5 MILLION TREES? 

I have the privilege to enjoy nature often with my horses and thanks to Éminence, there will at least be a little more of the beauty of nature preserved for future generations. 

Have you seen the 5 Million Trees video yet? Watch and share the video below before April 30 and we'll plant a tree.