Olga Lee, the Uruguay-based production company with global reach, takes a new step in the creative use of Artificial Intelligence with Invisible, a short film for Tienda Inglesa in which 100% of the images were generated using AI. The project marks the beginning of a new phase for the company, combining cutting-edge technology with narrative sensitivity and a deeply cinematic perspective.
Far from focusing on the “how it was made,” Invisible stands out for something much harder to achieve: a solid, emotional, and engaging story that proves AI can enhance a narrative without overshadowing it. “The focus is on how we use this tool to elevate stories, to do what we couldn’t do before,” the team at Olga Lee explains.
Oliver Lee Garland, the film’s director, says the short opened “a new room within the craft” for him. Since he does not come from a post-production background—his strengths lie in working with actors, emotional timing, and storytelling—the AI experience was particularly surprising.
“I’m not a director who comes from post-production. I’m mainly a director of actors and narrative pieces, both comedic and emotional. For me, this is a new world. AI makes the animation process more like a shooting process. You ask for a framing, an acting choice, and it returns something unexpected. Then you refine versions, adjust nuances, repeat the take. That interplay between the intentional and the surprising is the same one you get on a real set,” says Oliver Garland, Founder and Director of Olga Lee.
The industry is in the midst of debate. The arrival of AI sparks both excitement and resistance, just as digital animation and the use of computers in filmmaking once did. But for Oliver, AI replaces nothing—it is a tool, and like any tool, its value lies in the person who uses it. The discussion shifts once its real impact is understood: “Brands have annual budgets. With the same investment, they can now do more thanks to AI. New roles emerge, and others evolve.”
Invisible represents this evolution within Olga Lee, a production company recognized for its narrative work and now also for its technological ambition. Its aim is to incorporate AI as a tool in service of storytelling, not as the technical protagonist of the process.
A Two-Month Craft-Driven Process
Despite appearances, the work was profoundly artisanal. The project required over two months of dedication from a team of prompters, post-producers, editors, colorists, and a meticulous sound design department. The music revolves around an emotional song by Franny Glass, which gives the piece its heart.
The process began with an idea from the agency Publicis Ímpetu, and the first step was to develop a script that could sustain a cohesive cinematic narrative. Then came the design of characters and settings, finding the balance between realism and animation. Afterwards, a hybrid storyboard—mixing hand-drawn sketches with AI-generated frames—shaped the final structure. In parallel, the team scouted real locations in Montevideo, following a traditional scouting process that was later translated into AI.
The final stage—the most intense—was animating every shot. “Shaping each moment, shot by shot, was almost like sculpting,” Oliver explains.
The Olga Lee team is enthusiastic about the doors this project opens: a new line of work where technology expands creative freedom. The company has already announced it will continue exploring the narrative and visual possibilities that AI makes accessible to directors. “This project reminded me that being a director depends on how one sees and listens to what does not yet exist,” Garland concludes.
Client: Tienda Inglesa Client Lead: Pablo Rego Production Company: Olga Lee Direction: Oliver Lee Garland A.I. Artists: Guido Lafigliola, Iván Tereschuk, Sabrina Korn, Julieta Wagner Animation Direction: Oliver Lee Garland & Guillermo Trochón Storyboard Artist: Diego Barreto Executive Production & Coordination: Rodrigo Troche Editing: Imanol Castro Post-production: Héctor Napoli, Totó Valente Color Grading: Fernando Drömer Production Assistant: Alessio Beretta Sound Design & Dolby 5.1 Post: La Mayor Sound Engineer: Joaquín Moreira Original Song:El amor anda suelto – Franny Glass (additional vocals: Lucía Lucía) Voices: Nacho Cabrera, Ornella Cattaneo Additional Voices: Romina Peluffo, Rocío Velasco, Charly Huart, Fede Buisan, Joaquín Moreira, and Oliver Lee Garland
Agency: Publicis Ímpetu Publicis Groupe Direction: Mario Taglioretti Executive Creative Direction: Juan Roldós Creative Direction: Rocío Velasco, Santiago Varese Creative Copy: Natalia Azambullo Art Direction: Juan Pablo Avegno, Santiago Varese Production: Charly Huart Account Direction: Marcelo Castellanos Account Executive: Valeria Romano Community Manager: Federica Casañas PR: Clara Caponi, Clara Sosa Días
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Olga Lee, the Uruguay-based production company with global reach, takes a new step in the creative use of Artificial Intelligence with Invisible, a short film for Tienda Inglesa in which 100% of the images were generated using AI. The project marks the beginning of a new phase for the company, combining cutting-edge technology with narrative sensitivity and a deeply cinematic perspective.
Far from focusing on the “how it was made,” Invisible stands out for something much harder to achieve: a solid, emotional, and engaging story that proves AI can enhance a narrative without overshadowing it. “The focus is on how we use this tool to elevate stories, to do what we couldn’t do before,” the team at Olga Lee explains.
Oliver Lee Garland, the film’s director, says the short opened “a new room within the craft” for him. Since he does not come from a post-production background—his strengths lie in working with actors, emotional timing, and storytelling—the AI experience was particularly surprising.
“I’m not a director who comes from post-production. I’m mainly a director of actors and narrative pieces, both comedic and emotional. For me, this is a new world. AI makes the animation process more like a shooting process. You ask for a framing, an acting choice, and it returns something unexpected. Then you refine versions, adjust nuances, repeat the take. That interplay between the intentional and the surprising is the same one you get on a real set,” says Oliver Garland, Founder and Director of Olga Lee.
The industry is in the midst of debate. The arrival of AI sparks both excitement and resistance, just as digital animation and the use of computers in filmmaking once did. But for Oliver, AI replaces nothing—it is a tool, and like any tool, its value lies in the person who uses it. The discussion shifts once its real impact is understood: “Brands have annual budgets. With the same investment, they can now do more thanks to AI. New roles emerge, and others evolve.”
Invisible represents this evolution within Olga Lee, a production company recognized for its narrative work and now also for its technological ambition. Its aim is to incorporate AI as a tool in service of storytelling, not as the technical protagonist of the process.
A Two-Month Craft-Driven Process
Despite appearances, the work was profoundly artisanal. The project required over two months of dedication from a team of prompters, post-producers, editors, colorists, and a meticulous sound design department. The music revolves around an emotional song by Franny Glass, which gives the piece its heart.
The process began with an idea from the agency Publicis Ímpetu, and the first step was to develop a script that could sustain a cohesive cinematic narrative. Then came the design of characters and settings, finding the balance between realism and animation. Afterwards, a hybrid storyboard—mixing hand-drawn sketches with AI-generated frames—shaped the final structure. In parallel, the team scouted real locations in Montevideo, following a traditional scouting process that was later translated into AI.
The final stage—the most intense—was animating every shot. “Shaping each moment, shot by shot, was almost like sculpting,” Oliver explains.
The Olga Lee team is enthusiastic about the doors this project opens: a new line of work where technology expands creative freedom. The company has already announced it will continue exploring the narrative and visual possibilities that AI makes accessible to directors. “This project reminded me that being a director depends on how one sees and listens to what does not yet exist,” Garland concludes.
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Credits
Client: Tienda Inglesa
Client Lead: Pablo Rego
Production Company: Olga Lee
Direction: Oliver Lee Garland
A.I. Artists: Guido Lafigliola, Iván Tereschuk, Sabrina Korn, Julieta Wagner
Animation Direction: Oliver Lee Garland & Guillermo Trochón
Storyboard Artist: Diego Barreto
Executive Production & Coordination: Rodrigo Troche
Editing: Imanol Castro
Post-production: Héctor Napoli, Totó Valente
Color Grading: Fernando Drömer
Production Assistant: Alessio Beretta
Sound Design & Dolby 5.1 Post: La Mayor
Sound Engineer: Joaquín Moreira
Original Song: El amor anda suelto – Franny Glass (additional vocals: Lucía Lucía)
Voices: Nacho Cabrera, Ornella Cattaneo
Additional Voices: Romina Peluffo, Rocío Velasco, Charly Huart, Fede Buisan, Joaquín Moreira, and Oliver Lee Garland
Agency: Publicis Ímpetu
Publicis Groupe Direction: Mario Taglioretti
Executive Creative Direction: Juan Roldós
Creative Direction: Rocío Velasco, Santiago Varese
Creative Copy: Natalia Azambullo
Art Direction: Juan Pablo Avegno, Santiago Varese
Production: Charly Huart
Account Direction: Marcelo Castellanos
Account Executive: Valeria Romano
Community Manager: Federica Casañas
PR: Clara Caponi, Clara Sosa Días