Selwood: an animated explainer for a nationwide pump rental specialist

Selwood needed a way to explain what actually happens after a client calls them in an emergency. So we followed one incident, start to finish: a burst sewer main, a call to the branch, and the team that turns up to fix it.

The outcome

A two-minute animated film that turns Selwood's emergency response process into a single, followable story: a burst main is reported, a branch team mobilises, CAD specialists design the fix, and a longer-term solution goes in with minimal disruption to the residents around it. Character animation, 2D backgrounds and 3D rendered elements combined into one consistent look, with a full professional voiceover.

The challenge

Selwood are a nationwide pump rental specialist, called in by water authorities for everything from planned works to burst-main emergencies. The service they provide is genuinely impressive: a rapid callout, a team of CAD specialists designing a proper long-term fix, vehicles chosen to reduce environmental impact, cover 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The problem was that almost none of it was visible to the people who mattered.

A water authority client sees a Selwood van turn up and a pump get installed. They don't see the survey, the design work, the sustainability thinking, or the team behind it. Selwood needed a way to show that process, not just describe it, in a couple of minutes that would hold attention rather than read like a service list.

Our approach

One incident, followed end to end. Rather than list Selwood's services, we built the film around a single case: a damaged sewer main in an ordinary residential street. The camera stays with that one incident from the moment it's spotted to the moment it's resolved, so the process explains itself.

The people behind the pump. We gave real screen time to the parts of the job clients never see: the branch team mobilising, the CAD specialists at their screens, the Exceptional Solutions team working out a design that will hold up long after the emergency is over.

A hybrid animation style. Flat 2D character animation and backgrounds, built out with 3D rendered elements where they earned their place, so the film reads clearly at a glance but doesn't feel flat or generic.

The sustainability and reliability messages, shown rather than stated. Lower-emission vehicles arriving without disrupting the street around them, a handshake once the fix is in, then a clean animated close on “24/7, 365 days a year” and “Selwood, never standing still.”

Script and storyboard signed off in rounds. Script, concept art and storyboard each went back to Selwood for feedback before animation began, so nothing was locked into motion until the story itself was right.

What it does for Selwood

The film gives Selwood's sales and account teams a two-minute way to show water authority clients exactly what happens after they make the call: who responds, how the fix is designed, and why it holds up. It puts the CAD specialists, the branch teams and the sustainability thinking on screen, work that would otherwise stay invisible behind the van in the driveway.

Credits

• Client: Selwood
• Studio: Alchemy