Coca-Cola Holidays Commercial Arrives

Coca-Cola has redefined its holiday legacy for a new generation, unveiling a breathtaking new campaign produced by Los Angeles–based studio Secret Level. Under the direction of Jason Zada and creative leadership of Tony Stern, the spot fuses cinematic artistry with generative AI to reimagine the brand’s iconic “Holidays Are Coming” universe.

Serving as Lead Artist, William Sikora III helped shape the emotional and visual core of the project, crafting the look and design of the world’s animal characters — from their fur texture and facial structure to the tiniest details down to the whisker. Each creature was carefully developed to feel alive, expressive, and cinematic, carrying the warmth and wonder that define Coca-Cola’s holiday storytelling.

This year’s Coca-Cola holiday campaign marks one of the brand’s most ambitious creative undertakings yet. Working closely with Coca-Cola’s global marketing team, Secret Level developed a production pipeline that merges human creativity with AI-assisted design, accelerating the process without sacrificing the artistry that defines the brand’s legacy.

“Last year people criticized the craftsmanship. But this year the craftsmanship is ten times better,” Pratik Thakar, global vp and head of generative AI at Coca-Cola, tells The Hollywood Reporter. “There will be people who criticize — we cannot keep everyone 100 percent happy,” he adds. “But if the majority of consumers see it in a positive way it’s worth going forward.”

In a culture where Hollywood creators worry about an AI takeover while a video-watching citizenry braces itself for a wave of synthetic media from Sora 2 and others, an AI commercial at this level is no small thing. Coca-Cola is one of the world’s most dominant brands and the holidays one of Madison Avenue’s sacred human spaces. The unleashing of a spot by the former into the space of the latter could prove a litmus test for consumers’ appetite for AI video — while also, perhaps, further normalizing its consumption. – Hollywood Reporter

“This was my first project with Secret Level and I wanted to put everything into it. Coca-Cola itself, is such a global brand that is loved by millions and I really wanted my characters to bring that sense of joy that Coke brings. I was extremely involved in making sure every artist on the team kept that vision intact, our core team put in a ton of work and I am really proud how it came out. I love that Coca-Cola is not afraid to use new technology to tell a story, that’s something that I have always embraced as an artist. I like to call myself ‘classically trained’ because I have done all this before AI, it’s just now with a new tool that empowers my imagination even further. Tony trusted my skillset and gave me the freedom to explore and push ideas further than most studios would. That kind of trust brings out your best work. We weren’t just typing sentences, this was a huge effort in my mind, figuring out workarounds for road bumps, drawing characters, figuring out moods and matching styles. We utilized a bunch of different programs and AI models to make this possible, then when we finished that, the VFX team went in and did color grading, clean up and more! It was a full production.” Sikora said.

ASTRA Enters A New Dimension

Introducing ASTRA, a brand-new girl group making their debut with the AI-powered EP New Dimension, written entirely by William Sikora III.

The three-song project — “Cha Ching,” “Like A Star,” and “Fast Slow” — showcases Sikora’s full creative direction, from lyrics and melodies to concept and design. Using advanced AI tools, he built an immersive musical world that blends innovation, emotion, and style.

In addition to the EP, ASTRA also sings the official theme song for the new party card game Siko, which appears inside the Siko App, available now. The crossover highlights Sikora’s expanding creative universe, where music, technology, and entertainment collide.

“The heart of this project is human,” says Sikora. “AI is just the amplifier. It helps bring imagination to life in ways we’ve never seen before.”

New Dimension is now streaming on all major platforms.

For ASTRA artist management and requests please email willsikora@gmail.com or will@sikoraent.com

Aires Drops New Music

There’s a new soundwave ready to shake your speakers, and it comes straight from the mind of Aires, the AI artist pushing boundaries with every beat. This week, Aires is back with fresh music that blends island energy, Afrobeat rhythms, and pure pop catchiness into something irresistible.

From the very first note, these tracks grab hold of you — sun-soaked melodies ride alongside hypnotic percussion, while layered vocals bring that unmistakable summertime feel. The result is a sound that’s vibrant, playful, and dangerously replayable.

Guiding the project is Sikora, a musician and creative director whose career in music includes having a song featured on the Step Up 2: The Streets soundtrack, which reached the Top 5 on the Billboard 200, as well as creating viral hits that spread across YouTube and social media, amassing millions of streams and views worldwide. Along with years of experience producing, writing, and developing artists, his work has spanned pop, R&B, and experimental sounds, always with an ear for detail and innovation.

“As the writer, producer, and creative guide behind Aires, I’ve made sure every detail in these songs hits with intention,” Sikora said. “I’ve been hands-on from start to finish – it is amazing to see my lyrics come to life and being able to craft the vocal personalities, and getting deep into the mixing and engineering to capture the exact feeling I want listeners to experience.”

For Aires, ASTRA artist management and requests please email willsikora@gmail.com or will@sikoraent.com

New Short Film Revealed

This holiday season, step into the world of Little Paw. From director William Sikora III, comes the animated short film about a bear cub on an adventure.

“I’ve always loved animated animal stories and this one is will feel special. Ever since I was a kid, I was inspired by Disney movies, the music, the characters, the story, all of it really shaped my childhood as a little creative.” The director said. 

Little Paw will be the studio’s first 2D animated film created with the support of AI. While rooted in traditional drawings, character design, and world-building, the film will also harness AI as a powerful tool to enhance and streamline production.

“As a creative, I’ve always used whatever tools I could find to help tell the stories I want to tell. I’ve made plenty of animated films before in the past utilizing tools that weren’t even for animation, I spent hours and hours playing Mario Paint, hooking the Super Nintendo up to my mixer which could serve as a blue screen removal. From there I would shoot my own backplates and create ‘Roger Rabbit’ style movies as well as fully animated movies like The Patriarch. After that, I started using photo editors to make my gifs and worlds. The Legend of Shunra I am still extremely proud of, that was a massive undertaking and was around 25 minutes long.” Sikora continued.

Surface was the first animated short that debuted earlier this year.,

Surface explores life in the deep ocean through the story of Lumi, an anglerfish navigating a lonely world. The project combines traditional storytelling with AI-assisted visuals, using the technology as a tool to help design environments, creatures, and cinematic sequences.

Little Paw will feature a 2D animation style with organic painted worlds and characters you will fall in love with. The film is set to premiere early Winter 2026.

A World Before Time…

Before history, before memory—there was PREHISTORIC.

A chilling new concept trailer has dropped for a film that blends primal survival, horror, and alternate history into one striking vision. PREHISTORIC isn’t just about dinosaurs or cavemen—it’s about a world we were never meant to remember.

With that haunting opening line, the trailer launches into a dark and mysterious landscape—dense forests, star filled nights, and the faint silhouette of a predator far larger than man. Fire flickers. Something stalks the shadows. And whatever this is… it hunts.

Set in a fictional lost timeline, PREHISTORIC explores the terrifying idea that an early race of humans rose millions of years ago—long before Neanderthals—and their extinction wasn’t caused by nature or time, but by something much more brutal: apex predators from the dinosaur age.

“When I was 11 years old, sitting in the theater, I watched Jurassic Park in absolute awe and remember very clearly telling myself ‘I want to show the world my imagination’ and that has been a major drive for my entire life.” Director William Sikora III said. Fast forward to 2025. “I was sitting in my office and came to the realization that those movie ideas that always seemed far off or way out of budget are actually doable, like today! That ignited a major fire of creativity in me and I set out on bringing PREHISTORIC to life.”

The project, in it’s extremely early form was announced today as an ongoing journey for fans to follow along with and help be a part of, whether it be as a viewer or a donor, which fans can donate to help cover production costs and be credited as a Dino Donor.

TRESPASSER, Sikora’s epic fan film made in 1997.

“This is a full circle moment for me, as a kid I was so inspired by Jurassic Park, I made multiple movies including Trespasser which was 40 minutes long and included my neighbor and cousins as actors. It was a big production back then in 1997 I spent like $1,000 to put it together. Now, I can create something epic that captures my vision and I couldn’t be more excited.” Sikora said.

You can join Sikora on his filmmaking journey making PREHISTORIC by following here or on Instagram.

With an unknown date set for 2026, PREHISTORIC is aiming to become something historic in itself.

Finding The Light

When an anglerfish—one of the ocean’s most mysterious creatures—was discovered unexpectedly surfacing from the deep, it sparked the idea for Surface. Inspired by this rare phenomenon, filmmaker William Sikora III set out to craft an emotional, visually stunning animated short that blends technology, artistry, and storytelling. In this interview, he shares the creative journey behind Surface, the challenges of bringing Lumi’s world to life, and his thoughts on the evolving role of AI in filmmaking.

What inspired you to tell this story about an anglerfish? Is there a real-life connection or something symbolic about this creature?

When the world heard the news of this fish that lives on the bottom of the ocean in complete darkness 24/7 traveled to the surface for whatever reason it immediately sparked ideas in my head. Why did the anglerfish swim up? Sources stated different reasons but I wanted to go with something that was gonna be inspiring.

The visuals in Surface look stunning. What was your approach to designing the underwater world and the anglerfish itself?

I wanted to create a void of loneliness visually, the beginning is so empty and Lumi is alone, it feels desolate. When Lumi discovers the world above, it’s vivid and alive, there is so much to see. Also, with the character, he looks very dark and his colors become more saturated as he rises.

You used Midjourney, the full Adobe Suite, and Kling AI. How did these tools shape your creative process?

I am a lover of technology and advancing my craft, so I am always on the lookout for what’s new out there. Midjourney is an incredibly powerful image creation tool, it helped bring my imagination to life with the world. After creating images, they would then have to be animated and I used Kling for that. The process of combining all of these tools was a lot of work. The anti-AI folk out there think it’s a single click effort but this took over 50 hours of work, lots of layering and After Effects work to combine stuff, add overlay elements and so much more, it was a huge undertaking that I honestly didn’t anticipate but am really happy with the final product, I challenged myself. I definitely have a lot to say about the anti-AI movement. There is so much that goes into a short like this. Who is directing it? Who is coming up with the creative ideas? Who is writing it? Who is editing? AI is a tool not the sole creator of something. As you may know, I have done lots of animation in the past, all by hand. This film still utilized the same skills I used before. There are shots here that are pretty much all After Effects, a very tedious program that doesn’t even use AI. Overall, the combination really helped bring my imagination to life and that’s all that matters to me as an artist.

What were the biggest technical challenges in animating the film?

I think it’s obvious, the AI tools are in their infancy. We are a ‘caveman era’ in AI filmmaking. There were many limitations I came across but I understood that and had to workaround a lot of things to try and make it work. I know the results aren’t perfect but that wasn’t the point. I can’t wait to look back at this film in 5 years and see the growth as an artist. I had countless outputs that were 100% unusable, Lumi would go crazy on screen and look warped out; it is a skill in itself to be able to wrangle the AI and have it work in your favor. I’ve seen a lot of what they call “AI slop” and I wanted to make something that didn’t feel like that. I wanted audiences to focus on the story and the emotion of the character. Story will always be first. Stories have been told in so many different forms, AI is just another and it will only get better in time.

Emotion seems to be a core element of the film. What message or feeling do you want the audience to take away?

I want them to feel what Lumi felt, we all live in the same world and growing up we try to find where we fit in, what makes us happy. We all have goals, we all want to have friends and feel welcomed; this story reflects that desire in Lumi. The movie poster says ‘find your light’ and that message is for everyone, this isn’t a kiddy film, I believe any age can relate. That’s something I’ve always set out to capture in my work.

What was the most rewarding part of making this short?

Sticking with it! You wouldn’t believe how many bad outputs I had to go through, even in it’s near final form, I learned some new workarounds to make the character more consistent, I ended up redoing 70% of the characters shots in the final day of production. Previously, those shots took me 20+ hours to do and a lot of money. Working out ways to bring my ideas to life is so rewarding. I have an even bigger film I have been working on that is over 10 minutes long, it’s epic. Everything I learned here with “Surface” is going to help me now jumping back into production of this new film and I can’t wait to share!

The Feeling of Christmas

In a world where creativity and technology are constantly intertwining, the emergence of AI-generated music is a phenomenon that’s turning heads—and sparking conversations. Enter Aires, a groundbreaking new artist brought to life by Sikora, blending artistry and artificial intelligence in ways that redefine the boundaries of music.

“I wrote the song based on my feelings towards Christmas and how we get older; it becomes less and less magical feeling. Putting those words into the AI instrumental system, brought it to life, it brought an emotional feeling over me. Technology can be cold and stiff but it can also be wondrous and I really want to empower my creations in new ways instead of just ignoring technology entirely. I tell everyone, it will leave you in the dust whether you like it or not.” Sikora said.

This holiday season, Aires has arrived with a captivating Christmas song that is as innovative as it is festive. The track, available now on Spotify and Apple Music, brings a fresh perspective to the traditional holiday music landscape. By weaving the emotional warmth of the holidays with the cutting-edge tech of AI, Aires has created a piece that is both nostalgic and futuristic.

PLAY ON SPOTIFY

Gobble Gobble Goes 4K

Today marks the 14th anniversary of Gobble Gobble, a short and funny Thanksgiving-themed film that has delighted audiences since its original release. The idea for the film came to director William Sikora the night before Thanksgiving in 2010. Inspired by the holiday spirit and a burst of creative energy, he worked tirelessly for 12 hours straight—writing, animating, and editing from start to finish—to ensure the film was ready to share on Thanksgiving Day. The original short has since surpassed 315,000 views on YouTube.

Now, 14 years later, Gobble Gobble has been remastered in stunning 4K to celebrate the milestone, complete with a new musical score that enhances its charm. At the heart of the film is its star turkey, Pluck, whose hilarious dancing skills steal the show and bring the laughs. The 4K upgrade sharpens every detail, while the updated soundtrack adds a fresh layer of energy and polish, breathing new life into this holiday favorite.

Whether you’re a longtime fan or watching it for the first time, the 14th-anniversary release of Gobble Gobble promises a delightful, lighthearted experience perfect for Thanksgiving. Watch the re-release now on YouTube and join in the celebration!

Original Release

14th Anniversary 4K Re-release