Case study

JBFA – “The Spirit of Lu Ban” Generative AI Brand Film

Generative AI brand film for the Johor Bahru Furniture Association, bringing Lu Ban, patron saint of builders and carpenters, to life.

The project at a glance

Client: Johor Bahru Furniture Association (JBFA)
Approach: 100% generative AI: script, AI storyboard, then AI-generated scenes. No filming, sets, costumes or casting.

01
Brief
The Johor Bahru Furniture Association wanted to introduce Lu Ban, the patron saint of carpenters, to members and exhibition visitors, and show how his spirit lives on in the furniture industry today.
02
Concept & script
We built the script around one idea: a piece of wood passes through many hands before it becomes a home. The story runs from Lu Ban two thousand years ago, to Chinese migrants carrying the craft to Southeast Asia, to the association carrying it on in Johor Bahru today.
03
AI storyboard
Before any scene was made, we generated a storyboard with AI: eight boards of four frames, timed to the script. The client could see the look, the Lu Ban character and the flow of the story, and approve them first.
04
AI scenes
Each scene was then generated with AI: forests, an ancient workshop, trading ships, a modern factory and the heritage gallery. No sets, costumes or casting were needed.
05
Cuts & client changes
The first cut went to the client, who added scenes during the second and third cuts. The final film grew beyond the storyboard. Because the scenes are generated, the added scenes did not need a new shoot.
06
Delivery
The final film was delivered for the association’s members and exhibition visitors, and published on YouTube.

See the project in the portfolio

The storyboard

See the film before it is made

The storyboard below is the version approved before production. The final film changed as the client added scenes in later cuts.

01
0:00 – 0:13
One piece of wood, how many hands must it pass through,
how many years, how many steps,
to become a home.
一块木头，要经过多少双手，多少年月，多少工序，才能，成为一个家。
02
0:13 – 0:23
Lu Ban’s spirit was born over two thousand years ago.
Chinese migrants went south to Nanyang and carried it across mountains and seas.
鲁班的精神，两千多年前诞生。华人下南洋，把它带过了山海。
03
0:23 – 0:28
Today, the Johor Bahru Furniture Association has taken it on.
今天，新山家具同业公会，接住了它。
04
0:28 – 0:38
The saw of old, the blade of today.
What changes is the craft; what stays is the dedication.
古代的锯，今天的刀。变的，是手艺；不变的，是匠心。
05
0:38 – 0:49
The master’s hands will grow old.
But the wood remembers: every cut mark is a legacy.
老师傅的手，会老去。但木头记得，每一道刻痕，都是传承。
06
0:49 – 1:00
What we make has never been just furniture.
It is a home. A way of life. The warmth of Johor Bahru.
我们做的，从来不只是家具。是一个家。是一种生活。是新山的温度。
07
1:00 – 1:09
In the Furniture Heritage Gallery, old furniture speaks.
In the Woodcraft Workshop, new craft grows.
家具文物馆里，老家具在说话。木艺工匠坊里，新手艺在生长。
08
1:09 – 1:18
This is the Johor Bahru Furniture Association,
the same spirit, two thousand years later.
这是新山家具同业公会，两千年后的，同一个精神。