Simone Biles Stars in SK-II's New Animated Series

SK-II and its in-house studio have created a collection of six animated films, called VS. The teaser is below, with the series launching at a later date, the brand says.  

The series is based on the real-life experiences of six Olympic athletes—Simone Biles, the world's most decorated gymnast, LiuXiang, world-record swimmer, Ishikawa Kasumi, table tennis player and two-time Olympic medalist, Ayaka Takahashi and Misaki Matsutomo, badminton duo and Olympic gold medalists, Mahina Maeda, surfer and Hinotori Nippon, the Japan Volleyball team.

In the series, the athletes battle "toxic competitions" in beauty, and each explores a different facet of "toxic competition in beauty in society today," the brand states, "that dictates how beauty should look, act and feel: Trolls."

VS was created through a unique collaboration between SK-II and WPP Black Ops, a newly formed, hyper-accelerated creative unit, which brought together worldwide talent to creatively push the boundaries of our preconceptions of beauty.

Inspiring Girls

To promote VS, Biles joined SK-II in visiting the Lower Eastside Girls Club to share her perspective on beauty standards with the young women.
 
Biles says, "I am sharing my story so that young women and girls who have experienced beauty trolling know that they are not alone in their fight against the trolls and toxic beauty standards," shared Simone Biles, Olympic Gymnast. "It really means a lot to me to share the important message that we define what beauty means to us. No one should tell us what beauty should or should not look, act or feel like."

Sandeep Seth, Chief Executive Officer, Global SK-II, comments, "Beauty can be many things. But one thing it should never be, is a competition. As a beauty brand, our role is to build confidence and spread positivity, and not create pressure and toxicity."

Seth adds, "We were deeply inspired by the stories of our athletes and wanted to recognize how they have conquered toxic competition in beauty in way that's never been done before, bringing together elements from Japanese culture like manga, together with animation, live action and different film genres. We look forward to sharing the "VS" Series, our first animated series with the world. Stay tuned." 

SK-II is promoting the series with the hashtag and line, Beauty is #NOCOMPETITION.