Oruga: Shedding Its Skin, But Not Its Essence

Javier Nir, founder, director and producer at Oruga, says that Argentina is currently one of the most expensive countries to shoot in. He also discusses recent changes, including the rebranding and the use of AI, and reveals the family-driven essence of the production company.

Q> How do you see the industry today?

Javier> I feel we’re going through a very difficult moment in terms of the advertising market, advertisers and agencies - a phenomenon that goes beyond Argentina; it’s global. But over the past year and a half, Argentina has become one of the most expensive countries in the region, with international-level pricing we’ve never experienced before. Argentina is extremely expensive, and that leads to low demand, low sales and low production.

Beyond that, we’ve set up offices in Mexico, Chile and Ecuador, which opens new horizons that are very important in times like these. But we’re very concerned about the local market because we live here, we love Argentina, we love our workers, and we want the market to recover. We’re waiting for that to happen and for the right measures to be taken so the situation can change and Argentina becomes more competitive. We trust and hope that will happen - but the truth is we’re privileged; we have work, we have activity, and particularly in the last two months we’ve seen some reactivation.

Yes, you can feel that recovery more broadly in recent months…

Javier> There’s definitely something happening. And beyond that, new technologies are emerging - tools that are fantastic to use - like artificial intelligence. And we all have to learn them, adopt them, jump onboard, because there’s no turning back. AI is entering our world in an absolutely revolutionary way and, as with any revolution, it brings consequences. We have to stay very alert to these new technologies, adapt them as opportunities for growth, while also understanding the implications they bring.

Q> What expectations do you have from now to the end of the year?

Javier> We’re working - we’re shooting several things. We’re a very large production company, we have many employees, and we have an obligation to adapt to new trends and times, and to adjust. There are things we clearly needed to change and still need to change from a production standpoint.

Q> Speaking of changes, let’s talk about the recent rebranding

Javier> We’re very happy because Oruga is a production company with family roots, but with the responsibilities of a business - of an industry. I love arriving at the office and seeing people working, seeing movement. In that spirit, this year we said, Why don’t we take the chance to reinvent ourselves a bit? So we refreshed the brand, which had been stuck in time.

We put our heads and hearts into it. The person responsible for the transformation was Virginia Bello, a designer we work with, and Federica Raffaelli, a producer who oversaw the entire process. It’s a small transformation - we say we’ve changed our skin a bit, but we’re still the same inside. We revamped the website, the visual identity, and communicated that we’re opening offices across Latin America, a region that’s essential to me. We’re really happy - so many elements appeared that truly represent Oruga. It turned out great, so I invite you all to take a look.

Q> The design seems simple, yet says everything - it really identifies you…

Javier> We’re very traditional in a way, quite conservative with our brand. Change is hard for me; I’m a director with many years in the industry, and I have an emotional, deeply personal connection with Oruga. Visual changes are difficult because I want to keep being the same - but I also believe it’s important to shed a bit of skin and remain the same at the core. Transforming our external image felt like an opportunity we needed to seize.

Q> What sets Oruga apart from other production companies?

Javier> Oruga is a family-built project whose main differentiator is connection - inside the company and with the outside world. Oruga belongs to the people who uphold it, support it, and stay connected with agencies and projects. These are people who know they must engage with others, listen, respond to needs, and leave nothing unresolved. We work with patience, passion, and a deep understanding that what matters most is people - being spoken of positively, hearing “they treat you well at Oruga, they take care of you,” while still being professional and delivering the best possible work.

Q> What are your main challenges?

Javier> In Argentina we’re constantly trying to figure out the best path - reducing costs, changing formulas - while smaller structures appear with alternative methods and formats that make adaptation easier for them. We’re a heavy structure for the times, but that’s also because we’re a big home, with many people working inside it. I don’t want to change that. What we need to do is adapt to the times - figure out how to keep producing in a different Argentina: more expensive, more complex, where foreign companies arrive with excellent, cheaper products that can be more profitable.

We’ll continue thinking about how to defend our industry, our workers, our agencies that operate here and remain committed to so many people. That’s regarding the national production landscape. And then there’s AI, which is another challenge - it boosts our work but also raises questions about our roles, just as it does in many industries.

We have to treat it as a tool that amplifies ideas, but still generates work opportunities and helps us become better. I believe there’s a very interesting hybrid model - AI can coexist with traditional production. It’s useful for presentations, for many things; it’s a beautiful tool - we just need to use it carefully and consciously.

Q> Regarding new technologies - has your team’s structure changed? Do you have younger people, more senior people? How is the team composed?

Javier> We’re a large production company, and we have a partnership with La Casa de al Lado, Rafael’s company, which has a much younger director-talent structure - a wonderful collective of diverse artists: photographers, painters, directors, screenwriters. They work heavily with music and art, and they’ve given Oruga new energy. We feed off each other - their younger perspective with our experience - so it creates a very diverse offering.

We also have directors abroad - in Mexico - and we’re building a strong portfolio in Chile and Ecuador.

In Ecuador we’re doing a project with Kia, directed by Juan Chapa, one of our directors. It’s a huge project for Kia, and 80% of it is artificial intelligence. It’s a film with our story, our signature - the shoot, waking up at 5 am to go film, directing actors - but also with the spectacular dimension that AI now allows at very different costs. That coexistence works beautifully if you manage it well.

Q> Any work you’d like to highlight?

Javier> We created a campaign for Aeroméxico that was 100% AI, and it’s beautiful. And another project we did for a pharmaceutical company - a more documentary-style piece about a platform developed to monitor pregnancy in the tri-border region, in partnership with ELEA.

We interviewed doctors working with Indigenous communities, focusing on an incredibly meaningful mission: saving babies’ lives - babies who die from conditions that are highly treatable but go unmanaged due to distance from medical centres, cultural factors, or a certain resistance to technological change.

So how do you reach these communities and show them that with minimal care - such as preventing Chagas disease - you can avoid losing a child? Or detecting early when a baby is positioned incorrectly and scheduling a C-section at the right time, so a mother doesn’t have to give birth deep in the jungle without compromising her traditions? The lab did an extraordinary job, and Nino Goldemberg was the creative director.