"Smart 3-D modeling, fluid motion and strong product photography make an immersive environment that motivates people to explore." —juror Susan Easton 

"Old school cool; perfect for the Jordan Brand. This site is refined, stylish and, above all, inspirational—just like Mike." —juror Ian Coyle 

Overview: Jumpman23.com offers a 3-D luxury showroom for launching all Jordan digital communications. Targeting 12- to 24-year-olds worldwide, it seeks to connect with its audience in a way that's not only fun and exciting, but also relevant to how they typically engage with media. 

• 15-member team, 4-week development time
• Custom 3-D Flash 8 engine
• Progressive download of large assets

Comments by Michael Smit and Marcus Ericsson:
"The overall concept of Jumpman23.com was to create a rich, showroom-inspired environment featuring product stories, athlete information and other Jordan-related content. 

"We wanted to do something fresh and innovative and also wanted users to really enjoy exploring the space. We also thought the presentation should reflect Jordan's unique blend of luxury and performance styling; even stripped bare of content, it needed to be luxurious. We spent a lot of time exploring different options, styles, approaches and technologies.

"Initially, we began with a really cool cityscape concept: A darkened skyline with brightly lit windows giving the skyscrapers shape and definition. Neon-lit billboards represented product stories and other Jordan content. Clicking on content would allow users to zoom in on buildings and spires of the city in the 3-D environment.

"The timeline was tight so we dove headlong into development. From a technical standpoint things were going great. Motion in and around our little 3-D city was fun and engaging. We were effectively creating a 3-D engine, and the city within it just happened to be a means of enabling interaction. However, although execution of the city concept was going well, something wasn't quite right. We felt we could do better. We went back to the drawing board and reexamined some earlier thinking. 

"We eventually moved away from the city concept and several long, sleepless nights later we re-emerged with what you see live at Jumpman23.com. The current version is infinitely more scalable and positions us to be more creative with regard to the ongoing enhancements and content creation that's constantly being woven into the digital space.

"The showroom is bright and airy. Product shots, video and athlete portraits are prominent, engaging and look amazing. And the environment and the overall presentation tell a story all on their own. Just as the design and performance of Jordan Brand products stand out from the rest of the market, so too does the site."