In 2022, the anti-corruption non-profit, Transparency International, teamed up with a group of international analysts and journalists to uncover a huge corruption case named the Bottle Laundromat. Between 2014 and 2016, Russians managed to launder a whopping $820 million—over 20 billion Czech crowns—through fake and overpriced purchases of equipment for making PET bottles from foreign companies. Thanks to a complex network of participants including regulatory bodies, bankers, and Russian government elites, these illegal funds made their way into numerous countries including the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Lithuania, the UK, and others.

The aim of this explainer video was to clearly and engagingly explain the whole case, and describe how money laundering works, especially in the case of the Bottle Laundromat. Transparency International used this video to talk about the topic on their website and social media, as well as in other communication activities.

At the beginning of the creation process, the Transparency International team prepared the script and had an initial idea for the animation, and it was my job to come up with, design, and execute its visual style in the form of illustrated explainer video. After finilizing the script and overall visual, I created storyboard, illustrations, and final animation. Martina Foldynova, the host of their podcast TI Stošestka, recorded a voiceover for the entire video, which I synced with the animation, adding sound effects, music and subtitles. A big thanks to the whole team for a fantastic collaboration.

You can read more about the Bottle Laundromat case on the Transparency International CZ website: https://www.transparency.cz/rusko-cesky-laundromat-propral-za-tri-roky-3-miliardy-korun-odhalila-ti/