The IBM software Codernauts Campaign bundles previously disparate IBM brands Lotus, Tivoli, WebSphere and DB2 under the umbrella of IBM software. The interactive campaign was designed to introduce the two main Codernaut characters, coders from a parallel universe looking for better software. To tell their story, the campaign is broken into three distinct phases. This submissions is for the first phase. We created java and flash banners witha single blind line, alluding to their mission. No logo or product messaging, just a mesmerizing applet and intriguing line, inviting the user to see them now. When the banner is clicked, the user is treated to a brief video vignette of the Codernauts still stuck in their parallel universe. Their mission is alluded to, but the focus is on establishing their unique personalities, tailored to the sensibilities of our target developer/IT audience. Banners that do not drive to a site and/or offer are virtually unprecedented. IBM believed in the importance of this scene-setting phase, given the massive investment in the Codernaut campaign. The banners and videos lend authenticity to the story, clarity to a complicated narrative by establishing the characters before the product, and finally unique personalities to the characters themselves.