IntelliJ Runzo Mascot
Client: Jetbrains Year: 2026 Country: International
For the 25th anniversary of IntelliJ IDEA, one of JetBrains’ flagship products and the world’s leading development platforms, we were asked to create a new character to mark the moment.
Meet Runzo. Designed and animated from the ground up, his character is rooted in the IDE’s iconic Run button, the most prominent control in the interface. Built to live inside a modern developer ecosystem, Runzo carries the precision, confidence, and playful intelligence that define IntelliJ IDEA.
Born From Interface
Runzo’s design is built directly from the language of the IDE.
We searched the IntelliJ IDEA interface for the one symbol every developer knows: The Run button. Its green triangle became Runzo’s core shape, familiar at a glance and built into daily workflows.
The bug icon turned into a small, mischievous antagonist, adding tension and play. Colors stay true to IntelliJ IDEA’s UI, keeping everything grounded in the product.
A Proper Reveal
The character reveal was treated as a full production moment.
JetBrains unveiled the character through a full music video, produced end to end with music by Peter Albertz. Animation and sound were developed as one cohesive piece.
The reveal moves from rough sketches to animatics and into fully realized 3D character animation, guided by a visual language developed specifically for JetBrains.
"Thanks for making this collab such a win."
Turning a product into a character is one of those ideas that sounds fun and secretly terrifying. One wrong move and you get something cute, loud, and completely soulless. Luckily, that was not our story. Through countless sketches and experiments, you found Runzo’s personality and made him a cool, fierce buddy with real character. He feels alive, confident, and very much on point.
We truly enjoyed your collaborative spirit, enthusiasm, precision, and your constant eagerness to listen and challenge ideas together with us. That energy made all the difference. Thanks for making this collab such a win."
Irina Maryasova - IntelliJ IDEA marketing team
Credits
Creative Direction
Anastasiia Ibragimova, Benjamin Simon, Dirk Schuster, Tim Eiden
3D Artists
Anastasiia Ibragimova, Benjamin Simon, Dirk Schuster, Konstantin Twardzik, Lennart HĂĽmmer, Martin Thul, Philipp Ludwig, Tim Eiden
3D Animation
Konstantin Twardzik, Martin Thul
Music Production and SFX
Peter Albertz
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