06Jan

5 Resolutions You Can Steal

5 Resolutions You Can Steal

Every New Year,  I make the standard list of resolutions. They often involve working out more and eating less. But this year more than ever, I’m searching for Quality. And to me, quality means connecting with things and people that resonate, fulfill their purpose, and last.

Here’s a few ways I think we can all add quality to our stories in 2012:

  • Find the Romantic Hook: Romance is the deepest connection – the way we find joy in the smallest things. While it’s the most powerful of all the hooks, it’s also often the first to be let go under the grind of the day to day. Don’t let this be buried under the incessant paperwork. Fight for it.
  • Listen to Better Soundtracks: Every piece of media we consume affects how we feel. Don’t waste much time (other than a few guilty pleasures) on content that doesn’t reinforce who you want to be. Instead, find the soundtrack that inspires.
  • Join a Better Cast: Surrounding yourself with people that don’t dream the same way you do is a killer. Cut their scenes as much as possible from your script, and hang with people who want to share the same crazy life you do. That’s the best way to reach new heights.
  • Produce Quality Content: Every email, every tweet, every Facebook post and video, is part of your brand and reflects who you are. Your content is what fills your own personal TV channel, and if you want people to watch, you have to focus on quality. No, it may never be perfect, but it should add value and make people’s lives better.
  • Ignore the Critics: Producing (rather than just consuming) is risky business. You’re going to have to eventually throw stuff out there for people to see. Inevitably, you’ll get feedback that is negative, snarky, and mean. But you’ll also get good feedback. Use it to improve and fuel the engine. Don’t get dragged down by people who never had the guts in the first place.

My last couple of posts have been ‘soft’ in video production advice, and have focused instead on some general philosophies. Maybe it’s the holidays and the New Year that’s bringing this time of reflection. Or the eggnog. Regardless, I’m going to get back to more ‘How To’ posts soon.

But the Big Questions and the Big Answers do matter. By stealing some of these resolutions, maybe we can all do well and put a ‘dent in the universe’.

Your thoughts for 2012? Let us know.

Like this post about video production? Make a Comment. Really like this post? Hey, give us a tweet and get a quarter in the karma jar.

26Dec

The Power and Financial Sense of “Evergreen” Production Quality

The Power and Financial Sense of “Evergreen” Production Quality

I remember when I bought my first Sony TV many years ago. I was excited because I knew I had gotten something that would last. My grandfather (the one that inadvertently got me started in this business) still used his old Sony’s from 20 years early – as video editing monitors because the picture was so good. There was a feel and look to the thing that just said – this is going to last.

20 years on we only just recently retired that TV after using what had been a home set to test DVDs because the picture quality was so high and consistent. I got much, much more than my money’s worth from the thing.

Apple computers are the same way. We still use machines we bought here 5 or 6 years ago for production work, right along side the latest machines.

When we set out to create a film here at Hand Crank, we set out to create something that is going to last and last, and always be a pleasure to behold – like a Sony or an Apple. Sure, one can make something cute and clever with a flip camera in an afternoon. Someone can piece together some stock imagery and make a quick point on something. We are looking way beyond that. That is disposable media. We looking to make pieces that will stand the test of time proudly for our clients. Something they will use for years in their marketing,that will arouse pride in employees, and when they retire the piece, something they’ll be able to look back on proudly as marking an important period in their company’s growth – a timeline marker.

Also, our Evergreen productions are meant to be able to branch out. Many of our clients use stills from stuff we shoot to make posters, billboards, magazine ads. Shooting on the RED means you’re getting image quality for EACH FRAME that rivals a still photo from a professional film camera. And it is more than just the image quality – our clients use the creative we work with them on to span across magazine, web, and print campaigns as well.

So, when you’re looking at putting together a video piece consider carefully what all the parts are going to add up to, how long you are going to be using it, and what it REALLY means to your company.

I know it can get old, us telling you why we do what we do. I promise not to have too many blog posts about this. But, what can we say, it sometimes helps to remind ourselves why we work so hard to make our product the way it is!

Max

18Nov

Amazing TV Ad: British Airways Flys High With New Spot

Ad is here: a4JdQi60an0
Occasionally I see an ad that just gets me so pumped up for the business that we are in. Witness this new ad from British Airways.

What’s to love? Well, it looks GREAT to begin with. Lots of wonderful old planes, nostalgic scenes, and beautiful VFX.

Also, this ad is a great example of leading with something amazing, and then following up with smaller, less-expensive corollary advertising parts – more on this in posts to come.

But most of all, the story is wonderful. The idea of linking all of those pilots of the past to those of today is just wonderful. Sure, they took 1:30 to get to it (haven’t seen the :30 of this yet, but I’m sure it exists in some bastardized form), but it puts a lump in your throat and makes you think – man, flying is fun, and I want get on BA someday because they really have a history in this stuff.

The opening 90-second advert, which features serving BA cabin crew and pilots, debuted on Facebook at 11am on September 21.

BA managing director of brands and customer experience Frank van der Post, who joined the airline eight months ago following a career in luxury hotels, said: “This campaign marks out territory that other airlines can’t claim.

“BA is a world-renowned airline. We do not need to reinvent ourselves, but it’s time to turn up the volume. ‘To fly, To serve’ is not a slogan. It is not the invention of an advertising copy writer. It is on the uniform of our crew. It’s what we do.”

Van der Post added: “The ad puts a stake in the ground. It will be shown many times and supported by print and online campaigns.”

BA declined to reveal how much the TV ad had cost, but said it was paid for out of BA’s £400-million-a-year marketing budget. “It was a small part of that, but it cost enough,” he said. Ten members of cabin crew and three pilots appear in the advert.

Enjoy!

02Nov

Tear the Lid Off Your Logo: The Selling of Corporate Culture

Tear the Lid Off Your Logo: The Selling of Corporate Culture

One of the things that Steve Jobs left us with was the realization that corporate culture sells. More and more, people want to know what kind of company they are doing business with. They buy based not necessarily just on the product, but on the feeling they get from the company that makes the product. They want to be able to look inside the logo and see the company within.

Apple, who makes even the insides of their computers look beautiful, understands this. Apple never hesitates to use video to sell their products. Apple understands that better than any other medium, video can get across ALL aspects of how a product works for a person, while at the same time sharing the kind of person who might want to use something like this. The videos are always very clean, very highly produced – although they LOOK very simple. What the person intuitively understands is “this product will work just like the video looks” and “this company is just like the video, and just like product.” In short, they trust the product.

Watch this video for the iPhone 4s. Notice how cool they make the product look, but also how cool they make the people who make the product look. It is all part of the same sell.

http://www.apple.com/iphone/#video-4s

Never lose the opportunity to make your company and product look great. Never just “put it out there.”

Max

25Oct

Hi there.

Hi there.

Photo by HCF Director Chris Koser. From Superfeet Copper film.

Welcome to our new website.

As most of you know, creating a new website is a lot of work. It forces you to redefine who you are. To consolidate what you know about yourself. And to try to figure out where you want to be headed. In many ways, a new website – if done properly – is a watershed for a company. We hope this website is that for Hand Crank Films.

We’ve been here now for 6 years. We were nearly battered to extinction 3 years ago, and have managed to get a very tenuous grip on actually having a future as a company. We shall see what happens.

In the meantime…

The website is really just the capstone of things that are new here at HCF. Here’s a list:

  1. New Production Systems
  2. New Seattle office
  3. New camera
  4. New rental site
  5. New pricing packages
  6. New tag line
  7. New blog

…..and more.

We’ll be diving into each one of these in posts in the next two weeks because each one is REALLY exciting (at least to us).

As for this: the blog.

We’re doing a blog here that we hope will give people in the industry some honest insight about being a small production company, in a small town, that is trying to a) survive, and b) thrive. We think that the content of this blog, if done honestly and truly, will be somewhat helpful to other starting production companies, others working in the industry in various capacities who are not big times in hollywood (most of us), and to agencies and other companies that use services of companies like ours. I really only want to do this if I feel it is truly constructive to the industry. We will give it a shot. If it turns out we don’t feel like we have much to say, or it’s not starting off any good conversations for us and our community (both in Bellingham/Seattle and worldwide) than we will turn it off. The last thing the world needs is more blather! I also hope that the blog will serve internally for us a place to vet ideas with the public, to share people’s work whom we admire, and to help us in continually redefining ourselves and our objectives.

So enjoy the site. There is some really great new material from us here. Some great stories about the shoots we’ve produced over the last couple of years. And, somewhere in here is Donaldson’s Easter Egg – good luck!

Max