Creating Branson Airport’s “Enthusiasm” ad, one of our favorites from 2016.
It’s already 2017!? Wow, that didn’t take long.
We had a blast last year creating great videos that helped our clients tell their brands’ stories. In some respects, we lived in two different worlds. On one hand, digital branded content is HUGE (hero/hub/hygiene, if you speak agency-ESE) and shows no signs of slowing down. It accounted for much of our video production work in 2016. Alongside our great digital content creations – and despite the onslaught of Netflix/Amazon/Hulu viewing habits – it seemed as if local TV stayed steady. We created some great TV spots that aired throughout the region in 2016. In no particular order, here are our favorites.
#1 – Branson Airport “Contain Your Enthusiasm”
This year our client Branson Airport staged a coup of sorts – landing an air service deal that secured connecting flights to 100 destinations via United, American and Delta. It was a huge deal for them as well as the Branson destination market as a whole. What better way to make the announcement than to hire actors to do silly dances and spray themselves with water on camera? High frame rate shooting (slow motion) plays up the epic drama at first, only to exaggerate the silliness at the ad’s climax. Thanks to our actors and crew, as well as Pam Critchfield for the use of her beautiful home.
#2 – Sight & Sound Theaters “Inside Moses” for Branson
In 2016 Sight & Sound Theaters chose our creative team to help them introduce their state-of-the-art Moses production to Branson audiences. We worked with their home office in Pennsylvania to develop a documentary style “inside look” at the creation of Moses, in some cases taking a radical departure from previous local TV efforts. At the time of this ad’s production, Sight & Sound was undergoing a re-branding effort (launching in full this year), so we were able to glean insights from their new brand study and implement them in rough form the 2016 TV ads.
#3 – McFarlain’s “Eat Pie First”
We’ve created TV ads for Branson’s IMAX before (see Florentina’s :30 “Fresh” Gold Addy Winner). With McFarlain’s, the client sought a brand refresh, which extended to the restaurant’s decor and menu. It’s more than comfort food, it the experiences you have with loved ones on vacation. We captured the fun of a family meal without cell phones or worries. Kudos to casting assistant Kristin Rapinchuk for finding excellent families, as well as creative contributor Josh Williams for his help the day of the shoot. And if you’d like to read my insights on food photography, here it is.
#4 – Ozark Mountain Time “Time Stands Still”
You’d assume a clock shop in a tourist market would be a sleepy place, right? You’d be wrong if you assumed this of Ozark Mountain Time, one of the largest Howard Miller clock dealers in Missouri. The client wanted to showcase the elegance of their merchandise, which includes furniture such as wine racks and poker tables. There are no cheesy pans of the showroom, no gimmicky price graphics, and definitely no grand-kids of the owners hocking cuteness for clock sales. Just great cinematography of high end furniture with the velvety smooth voice of a storyteller to guide us along. I’m especially proud of our photography inside the clockworks, which we achieved with a simple but effective macro lens hack and a motion controlled camera system.
#5 – Springfield Symphony Orchestra “In a Tux and Afraid”
When the Symphony announced their 2016-17 theme “Extreme Symphony” and expressed a desire for a reality show themed ad, we couldn’t resist the silliness. With a shoestring budget and willing victims, er, volunteers, we set out to create a memorable ad to launch a memorable concert season.
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg! More to come soon, including our best digital branded content of 2016.
