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Luxuriate at CineFilm
January 2007 marked a new addition to the services of Atlanta-based Cinefilm with the launch of their new Digital Intermediate Suite. The suite complements the two existing film transfer suites that feature a Spirit 2K and Quadra with DaVinci color correction.Cinefilm is the first company in Atlanta to provide color correction in a theater setting with 4:4:4 digital projection on a screen. “Many companies are performing color correction using standard HiDef monitors,” explains Ron Anderson, Senior Colorist for Cinefilm, “but the look of light reflected from a movie screen is different than RGB additive color from HiDef monitors. Projection viewing is the standard in Los Angeles and we wanted to give our clients that same quality.”
What makes the workflow at Cinefilm unique among HD-DI processes is the media stays 10bit uncompressed digital all the way to a film out. Even HDCam SR 444 has 2.7:1 compression on tape, the film transfers to drive will never see tape compression anywhere in the process. Says Cinefilm account manager Joe Huggins, “With projection grading in 4:4:4 HiDef with true color specialist, there’s no compromise on your image.”Cinefilm will also provide sample tests of select scenes to 35mm film out and project those in the film screening room adjacent to the DI suite. That way, the client is assured that the look on the digital projection matches the color and density of the prints. Having a lab in the same facility is an added bonus.
Alliance Digital and Bexel Form Alliance
Alliance Digital and Bexel have formed a strategic alliance to leverage each other’s equipment, technical expertise, and strong market standings. While the two companies remain separate entities, effectively immediately, they will share each other’s resources and cooperate to provide comprehensive, end-to-end solutions to live event broadcast producers. “This strategic alliance enables both companies to collaborate in providing solutions that integrate our complementary product lines and expertise,” said Tom Dickinson, General Manager for Bexel, in Burbank, CA. Alliance Digital is a leading rental source for Avid and Apple nonlinear editing systems, but their rental business does not offer a broad spectrum of broadcast production equipment. Bexel is a leading provider of rented broadcast production equipment, but did do not offer Avids.
Alliance Digital is the rental division of Virtual Media Communications based in New York, which is one of the largest Avid Gold Premier Resellers in the World, as well as one of the largest Apple X-SAN Certified Medallion Video Resellers in North America. As one of the leading rental equipment companies in the broadcast and post production industries, Alliance Digital provides state-of-the-art turnkey non-linear editing (NLE) systems, post production gear, peripherals and a host of digital media storage solutions.
To see an example of how this partnership will benefit the broadcast sector client, one must simply look at the recent integration of Avid NLE system with the EVS LVS Replay Server System by their respective manufacturers. Via this new integration, live media files recorded onto the EVS are made immediately available to the Avids so that literally moments after capture/ingest, editors can get right to work on the footage, and then put the finished work back onto the EVS system to play-out to air. The Avid/EVS combination is typically used to build a highlights reel to roll in during live sporting events, such as the half-time show of The Super Bowl; or to edit a polished, sophisticated promo package or interview segment for broadcast during a live show.
“Because of our strategic alliance, we can now deliver the Avids and EVS systems as a readily integrated, packaged solution, affording our clients the full advantage of a more efficient, streamlined workflow,” said Dickinson. “Bexel is going to take the lead in delivering this integrated solution to live event productions, and serve as the main point of contact for any operational issues that may arise. Alliance Digital, by virtue of its core competency in the production, post production, and film markets, will serve as the client’s main point of contact for that demanding arena.”
“For all of our respective clients, this is a winning partnership,” said Lee Golinello, President of Virtual Media. “Whether you’re cutting a corporate marketing video on-the-fly in a hotel room, staging a major event like the Super Bowl, or a live broadcast half a world away, this arrangement provides our clients with the very best end-to-end solutions, all through a single point of contact.”
Shortly after Alliance Digital entered into this strategic alliance with Bexel, two major broadcasters agreed to rent these integrated Avid/EVS systems for use on their coverage of NBA All-Star Weekend, which runs from February 18-21, 2007, in Las Vegas, NV.
Saxon Scurries
DP Steve Saxon completed numerous HiDef projects while also upgrading his HiDef equipment in 2006.
Saxon completed 95% of photography for an HiDef documentary on moonshine for Michael Hoff Productions Inc.., which aired on The National Geographic HiDef Channel in February 2007. He also completed HiDef / 24p feature stories for the Billy Graham Evangelistic association.
Saxon completed several commercials last year as well, including many Mercedes-Benz commercials for Felix Sebates’s new dealership in Charlotte and an AutoZone commercial with NASCAR Images, shooting different race tracks across the country.
Other 2006 projects include: a Sony/HDTV showroom floor and Blu-ray disc commercial with NASCAR driver Ryan Newman in the Sony/HDTV car; a PSA tag to the movie “Ultimate Gift” due out in the spring of 2007; D / 24p feature photography work by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association for the notorious Angola, Louisiana prison; HiDef / 24p feature photography work by the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association for New Orleans; a 30 second spot for the NC Department of Health on the dangers of second hand smoke; and a :30 spot for the Charlotte Area Transit System. Saxon also produced, directed and DP’d the HiDef/24p music video “La Jeva” for the Spanish band LA RUA in winter 2006. The video received the “Award of Excellence” from The Videographer Awards 2006 video competition in the categories of videography, directing and overall music video.
In equipment news, Saxon purchased the Zeiss Digizoom HiDef lens 6mm-24mm, and added an e-cinema box with a 23” Apple monitor for pixel per pixel resolution of 1080.
Novel HiDef Webcast
Pass Left Productions of Hillsborough, NC recently called upon hdstudios to provide HiDef video production, post-production and new media services for a half hour original broadband program for Borders Group. hdstudios is a division of Grace & Wild, Inc. The half-hour program, aired as a webcast on the Bordersmedia.com website, was created to coincide with the release of Mitch Albom’s new novel “For One More Day.” This is the first webcast Borders has executed for a book release. Albom is a nationally known sports columnist and radio personality, and previously authored international best-sellers “Tuesdays With Morrie” and “The Five People You Meet in Heaven.”
The HiDef multi-cam shoot was directed by hdstudios’ executive producer Robin Tracey on location at a home in Ann Arbor, MI and featured Albom visiting with a local book club to discuss the new novel. hdstudios technical director Doug Kaer, and production engineers Joe Corbeill and Joe Parise also contributed to the multi-cam shoot. Senior editor Dan Fox and assistant editor Brad Kirsch completed post-production; senior compressionist/designer Mike Pieronek provided the Flash programming and DVD authoring; and editorial media & graphics coordinator Ken Mitchell completed various format conversions for the website.
In other news, hdstudios recently opened its newest stage for live broadcast production in Southfield, MI. The brand new studio, called F-Stage, is located at the offices of Fieger, Fieger, Kenney & Johnson and will be primarily used for live shots, stand-up’s and interviews. Amenities of the new F-Stage include an adjoining control room for production coordinators and video technicians; multiple scenic backdrops; fiber connectivity, wireless internet and a new green room.
Vegas Stays in HiDef
Las Vegas CBS affiliate KLAS-TV joined the HiDef revolution, launching its top-rated local news programming in HDTV, becoming the first station in Nevada to broadcast its local news in HiDef. While KLAS-TV has been carrying the CBS primetime tier in HDTV for years, upgrading its entire local news operation represented a major investment in its station infrastructure, as well as a quantum leap in quality for its live local news product. For HiDef newsgathering and commercial production, KLAS-TV purchased 18 new Fujinon HS16x4.6ERM HiDef lenses, which are used in conjunction with 18 Sony PDW-530 XDCAM HiDef camcorders.
Since the HiDef launch, the Sony XDCAM camcorders and Fujinon lenses have been used extensively in daily news acquisition both in the field and in-studio. According to Matthew Adams, chief photographer at KLAS-TV, the lenses have performed well in all types of weather and lighting conditions, as well as on a wide range of news stories.
The equipment upgrades at KLAS-TV supporting the native HiDef news gathering and production are being handled in phases, including the XDCAM HiDef acquisition gear, five Grass Valley Aurora nonlinear editing systems, and early in 2007, a new HiDef news helicopter.
Gefen Amps Up
The newest distribution amp engineered by Gefen delivers HiDef video plus digital and/or analog audio to eight separate displays. The 1:8 Component Audio Distribution Amplifier is designed to support today’s component video sources with true HiDef capability, delivering resolutions up to 1080p for crisp, highly defined visuals. Along with the video, this rack mountable unit comes equipped with one analog audio input and eight outputs as well as one digital S/PDIF input and eight outputs. This enables full auditory performance together with the visuals on all eight displays at the same time. Gefen supplies component video extension solutions, designed to deliver HiDef resolutions up to 330-feet (100 meters) over category-5 cables.
In other news, Gefen’s HDMI CAT5 Extreme was recognized as one of Electronic House magazine’s Products of the Year for 2006. The HDMI CAT5 Extreme is a sender/receiver extension system that sends HiDef video and digital audio up to 200 feet in distance using industry-standard CAT-5e cabling. This method allows HDMI sources to supercede the limitation of the HDMI specification, and deliver HDCP-compliant resolutions (up to 1080p) plus multichannel digital audio to any remotely located HDMI projector or display.
Henninger Acquires HiDef Datacine
Henninger Media Services has acquired a SPIRIT DATACINE film transfer machine. The arrival of the first SPIRIT in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area heralds a new era of HD film transfer for the region. “We are excited to realize this longtime goal,” said Rob Henninger, Chief Executive Officer of Henninger Media Services. “Putting this state-of-the-art equipment into the hands of our world-class colorists allows us to offer our clients the very best film transfer available.” The SPIRIT will transfer film to High Definition Video at 30 or 24 frames per second or to NTSC and PAL formats. The machine is coupled with a DaVinci 2k to provide advanced color grading. This expansion also marks the creation of Henninger’s second DaVinci 2k room for HD color correction.
Horror in HiDef
KSFILMS in Orlando, Florida, is wrapping a HiDef feature entitled “Second Coming.” Directed, photographed and scored by veteran DP Jose Z. Cassella, the project has received interest from several studios for distribution. The special effects team on the film are some of the people behind “The Ring,” “The Grudge” and “Spiderman3”. Principal photography concluded December, 2006, and was shot on a Sony Cinealta f900, with techniks pro35 adapter and Panavision Super Speed lenses. Post is being completed in Miami.
Successful Images on the Money
Florida production company Successful Images recently teamed with NextMedia to write, produce and edit advertising spots for GE Money, a division of GE’s Financial Services. NextMedia specializes in In-Flight advertising with airlines such as American and United. Successful Images traveled to the GE Money headquarters in Connecticut , where they interviewed executives of GE Money with the Sony 900HD camera shooting in 24P. The spot was then finished on Successful Images AVID Adrenaline HD system, using a combination of on-camera messages from the senior vice president of GE Money Personal Finance, stock footage and archival imagery from the history of GE.
SpectSoft All the Rave
SpectSoft is rolling out TaggHD, a six channel turnkey keyer. Developed with the same philosophy as RaveHD, it offers studios an inexpensive, open solution to tag up to six streams of SD or HiDef video with either a single bug/graphic or each individual stream with a dedicated bug/graphic. Parts of this product will also be rolled into RaveHD.
Other new features to be rolled in RaveHD include Audio Meters, Axial Editor Support and Assemble Mode. RaveHD is designed to be easy to use from the GUI but with some very powerful tools built in for automation that are hidden from the typical machine room operator.
Utilizing commodity hardware, RaveHD systems support from 3TB to 18TB of local storage in a SATA array configuration RaveHD supports uncompressed SD-SMPTE 259M, HD-SMPTE 292M, Dual Link HD (4:4:4), SMPTE 372M and 2K HSDL for both capture and playback in a single system as well as hardware accelerated upconverting, downconverting and cross-converting. The RaveHD systems feature integrated RS-422 hardware that allows for both slave and master control, LTC support and unlimited scalability with dual 10/100/1000 gigabit Ethernet in addition to features like frame oriented, standard file system storage and centralized database asset tracking, RP188 (embedded timecode), Varicam flagging support, conform, and a programmable cadence engine. RaveHD is natively frame-based but does offer some built-in tools for those working with Quicktimes.
New Equipment at the LAB
LAB 601 Digital Post, an Atlanta full service post-production facility specializing in HiDef technology, is adding a new round of cutting edge capabilities to better serve its clients. New equipment and technology additions include: the Sony SRW-5000 HDCAM SR deck, the industry leading mastering format for television and film. The SRW-5000 also adds Standard Definition to HiDef upconversion capabilities; the Panasonic DVCPRO HD AJ-HD1400 deck providing full Varicam support including variable frame rate conversion; expansion of the AVID Unity Storage system with an additional eight Terabytes of storage; three additional graphics workstations outfitted with MONET and MOKEY tracking and compositing systems; two additional offline editorial suites with Media Composer software bringing the number of HiDef edit suites to ten; final Cut Studio HiDef system for HiDef capture and output services; a facility wide UPS system to eliminate downtime from power loss.
Goodies for Portland’s EMA
EMA Video in Portland, Oregon, has been busy putting together their new HiDef edit suite. The suite is being built around Final Cut Pro. It includes a Mac G5 Quad, with the AJA Kona LHE card. EMA plans to take delivery of a Sony HDW-D2000 HiDef deck next month. They are also including DVCPRO, HDV and XDcam formats in their plans. EMA Video has been at the forefront of HiDef in Portland for many years.
Coplan Wraps Haunting Hours
DP Dan Coplan recently wrapped principal photography on “R.L. Stine’s Haunting Hours Volume 1: Don’t Think About It,” a new film from Universal Pictures and The Hatchery. Based on one of Stine’s horror books for children, the movie was shot at several locations around Pittsburgh, PA.
The project featured two Clairmont Camera modified Sony F900’s working both in tandem and individually. Coplan manned the A-camera/Steadicam outfitted with the Canon 4.7-52mm T2.1 lens; Brian Osmond handled the B-camera utilizing a Fujinon 10-100mm T1.8 lens; while DP Jacque Haitkin selected the glass for optimal clarity. Both cameras were recorded to tape (8-bit 3:1:1) including sync sound. Master data were captured concurrently to Final Cut Pro via a tether that included AC power, HD-SDI and the Master Control Unit. A DIT station collected the HiDef signal, where it was distributed to video as a downconverted NTSC signal and to Final Cut Pro for full resolution. Two independent workstations were networked, one for each camera, allowing independent operation and file sharing.
Macintosh 2.66 Ghz Dual-Core Intel Xeon workstations with 5GB of RAM served as the main processors. Kona 3 cards were utilized to ingest the 10-bit 4:2:2 1080/23.98 HD-SDI signal. Each workstation wrote to 700GB Firewire 800 hard drives as well as a third drive used to back up the work and travel between production and post production in Hollywood. The unique setup added a step to the process, as the crew had to wait for capture speed, but the instantaneous full resolution playback was reward enough. Full resolution data could be sent to post overnight, allowing simultaneous online editing while the crew was still in production.
Fitzgerald+CO
Fitzgerald+CO recently launched two new advertising campaigns. First, the Aruba Tourism Authority launched its new national advertising campaign in the United States. The campaign, an investment of over $4.3 million for the destination, consists of :30 television spots as well as magazine, newspaper and Internet advertising.
The fundamental philosophies behind the destination’s new campaign are reinvigoration and rejuvenation. The campaign underscores all that the island offers for diverse travelers from jetsetters looking for fun and fast-paced activities to those wanting time to simply relax on the beach.
From a media investment standpoint, Aruba’s campaign is concentrated in areas with high numbers of past Caribbean travelers. This includes Aruba’s first-ever national television presence with a cable buy that spans a wide variety of popular American networks, including HGTV, Food Network, Travel Network, Bravo, Discovery, The History Channel, National Geographic and TLC. Travel and epicurean magazines continue to be an important piece of Aruba’s media plan, this time with full-page ads being complemented by two-page spreads, another first for the island. And given the Caribbean traveler’s likelihood to use the Internet for both researching and planning vacations, Aruba will have a heavy presence on travel-oriented websites including Expedia, Travelocity, Yahoo, Travel, Weather, Concierge, Fodors and Sidestep.
Moving stateside, Georgia Power launched a comprehensive campaign extending to all mediums including television, print, and online. Developed by Fitzgerald+CO, the ”We’re on so you can be,” campaign was created to continue to exemplify the power company’s heritage and continued commitment to value, reliability and environmental stewardship.
Eddie Snyder, chief creative officer of Fitzgerald+CO, was thrilled about this particular project because “it’s no secret that Georgia Power is a well-known and positive entity within the state of Georgia. The only real challenge was which fabulous Georgia locations to shoot, which in the end included coastal and mountain regions, as well as landmark historical locations -- all utilized to clearly convey value, reliability and environmental stewardship in a fresh and beautiful way.”
Additional creative will also begin to appear the first week of January including out-of-house and radio.
doppler doings
Atlanta filmmaker Tyler Perry has a new feature in production called “Daddy’s Little Girls,” and Lions Gate Feature Post booked Doppler Studios for looping with Sierra, Lauryn, and China McClain. Producer Reuben Cannon was in studio, and he also supervised Gabrielle Union recording for the film, via ISDN at Widget Post in Los Angeles. The session was engineered by Fay Salvaras and Jonathan Jory. Other recent notable ADR and film projects included ADR with Thomas Hyde for “Life Is Not A Fairy Tale,” a made-for-TV biography of American Idol, Fantasia Barrino; a director commentary track by Ed Burns for his “Looking for Kitty;” Andre Benjamin doing ADR for “Charlotte’s Web;” Marcus Hester looping for Sony Pictures’ “All The King’s Men;” and Mike Pniewski recording cues for “Miami Vice” and “Law & Order: Conviction.”
Doppler continues working on with wide variety of ongoing clients and projects as well. Engineer Shawn Coleman is busy with surround mixing duties for “Squidbillies,” an Adult Swim show on Cartoon Network. The network has also used Doppler for sound design on promos for several of its newest offerings, such as “Ben 10,” “Squirrel Boy,” and “My Gym Partner is a Monkey.” Advertising powerhouse BBDO Atlanta continues to mix radio and TV campaigns for their clients Cingular Wireless and Dell. The Blue Sky Agency uses Doppler for radio production on clients such as Moe’s Southwest Grill, and Atlanta sports franchises the Braves, Hawks, and Thrashers. And WestWayne continues to see Doppler on various TV and radio projects for Southeast Toyota Distributors and BellSouth Advertising & Publishing.
Your Command is His Wish
John Wieschhaus, an Atlanta art director and graphic design veteran of 20 years, recently opened his new creative services support company, Wish Creative. Wish Creative offers advertising and design services to agencies’ corporate sales and marketing departments, and small business. The agency has already successfully completed work for a number of clients, including Hemisphere Engineering, AGCO Inc., Marthasville Development, and The Foundation for Futures in Medicine. Wieschhaus’ work with prominent Atlanta firms Doyle Dane Bernbach (formerly FMA), Bozell, WestWayne, and Freebairn & Co, and nationally known firms like Young & Rubicam’s Brewer Advertising in Kansas City, has earned him numerous regional and national awards for print, TV and marketing collateral work.
RX for Denmark
The RX Club Show in New York, a national award show that celebrates creativity in healthcare product
advertising and promotion, honored The Georgia Transplant Foundation’s (GTF) 2006 public service announcement campaign with an Award of Excellence. The campaign, which features transplant recipients from the state of Georgia that have benefited from the services GTF offers, was also a finalist for a Silver or Gold award.DENMARK {the agency} created the print and interactive media public service campaign for GTF to raise awareness for the Foundation. The campaign was featured in over 20 publications and is running on television stations throughout Georgia.
Entertainment Acuity
Gail R. Tassell, president and CEO of Acuity Inc., recently opened of the talent management firm Acuity Entertainment Management LLC (AEM) and signed Patrick “Sleepy” Brown. Brown is known for his award-winning singing, songwriting and record producing, but AEM will work to build his theatrical career.
Tassell spearheads AEM as its president and CEO while entertainment industry veteran Nicole Sage leads the talent and film division. Tassell has represented talent in the film and television industry and has been featured in USA Today as a CEO who performs stand-up comedy. She served on USA Today’s panel of experts for 15 weeks during the first season of “The Apprentice,” and has been judging talent competitions across the country for the past several years.
Sage comes to AEM with 13 years in the entertainment industry, where her experience included casting for feature films and most recently served as a film and television agent. Sage has worked with talent personalities including Nicolette Sheridan, lleana Douglas, Joe Pesci and Kim Delaney.
Ron Witcher Joins Bright Impact
Bright Impact hired Ron Witcher as account director. Witcher brings over 13 years of account management, B2B and B2C marketing and project management experience to Bright Impact. Previously, he held positions with Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, Herman Miller and GEM Group. With his extensive expertise in managing print, Internet advertising, multimedia, mobile marketing and event marketing engagements of great value, Witcher’s vertical markets include pharmaceuticals, architecture, interior design, sport and entertainment and hospitality. He holds a BS in Marketing Management from Virginia Tech.
Old Hands Man New Decks at PC&E
Doug Smith, owner of Production Consultants and Equipment (PC&E), recently announced several changes that reflect PC&E’s commitment of service to the motion picture industry. Mark Wofford, a lighting and grip rental agent and twenty-year veteran of the film industry, will become business and marketing manager for PC&E. Wofford will focus on long term efforts to enhance PC&E’s performance and commitment to customer satisfaction and service as well as developing new business marketing strategies and goals.
Smith also announced that Michael Davis, a lighting and grip rental agent who has worked with PC&E for nine years, will become the lighting rental manager in recognition of his years of experience and service to PC&E. Assisting Davis in lighting and grip will be current warehouse manager, Jon Omps who will be moving into the position vacated by Wofford. Jeff Sutton will become warehouse manager.
Regarding the changes, Smith said, “I am excited to announce these changes, and look forward to having Mark work closely with all of us at PC&E in his new capacity. I am additionally very pleased that we are capable of possessing the talent within our company to promote Mike, Jon and Jeff into their new positions.”
Tough Gig for Lowden
Photographer Scott Lowden and crew journeyed to Aruba to shoot with Eddie Snyder and Ellen Stone of Fitzgerald+CO for Aruba Tourism. Lowden was hired to go to the island for two weeks and capture images for a photo library. The images will be used in print ads, brochures, and collateral for the Aruba Tourism Department’s new image campaign over the next few years. Most of the production, from casting to location scouting, had to be done once they were in Aruba.
Lowden continued his work for Fitzgerald shooting a series of ads featuring Coke employees highlighting Coca-Cola as a great place to work. The ads, billboards and collateral will run in conjunction with work related conferences for the next 2 years.
From Las Vegas to San Antonio Lowden’s work with long time client Current Inc. has won them merit awards in the 2006 Annual Maxi Awards show for 3 different ad campaigns on which they collaborated. Among other photo shoots, this fall Lowden added TBWA\Chiat\Day Inc. to his list of clients. He was hired to shoot portraits of 25 patients for Chiat’s
client Keppra.
Rich Intern Joins communications21
communications 21® has hired Carol Rich as an account manager. Rich graduated in May from the Grady College at the University of Georgia with a degree in Public Relations. Prior to joining c21, Rich interned for The Reynolds Group. She began working for c21 in August as an intern and freelancer, supporting a media tour for the dairy industry. Rich will work on clients in a variety of industries, including real estate, consumer products and transportation.
Comfortable in The LvngRm
With Madison Avenue talent, southern hospitality, and a stunning new office space overlooking downtown Atlanta, The LvngRm (The Living Room) is already attracting projects from around the region and across the country. Situated in Midtown Atlanta, a few short blocks from many of the city’s top advertising agencies, The LvngRm’s unique business model and expertise in high-end commercial advertising work have already captured the attention of more than a few firms. Dave Warner and Melissa Donovan, both of whom bring extensive management and business development experience to the operation, founded the LvngRm. Their partners, Jim Bowhall, creative director, and Nat Zimmerman, executive producer, round out the management team.
The LvngRm offers creative editorial for commercials, broadcast, and film work from two of the industry’s top editors, Shannon O’Brien and Lisa Olshanski. Both relocated from editorial houses in New York City to join The LvngRm. O’Brien worked most recently at Berwyn Editorial where she cut spots for Volvo, Coppertone, and Subway, among others. Olshanski was previously with Mad River Editorial working with directors like Tony Kaye, Clay Williams and Jim Sonzero and clients such as Garnier, HBO, Wachovia, and T.J. Maxx.
Award-winning creative talent, Jim Bowhall spent the past twelve years at Atlanta’s Crawford Communications where he held a variety of positions including creative editor, designer, visual effects artist and most recently visual effects director. His client list includes Black & Decker, CDW, Coca-Cola, Ford Motor Company, The Weather Channel, Discovery Channel, National Geographic, HGTV, DIY and agencies such as J. Walter Thompson, BBDO Atlanta, and West Wayne Advertising.
Melissa Donovan began her career at iXL. Most recently, she was the account executive in charge of agency and commercial production company business at Crawford Communications where she worked with Bowhall.
Over twenty years, Nat Zimmerman’s career in broadcast design and visual effects has seen him managing all aspects of on-air and off-channel production. He was a founding member of design and effects house, Click 3X Atlanta, where he produced numerous award-winning projects for the Discovery Channel, HBO, Cartoon Network, and The Learning Channel. Prior to working at Click 3X Atlanta, Zimmerman served as senior producer at DESIGNefx where he produced network launch packages and high-end visual effects-based commercials. With two Emmy Awards to his credit, Zimmerman spent over ten years in the New York market creating broadcast promotions and commercials for Broadway Video and Post Perfect.
The LvngRm has already produced projects for an array of clients ranging from Yamaha Water Craft and Publix Super Markets to Atlanta’s CBS 46 News, Cingular and Coca-Cola. Recent work completed at the studio also includes editorial, design, and effects work on the movie trailer for the independent feature film, “Sight Unseen.”
New Digs for Nolen
Nolen & Associates celebrates 20 years in business by moving to the top floor of Buckhead’s Lenox Towers. Pam Nolen, President of N&A says, “Nolen & Associates is still as accessible as ever, only the view’s a little better!” Nolen & Associates’ new home is now located in Suite 1720 of the Lenox Towers in Buckhead. According to Nolen, the new office offers 2,034 square feet, an open-plan studio and a media center.
In addition to the move, two members of the N&A team, Ruthie Smith and Laurie Sepulveda, have been named account executives for the firm. N&A has also added two new clients to its roster – Marietta-based Life University and Orange Business Services, the business communications solutions and services of France Telecom offered under the Orange brand in the global market.
Kennesaw Got GOTCHA
The City of Kennesaw selected GOTCHA Design as its design agency of record for a new seven month branding initiative. As directed by its Mayor and City Council, Kennesaw is embarking on the initiative to update its image, clarify its vision for the future and attract businesses
and residents to the area.
“The current logo for the city of Kennesaw, the General, is based on the City’s role in the Civil War,” said Mayor Leonard Church. “As the city of Kennesaw grows in diversity and commerce, we’ve determined that a new branding effort is needed to adequately reflect the City’s diversity and current status as an educational, cultural and business hub in the northern metro-Atlanta area.”
The branding campaign will consist of three phases of structured brand assimilation including strategic creative development, message
generation and implementation.
In conjunction with the University of Georgia’s Fanning Institute, the City has selected focus group participants consisting of Kennesaw State University students, administrators and professors, teenagers, the local business community, regional and state representatives, seniors, and local families and residents, to determine current perceptions and aid in the creative development of the new logo.
New logo ideas created by GOTCHA will be tested on these focus group members and voted upon through the City’s website and newsletters to garner the opinion of a broad scope of residents. Once the logo is selected, the City will utilize a series of events to unveil the campaign to focus group members, City elected officials, staff and VIP’s
Rich and Gooey Media
2006 was a banner year for Creative Digital Group (CDG), as it continued its winning tradition in 2006 by being named “Outstanding Website” by the Web Marketing Association’s Web Awards in recognition of its own site. In addition, CDG also took home the following accolades: Telly Award for a Video Biography of Cox Enterprise Chairman and CEO, Jim Kennedy; 10th Annual Webby Award for Terminus; Atlanta’s Top Web & Online Services List (Atlanta Business Chronicle), and; Atlanta’s Top Advertising Agencies List (Atlanta Business Chronicle).
Creative Digital Group was also recognized by the International Academy of the Visual Arts with two Silver Davey Awards. The first came for Simmons BeautyRest: Winner Online Advertising Campaign while the second was awarded for 8x8 Packet8: Winner Business-to-Consumer Rich Media Campaign.
In other news, Creative Digital Group will create rich media advertising campaigns for EyeWonder, a leader in online video and rich media advertising solutions. The campaign’s objective is to communicate EyeWonder’s leadership in rich media advertising, and will include video and rich media banner advertisements on top interactive industry websites.
Techies Convene at Carabiner
Carabiner Communication recently added three new clients to its roster. Texas-based GTESS, Georgia-based Jacket Micro Devices and Maryland-based Message Systems are the latest companies to select Carabiner.
Based in Richardson, Texas, GTESS is an innovative healthcare claim transaction technology company that delivers automated pre-adjudication claims processing on a pay-as-you-go basis to healthcare payers who need to decrease costs and enhance customer service.
Jacket Micro Devices (JMD), a supplier of integrated RF modules for high performance wireless products such as cell phones, laptops and gaming
devices, was founded in 2002 by researchers from Georgia Tech who developed a groundbreaking new method to package RF components. The company recently announced it has raised $12 million in venture funding which will be used to expand product development and ramp up production of the company’s recently introduced products.
Based in Columbia, Maryland, Message Systems is a worldwide provider of email software solutions and services for email service providers (ESPs), Internet service providers (ISPs) and large enterprises that need to manage the delivery of large amounts of email.
Simon Coaches Camera Hogs
Video Progressions, Inc. recently launched a new a presentation coaching division called Strictly Speaking. The new division includes product offerings that will provide on-camera group or individual coaching services. Individual or group coaching coupled with on camera opportunities is
designed to enhance not only personal presentation skills, but also offer a solution for clients that may
be struggling with becoming more effective on camera.
Video Progressions specializes in corporate videos and documentaries, live events and individual performance coaching. President and founder Adair Simon is a producer, director, and corporate trainer. An accomplished visual communicator for over 25 years, she has served the Atlanta entertainment community as President of Women in Film/Atlanta, and Board Member of both Women in Film & Television International and MCA-I.
In other VP news, the company has just completed production on the first in a series of exercise videos for Alzheimer’s patients, working with 80-year old client Mary Dayley of YourXercise. Simon created an informal and easy-to-follow video that helps caregivers help their loved ones stay active by filming on-camera instructor Lynn Dayley as she demonstrated exercises that patients can reasonably do in the comfort and privacy of their homes. “We designed this as a 2 camera shoot in a real home using a regular straight-back chair to show that exercise doesn’t have to be an ordeal for the caregiver or the patients,” said Simon. Also working with Video Progressions were Steve Panayioto and Caryn Johnson on cameras, Rhonda Barrymore with make-up and Robby Heisner on animation and graphics.
Schlesinger Goes Outside
The newest addition to the Atlanta art scene is OutsiderInside Art opened by Kathy Schlesinger, former producer from Ogilvy & Mather, Crawford and Spin. After 25 years in the advertising and production business (and a broken ankle), Kathy re-invented a new life from her 30-year love of collecting outsider and southern folk art. “The majority of art is from self-taught and untrained artists—art from the soul,” says Kathy. The shop is located at 1393 North Highland Ave. in Morningside across from Alon’s Bakery.
LA’s d.k. Joins Crawford
Crawford Post Production recentlyannounced the addition of senior effects editor, d.k. ryan (sic). Ryan, who coined the phrase “Discreet Arsonist” based on his mastery of Discreet Smoke/Flame and Fire/Inferno, comes to Atlanta via Los Angeles. Kathleen Fitch, VP of operations for post production says, “He is a true visual effects artist. He has extensive experience as an on set technical advisor and special effects supervisor for everything from
commercials and long form to network promotions and episodic TV.”
With 20 years as an online editor and 12 years experience as a digital compositor, Ryan spent the last six years freelancing. During that time his clients have included Disney, CBS, ABC, Extra, Fox and numerous advertising clients like Nike, Toyota, Lexus and Smirnoff. Prior to his freelance work in L.A., he held senior staff positions at CCI Digital Post Production, Visnet West and Pacific Rim.
WaveGuide en Fuego
When Kilgannon Advertising ramped up their TV campaign to introduce Vectren Source to the New York natural gas market, they called upon WaveGuide Studios, who literally thrust Vectren Source onto the scene with a burst of (digital) flame. WaveGuide Studios provided a complete suite of post production services for “Choices,” featuring a driver’s indecision when confronted with an unmarked “T” interchange.
The spot was primarily built around stock footage from Getty.
“Working with stock footage isn’t just a matter of dropping the shot into the timeline,” according to Eric Lease, WaveGuide Studios senior animator. “In this case, the master shot required multi-band color and exposure correction, plus there were elements that had to be completely removed.
In addition to the stock footage cleanup, Lease supervised the creation of the Vectren Source logo treatment, in which a blue flame bursts, burning away the black coating of a reflective chrome rendition of the logo, which is entirely invisible on a black background until the flame appears. The effect combined elements produced in 3D using Maya Unlimited modeling, animation and fluid simulation modules.
Todd Watson, WaveGuide Studios audio producer, built a thirty-track enveloping soundscape for the spot in the WGS ProTools HD studio, making use of digital synthesis, the extensive WaveGuide Digital sound effects libraries and foley recording specific to the project.
Krovich Earning Ph.D. in Film Festology
Dan Krovich was appointed the new festival director for IMAGE Film & Video, the Atlanta Film Festival and Out On Film. IMAGE produces two major film festivals, the Atlanta Film Festival and Out On Film, and provides filmmaker services and education initiatives including workshops, monthly salons and screenings.
Krovich spent his academic career in science, receiving a B.S. in chemistry from the College of William and Mary and a Ph.D. in pharmacology and
molecular sciences from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. His passion for film led him to the position of programming administrator at The Maryland Film Festival where he served for six years.
During his time with The Maryland Film Festival, he also worked on several film productions including
“Swimmers” and “Syriana.” Additionally, he has served as a reader for the Maryland Filmmaker’s Fellowship in conjunction with the Sundance Institute, been on the programming committee for the underground film festival MicroCineFest, and participated in the Maryland Humanities Council’s Youth Film Jam.
“I’m thrilled to be in Atlanta and look forward to serving the independent film community,” says Krovich. “As Festival Director, I plan to bring some of the world’s finest films to the City of Atlanta and introduce Atlanta’s finest filmmakers to the world.”
New Goodies at the LAB
LAB 601 Digital Post recently added a new round of cutting edge capabilities. New equipment and technology includes a Sony SRW-5000 HDCAM SR deck, the industry leading mastering format for television and film. The SRW-5000 also adds Standard Definition to High Definition upconversion capabilities. Other goodies include a Panasonic DVCPRO HD AJ-HD1400 deck providing full Varicam support including variable frame rate conversion; expansion of the AVID Unity Storage system with an additional eight Terabytes of storage; three additional graphics workstations outfitted with MONET and MOKEY tracking and compositing systems; two additional offline editorial suites with Media Composer software bringing the number of HD edit suites to ten; Final Cut Studio HD system for HD capture and output services, and; a facility wide UPS system to eliminate downtime from power loss.
TedCo Spanning the Globe
TedCo Worldwide, an Atlanta-based creative marketing firm, recently unveiled a new identity. The name is a spoof on global network agencies that value organization over ideas. Ted Nelson, creative director at TedCo, wanted the identity to differentiate TedCo from other companies. The intent was to play the self-important worldwide name off against time zone clocks, which emphasize the fact that the agency is local. And we mean local, as in having offices in Atlanta, Atlanta and Atlanta.
The timing of the new identity coincided with an effort by TedCo to promote their specialized brand of creative marketing. In addition to the new identity, a new website was launched. Potential clients in the shelter, travel and tourism, and sports and entertainment industries will be targeted with direct mail.
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