Canadian home improvement chain RONA is one of the top sponsors of the just-concluded Winter Games in Vancouver, and to help commemorate this support it produced a beautifully-photographed TV spot that aired during game coverage titled “Tape Measure.”  Produced by production company Les Enfants of Montreal, the spot was directed by Ivan Grbovic for Canadian agency Bos.  The spot opens with a man on a fishing boat somewhere along Canada’s Atlantic Coast; he places a tape measure down on one end of the deck, and suddenly lets it go.  The camera then follows the zipping end of the tape measure as it crosses the entire breadth of Canada, through every imaginable type of landscape and cityscape, ending on the Pacific Coast.  Agency credits go to Mathieu Dufour, Roger Gariapy, Ron Caplan, Andra Paradis and Simon Essiambre.  The spot was shot by DP Sara Mishara, as well as by Grbovic.  Céline Ceillier produced for Les Enfants. It was edited by Mathieu Bouchard Malo and features VFX work from Bureau de Post.  Music was by Normand Corbeil through Kraft-Engel Management.

George Patterson Y&R/Brisbane and Australia based Liquid Animation have won Best in Show at the Asian Phoenix Film Awards for its beautiful animated spot for The Electoral Commission of Queensland.  Titled “Your Vote Means Something,” the spot shows black and white numerals coming together to form a variety of images: construction cranes in the city, farm equipment harvesting crops, surfers riding a curl, a child playing football in the park, a couple relaxing in a field.  The idea is that each vote counts when building a better society.  “Put your number in the box,” says the voiceover, as the spot closes with a number appearing in a ballot box.  The Phoenix Awards is one of the top competitions in the Asia Pacific region, attracting entries from leading agencies throughout Asia, as well as from Australia and New Zealand.  The campaign was selected as Best in Show: Best Advertising Commercial of the Year/Animation, and was  one of only two advertisements across all categories to receive the award. GPY&R credits go to Piet Human and David Joubert, Andrew Thompson and Kohbe Vela. Liquid credits go to EP Geoff Viner, Director Ross Anderson and Editor Matthew Meersbergen.

Director Damien Kelly’s “Tiny Dealer” spot for Stihl has been selected for publication in the venerable European journal Luerzer's Archive.  The spot is a tall tale about a little man, and the folks at The Guild of Commercial Filmmakers say that for it to be featured in the world’s biggest archive for outstanding advertising is quite an achievement.  The ad was conceived by creative hot shop The Foundry and reinforces Stihl’s serious support message by depicting a tiny Stihl Dealer hanging out with one of his customers to help make life easier. Shot over three days, this spot required a large amount of green screen, rig building, model-making and compositing work in order to create the overall effect of a miniature man in a giant world. It also required a lot of careful planning to make the miniature man effect as convincing as possible. Stihl has for years made a key marketing point out of its reliance on smaller hardware and specialty stores, as opposed to big box retailers. Agency credits on the spot go to Annie Price, Melinda Pritchard and Jon Mahney.  The spot was edited at Active Motion and shot by Director of Photography Wayne Aistrope.  Helene Nicol produced for The Guild of Commercial Filmmakers. 

Video game company 2K Games turned to The Ebeling Group for a trailer for its video game release “SpecOps.” Titled “The Line,” it was both written and directed by Marco Brambilla through the studio X&Co., which is repped by The Ebeling Group.  The trailer served as the prototype for the game, an atypical way of working within the gaming world, in which the preview for the game helped shape the narrative and the character developments. Brambilla collaborated with design and production studio Tronic on the project, which features music from superstar Bjork and sound design from Q Department.  Meanwhile, TEG directors XYZ Studios partnered with Goodby Silverstein & Partners to produce a spot titled “Progress Bar” for cable giant Comcast that utilizes a metaphorical progress bar to showcase the multitude of ways in which its broadband services can benefit small businesses, libraries, community centers and schools across the country. Agency credits go to Christopher Valencius, Paul Charney, Stefan Copiz, Matt Herr, Tod Puckett and Peg Oberste.  XYZ credits include Creative Director Tim Kentley, who also edited the spot, and Colorist Dan Stonehouse.  Director of Photography was Richard Henkels of the Sheldon Prosnit Agency. Executive Producer was Mick Ebeling of TEG.

Digital effects company Ntropic recently contributed post and effects services to the new documentary "MINE." Directed by Geralyn Pezanoski, "MINE" is a moving film about the essential bond between humans and animals, set against the backdrop of one of the worst natural disasters in modern US history: Hurricane Katrina. This gripping, character-driven story follows New Orleans residents as they attempt the daunting task of trying to reunite with their pets that have been adopted by families all over the country, and chronicles the custody battles that arise when two families love the same pet. Who determines the fate of the animals--and the people--involved? A compelling meditation on race, class and the power of compassion, "MINE" examines how we treat animals as an extension of how we view and treat each other. A longtime friend of Ntropic founder Nate Robinson, Pezanoski first approached Ntropic to convert hundreds of various format tapes from SD to HD. Working in a non-linear fashion, Robinson didn't see the film in its entirety until a preview screening at the Roxy Theater.  "At first, I wanted to help a friend," says Robinson, "But seeing the work I was so proud to have contributed to something magical."  Using Autodesk's Lustre, he color corrected the final film and, in doing so, was able to help both with continuity and the use of color to enhance mood and tone. "It was a huge privilege to have Nate working on this film,” says Pezanoski. In the field we were often shooting in less than ideal conditions. Nate's work really enhanced our footage and went a long way toward recreating the visual impact of being in New Orleans in the weeks after Katrina."

Portugal’s Lactogal brand of dairy products recently teamed up with ad agency Partners and the Lisbon-based production company Pix Mix to produce what’s believed to be one of the first stereoscopic 3D live action TV spots produced in Europe.   The spot was a holiday spot that was seen in 3D cinemas in Portugal over the holidays, accompanying current 3D features such as “Avatar.”  Pix Mix´s directors Nuno Maltez and José Manuel Abrantes brought to life the creative idea of Partners with the help of Stereo3D consultants Phil Streather and Ralston Humble. Live action shooting also took place at the Lisbon studios of Nova Imagem where a crew of 50 local professionals embraced the challenge of this long process of shooting. Post production was then carried out on a 3D-equipped Quantel Pablo system by Pix Mix editors, who also handled the compositing of 3D-generated stereoscopic elements and animations created in house. Finally, the sound mix was made at Pix Mix sound studio and the master Dolby Surround 5.1 at Tobis’ Lisbon facilities.  Additional credits go to DP Rui Poças. Post-Production Manager was Miguel Gonçalves.  The spot was edited by Jonathan Karlsson and Tiago Castro.  Agency credits go to Maria João Andrade and Teresa Pinto Leite.  To see a clip of how the spot was made, go here.

Director Wally Pfister of Santa Monica-based Independent Media, Inc. recently completed a series of bracing PSAs for the The Meth Project  via Venables Bell & Partners, San Francisco. The spots, titled “Ben,” “Kevin,” “Tracy,” and “Jessica,” are both gritty and beautiful.  Each tells the story of a kid fallen victim to the horrors of meth from the viewpoint of a third party friend or family member.  In “Ben,” a woman shows all the places where meth hurt her friend Ben—the sofa where he went into convulsions, the ER where his life was saved and the storage room where he ended it because he couldn’t quit. The spots jump from one scene to the next as the story is told.  “Tracy” shows the retail store she was fired from, the baby she birthed and her friend who said nothing when Tracy said she wanted to try meth.  At the end of each spot is the tag “Meth—Not Even Once.” Agency credits go to Paul Venables, James Robinson, Paul Johnson, Keith Scott and Nicolette Guidotti. Independent credits go to EP Susanne Preissler and Line Producer Denise Rocchietti. Barbara Ling was Production Designer. Paul Martinez edited for Arcade. Sound design was by 740 Sound Design’s Scott Ganary. Mixer John Bolen handled audio post out of Play Sound.

Digital Kitchen teamed with Microsoft to conceptualize, create and produce an online interactive game tied to the recent Warner Brothers’ “Sherlock Holmes” movie.  The concept for the game was to deliver an aesthetic that goes beyond the trappings of the online game genre, and ultimately produce a full-on cinematic experience.  The game begins with a 2:30 film in which a crime scene unfolds. Shot with 100 actors, three capture formats and seven cameras, the setting is an extravagant, sultry black-tie affair: an auction for an ancient artifact.  Bids are made and money is collected, but chaos erupts when the host of the evening falls to the floor.  Seconds later, the artifact has disappeared, along with the host’s young and beautiful wife.  It’s up to the viewer to figure out what happened via a series of three questions. To deduce the answer to each question, players must use their “Holmes vision powers,” a set of abilities that enables the player to investigate specific details of the crime scene.  Digital Kitchen used an array of techniques to illustrate each power. DK credits go to Creative Director/Producer Morgan Henry, Producer Chezik Walker, Designers John Foreman and Jeremy Stuart and Editors Brian Cole, Shawn Fedorchuk and Slavka Kolbel. Martin Ahlgren was DP.

From face paint to high end accessories, Company X has got you covered.  The post production company recently cut a risque spot for Dolce & Gabana wristwatches and handled both editorial and production on a romp of a commercial for the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players (NYGSP).  For the former gig, Bandits Director Cyril Guyot tapped Company X Editor Lisa Mogol to work on “D&G Time.”  Shot in Paris, the provocative spot depicts a tryst turned upper-class ménage à trios.  It opens with a fetching mademoiselle luring her beau through a Parisian flat. Amid the twosome's sensual exchanges, tension escalates when another man arrives, peering from the shadows of the quarters.  Meanwhile, Company X Editor Barney Miller completed a spot for the NYGSP’s “G&S Fest 2010,” which includes the classic comic opera "Pirates of Penzance" as well as productions of "H.M.S. Pinafore," "The Mikado" and "Ruddigore."  Created as part of a campaign by Hofstetter+Partners/Agency212, the spot—which Miller also directed—opens with rowdy barflies raising their pints, singing, "Hail, Hail, the Gang's All Here." Suddenly, a band of pirates appear, inciting a face-off as they interject the tune's original lyrics, which trace back to Sullivan's memorable Act II song "With Cat-Like Tread." The spot was produced through DETOX, the new live action/graphics arm of Company X. Agency credits go to  Ed Kleban, Mike Rovner and Jules Evenson. DETOX credits go to DP Aaron Phillips and Graphic Artist Terence Ziegler. Company X’s Robert Mead also worked on the edit.

Yes, those Winter Olympics are over, but we’re still tallying up Super Bowl creds.  One post house with multiple ads on the big game was Peepshow, which contributed its editing and post skills to three spots.  Peepshow Owner/Editor Andrea MacArthur worked with MJZ Director Dante Ariola, ad agency The Richards Group and VFX house Method to create two epic films for Bridgestone Tires, "Whale of a Tale" and "Your Tires or Your Life." Agency credits on the Bridgestone work go to J. R. Dixon, Todd Tucker, Glenn Dady, Patrick Murray, Bill Cochran and Bill Milkereit. Sound Design on "Whale of a Tale" was handled by Machine Head.  In addition, Editor Gary Knight of Peepshow’s New York office teamed with Euro RSCG to prove that snacking is fun with a new campaign for Ritz Crackers.  The first of three spots, "Tail Gate," ran at the start of the game and brought football fans outside the stadium for the full tailgating experience as they danced to a marching band.  And who’s that in the crowd? None other than former New York Giants star Tiki Barber. Agency credits on this spot include Robert Cuff , Dave Arnold , Conway Williamson, Israel Garber  and Joe Guyt. It was directed by Rene Villar-Rios of Believe Media and includes VFX work from Brand New School and sound design by Henryboy.

Sound Lounge Rerecording Mixer/Sound Effects Editor Cory Melious will mix the entire third season of the Emmy and Golden Globe Award-winning FX series “Damages,” alongside lead Rerecording Mixer/Sound Effects editor Sean Garnhart. Sound Lounge's Film and TV division will mix all 13 episodes of the new series for the show. Melious will mix sound design, backgrounds and Foley, while lead mixer Garnhart will mix music and dialogue. Select outside sound editors will also contribute from Sound Lounge's facilities. These include Supervising Sound Supervisor Fred Rosenberg, Dialogue Editor Dave Ellinwood and Foley Editor Steve Visscher. This project will showcase Sound Lounge's ability to work under tight time constraints, as they’ll have just three days to mix each episode. As Sound Lounge mixes each show, the next installment will already be under production at Steiner Studios in Brooklyn, where the majority of production occurs. The episodes will typically air one week after Sound Lounge finishes its work. On top of the “Damages” series, Sound Lounge also mixed half a dozen spots for this year’s Super Bowl, including such winners as  Snickers’ “Game,” Monster.com’s “Fiddling Beaver,” McDonald’s “Check This,” truTV’s “Punxsytawney” and “All Four Seasons” and “Best of Fans” for the NFL Network.

For Claudia Reda Walker, the resident fashion/beauty editor at BOND, every commercial she works on is a chance to add something new to the genre. Her latest project -- a nine-spot campaign for Pantene, featuring supermodel Giselle Bundchen, created by agency Wing, New York (a division of Grey Global Group) -- is no exception.  In the spots, which are targeted to the Brazilian market, we see Bundchen in a variety of settings -- a white sandy beach, a beautiful hotel room, an elegant loft with large stain glass windows. In each spot Bundchen speaks directly to the camera about her hair and how Pantene Pro V helps keep it looking beautiful. Her testimonial is intercut with glamorous shots of her natural, flowing hair. Other spots in the campaign target specific markets such as Colombia, Mexico and Argentina, featuring testimonials from models and celebrities from each country. In the ads they talk about their work and how it often means their hair is mistreated, colored, ironed, blow-dried, etc. Thankfully, Pantene helps restore it to its natural health, shine and beauty. ''Working with Wing Creative Director Javier Bonilla and his team is always a joy,'' Reda-Walker says. ''Time after time he brings me beautiful footage, and the Pantene spots were no different.”   BOND-FX’s visual effects artist Jeff Spangler added some digital magic to the stars’ hair, animating 3D vitamins and enhancing and adjusting the scenes. Additional BOND credits go to CD Jeff Beckerman and EP Stephanie Shayne.

In “Valet,” a spot directed by A Common Thread’s Allen Martinez for travel web site Orbitz.com, the often-funny Orbitz spokesman arrives at a resort in his space-age looking floating hovercraft to tell a couple they’re getting a rebate check because another customer booked their same hotel for less than they paid.  As he presents them with their Orbitz Price Assurance check, a hapless parking lot valet tries to start the craft up and pull it into the parking lot in the background. Mayhem ensues.  The agency, Trailer Park, handled not only creative but also post and visual effects work.  Trailer Park credits include Kristina Slade and Troy Courtney.  The spot was shot by Director of Photography Jeff Venditti, represented by Innovative Artists.  Executive producing for A Common Thread were J. P. McMahon and Tristan Drew.  Moira Michaels produced for the production company.

Minneapolis-based post house Crash + Sue’s has opened a division dedicated to handling post work on independent feature films.  Dubbed CS Films, the unit has wrapped its first major project, providing color correction, online editing and finishing for writer/director Matt Osterman’s debut film, the supernatural thriller “Phasma Ex Machina.”  “This project was a great opportunity for CS Films to work on a high-end film with an innovative, top-notch director,” says CS Films producer Amanda Burgland.  “Our goal was to create a filmmaker-friendly creative environment that provides feature length projects with a seamless workflow and surpass our clients’ expectations, and this job allowed us to do just that.” Colorist Sue Lasko employed her daVinci 2K+ system to color correct “Phasma Ex Machina,” which DP Adam Honzl shot on Panasonic P2 digital media. The director and DP had pursued a rather unconventional look for the thriller, opting for a warm color palette instead of more traditional chilly blue and gray tones. “They wanted all the ghost scenes to have a very specific look, so it was a matter of establishing it and staying with their formula,” says Lasko.  “Since Matt wasn’t sure he’d have the budget for color correction, he and Adam strived to get as close as possible to the palette they were going for in-camera,” she adds.  “With their color treatment establishing the look, I could go back and take things further by adjusting the contrast levels and amount of saturation.”  Jennifer Kramer and Jon Thomas produced “Phasma Ex Machina” for Phasma Productions. Aaron Stokes Ltd in Minneapolis provided the audio post for the film and Seamless Sound created the music and sound design. VFX and animation were provided by Studio Collective in Minneapolis.

Royale recently collaborated with two artists, one promoting a rock legend, the other a sports genre. Designer Rogerio Carvalheiro, Principal of RC Design Federation, joined forces with Royale to create a David Bowie-inspired multimedia installation for "Rock 'n' Platinum: A Designer Showcase That Interprets Music Through Design." The showcase was commissioned to introduce Lofts @ Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles, the latest development by real-estate developers REthink. Carvalheiro was to create a "rock star habitat" out of the split-level unit. The design motif was an interpretation of Bowie and his legendary  rock 'n' elegant style. Royale created two video installations that would interpret and complement the décor. At the airy top level is Royale's first video, which comprises a portrait of Bowie and his various creative personas. Downstairs is Carvalheiro's "Bowie" suite and Royale's second video, a four-minute montage that includes Bowie film clips and interview footage. Artist Adam Haynes also worked with Royale to create ID #24, the latest station ID for FUEL TV’s Signature Series, which was inspired by the signature series deck designs popular in skateboard culture. Royale’s task was to animate Haynes’ illustration “Rouge Wave.” Credits go to CDs Brien Holman and Jayson Whitmore, EP Jen Lucero and Producer Anne Hong. 

Tommy Murov has been named as the new Executive Producer at post production company jumP in New York.  He joins from Spot Welders, where he had been EP since helping establish the company's New York operations in 2006. With more than two decades of production experience, Murov brings a client list to jumP that includes work for  BMW, United Airlines, Nike and Honda, to name a few. Prior to his time at Spot Welders, Murov worked at King Cut Editorial.  Before that he was on the agency side of the business, with stints in production at RPA in Santa Monica and Fallon Worldwide in Minneapolis.  In other jumP news, Director Steven Sebring's “Patti Smith: Dream of Life” documentary, edited by Lin Polito, recently aired on PBS. The film, which was finished by Angelo Corrao, ACE, captures the vision and spirit of the poet, painter, musician and punk rock icon. Polito helped sift through ten years of footage to define an intimate portrait featuring the artist's performances on tour, her love for her children, her devotion to her late husband Fred "Sonic" Smith and her hypnotic narrative poetry.  Using footage dating to Smith's 1996 London tour, Polito collaborated closely on the project with Sebring for five years, continually revisiting the film as Sebring added new footage. Among many other accolades, the film won the Excellence in Cinematography Award at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival.

US-based broadcast network PBS has unveiled a new multiplatform brand package that was created in house by its Brand Management team and executed by New York-based design and production studio Eyeball.  The series of spots encourage its viewers to “Be More.” Set to the tune of original music from New York-based music house Expansion Team, the spots show people immersed in the world around them, exploring, discovering and wondering. Among the vignettes seen in the promo package are a little girl staring at her reflection in the helmet of a space suit, a little boy walking by a lake and a family watching a shooting star through a telescope. At the end of each spot, the voiceover says “PBS- Be More.” Eyeball credits go to CD Limore Shur, Producer Sarah Nahas, Head of Production Mike Sullo, Designer Chris Roe and Editor Thomas Downs.  Jory Hull, now with Filmtecknarna, also served as CD. For Expansion Team, credits go to Creative Director Alex Moulton, EP April Jaffe and Composer Michael Picton.
 

"Botnik,’’ is the latest animated short produced by Chicago’s Calabash Animation and directed by Calabash’s Jacqueline Smessaert-Brennan.  The ten-minute cel/digital animated short tells the story of a frustrated wannabe artist who longs to make the scene with resident hipsters and win the heart of a beautiful beatnik girl. Thwarted by a crushing combination of creative block and the pressure to produce, he retreats to his retro-laboratory and emerges with the solution: a gleaming robot artist programmed to create the ultimate art show. According to Calabash Creative Director Wayne Brejcha, ''Botnik'' represents the company’s most ambitious film production to date and came about thanks to Calabash’s internal film program that encourages staff animators to submit film ideas with the best one being produced. The program began in 2001 and was an immediate success with its first short, ''Stubble Trouble,'' receiving a 2002 Academy Award nomination. Since then the company has produced five animated shorts, all of which are available on the company’s website.  ''We’re extremely proud of "Botnik," both from a creative and an execution standpoint,'' says Brejcha. ''It’s complex in terms of the story and animation technique, and we look forward to sharing it with the world on the film festival circuit and beyond.''  “Botnick” won at the Palm Springs International Film Festival in the category of Best Animated Short and has appeared at Comic Con Independent Film Festival, Raindance Film Festival, L.A. Shorts Fest, Temecula Valley Film and Music Festival, Filmstock, Tallgrass Film Festival and the Ojai-Ventura International Film Festival.  The film was cut by Editor Ed Nichols of Optimus. Sean Henry produced for Calabash.

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