NYC-based musician LOVESKILLS came to Nice Shoes looking for a creative partner to produce two music videos for the lead-up to the release of his debut EP, Multiplicity. With a production schedule of about two months, Creative Director Brian Bowman presented two unique approaches that would work within the timetable while also realizing a creative vision inspired by the album’s psychedelic cover. nnBoth videos were shot in one day, but “Cover Me” delivered first. The video features LOVESKILLS performing in a black vacuum with an interactive LED array acting as a light source, intercut with a pair of identically dressed dancers in workout clothes. The video has an overall 80’s feel, which according to Bowman only intensified throughout shooting and carried through into the final color session with colorist Ron Sudul.nn
nnOff the shelf LED lights were hacked and controlled with a custom DMX controller programmed by Bowman. Throughout the video, kaleidoscopic animations created in After Effects act as transitions, but the team mostly utilized in-camera effects created by the lights and a number of rare filters supplied by director of photography Rod Lamborn. “Rod buys these filters all over the world,” said Bowman. “He won’t tell anyone where he got them. They’re completely unique and produce beautiful results.”nn”Flash in the Dark” set singer Richard Spitzer and model Lara Winter in an animated, black and white world, with color slowly introduced by Winter’s presence. The intro and transitions featured interactive animations that react to the song, some of which were introduced into a live environment when LOVESKILLS played the Mercury Lounge on February 15th. “Flash in the Dark” also brought in more of the Nice Shoes team, with editor Tony Dolezal, Flame artists Vin Roma, Russ Bigsby, Jason Farber and Kevan Lee and colorist Gene Curley all contributing to the final piece. Producer Colleen Valentino managed both videos from start to finish, taking on her first live action production role. “It’s a great example of what a client can achieve when utilizing all of the talent and technology at Nice Shoes,” added Valentino. nnBowman has worked with interactive elements in the past, but is always keen to play with new software and technologies. “With each new project, I’m interested in an experimental approach. For ‘Cover Me,’ we were working with an entirely new program in the VDMX platform. There was no guarantee it would work, but it did and it came out beautifully.”nn
nnCreditsnProduction: Nice Shoes; Director, Brian Bowman; Director of Photography, Rod Lamborn; Producer, Colleen Valentino nnTalent: LOVESKILLS; Creative Director, Brian Bowman; Editors, Rocky Bazemore (Cover Me), Tony Dolezal (Flash in the Dark); Animation & Compositing, Brian Bowman, Kit Lam, Danny Princz, Jay Kim; Colorists, Ron Sudul (Cover Me), Gene Curley (
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Who Needs Los Angeles? We Do.
One doesn't have to be a statistician to know that there are fewer commercials being shot in the U.S. today for the American market than ever before, and a dramatic decrease in L.A. in particular. In the last five years, as reported by FilmLA (the office tasked with issuing permits), L.A. commercial production has dipped 31 percent. But here’s the thing: This doesn’t mean that L.A. has lost its importance as the production center of the world. Production in L.A. is vital. It is the go-to. It’s where you can count on access to exemplary crews, a support infrastructure second to none, varied location and backlot options, a large population of on-screen talent and (fairly) predictable weather. The fact is, with overall decline and now the devastation of the fires, we’re on the brink of losing this mainstay resource. Without employment opportunities and now many without homes, talented and trained crew are bound to leave either the industry or the LA area for other opportunities, unless there are enough job opportunities to sustain a solid living. Now is the time when we ALL must support and bolster this community. Production is needed in L.A., now! Of course, advertising is a business, and marketers’ money should be spent as efficiently as possible, BUT we have to think beyond each production and know that if we lose the incredible resource of L.A. production as we know it, then marketers, agencies and the industry loses in the long run. Over the past several days, some agencies have issued directives to production companies that are unilaterally pushing upcoming production options out of L.A. The fact is L.A. is a large area, and many sections of the city and county are not directly impacted... Read More