A soldier in military fatigues and carrying a backpack walks out into an airport terminal, having deboarded a plane. Curiously he is the only one walking through the terminal. We then see him still a solitary figure as he grabs his duffle bag off of a baggage claims carousel full of luggage.
Next he’s all alone on a shuttle bus and then in the heart of what should be a bustling big city.
Finally his solitude ends as another man approaches, extends his hand towards him and says “welcome home.”
Once they shake hands, the city is full of people and cars whizzing past.
A message appears on screen which reads, “If you’re a veteran of Iraq or Afghanistan, you’re not alone.”
It’s followed by a heartening, “We know where you’re coming from,” accompanied by logos for the Ad Council and IAVA (Iraq & Afghanistan Veterans of America). An end tag carries the website address communityofveterans.org.
Titled “Alone,” this PSA was directed by Lenard Dorfman of bicoastal/international @radical.media for BBDO New York.
The BBDO team included chief creative officers David Lubars and Bill Bruce, creative director Don Schneider, copywriter Brad Roseberry, art director John Leu, executive producer Grant Gill and music producer Loren Parkins.
Maya Brewster and Jim Bouvet exec produced for @radical with Carla Tate serving as producer. Anthony Wolberg was the DP.
Editor was Jon Stefansson of bicoastal Spot Welders. Visual effects were done by Framestore, New York.
Does “Hundreds of Beavers” Reflect A New Path Forward In Cinema?
Hard as it may be to believe, changing the future of cinema was not on Mike Cheslik's mind when he was making "Hundreds of Beavers." Cheslik was in the Northwoods of Wisconsin with a crew of four, sometimes six, standing in snow and making his friend, Ryland Tews, fall down funny.
"When we were shooting, I kept thinking: It would be so stupid if this got mythologized," says Cheslik.
And yet, "Hundreds of Beavers" has accrued the stuff of, if not quite myth, then certainly lo-fi legend. Cheslik's film, made for just $150,000 and self-distributed in theaters, has managed to gnaw its way into a movie culture largely dominated by big-budget sequels.
"Hundreds of Beavers" is a wordless black-and-white bonanza of slapstick antics about a stranded 19th century applejack salesman (Tews) at war with a bevy of beavers, all of whom are played by actors in mascot costumes.
No one would call "Hundreds of Beavers" expensive looking, but it's far more inventive than much of what Hollywood produces. With some 1,500 effects shots Cheslik slaved over on his home computer, he crafted something like the human version of Donald Duck's snowball fight, and a low-budget heir to the waning tradition of Buster Keaton and "Naked Gun."
At a time when independent filmmaking is more challenged than ever, "Hundreds of Beavers" has, maybe, suggested a new path forward, albeit a particularly beaver-festooned path.
After no major distributor stepped forward, the filmmakers opted to launch the movie themselves, beginning with carnivalesque roadshow screenings. Since opening in January, "Hundreds of Beavers" has played in at least one theater every week of the year, though never more than 33 at once. (Blockbusters typically play in around 4,000 locations.)... Read More