Looking to position the Nokia Nseries as the leader in the mobile video space, interactive agency R/GA, London and New York, helped to come up with the idea of an initiative whereby creative visionaries would be sought out to shoot projects using Nokia’s N93 multipurpose, multimedia phone/communications device, which has been introduced overseas.
In turn this content will be shown on the Internet, giving life to a new interactive online community for mobile movies called the Nokia Nseries Studio (www.nokia.com/nseries/studio). A coterie of R/GA talent was deployed to create the site.
R/GA and Lowe London have teamed to line up visionary filmmakers for the project, which is called “Open Your Eyes.” With this theme, the project hopes to garner films capturing everyday moments that tell a touching, compelling and/or thought provoking story. Among the first recruited for the project was director/actor Gary Oldman, who helmed Nil By Mouth and starred in such movies as Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Leon and Harry Potter: the Prisoner of Azkaban.
Other visionary contributors confirmed thus far include Mark Cohen, Ben Coccio, Patrick Kalyanapu, Carlos J. Gomez de Llarena, Daniel Josefsohn, Dan Sully, Matt Ward, Jon Spencer, Adam Jones and Jason Nichols. Plans call for a total of 30 creative visionaries to be brought on board.
The first week’s worth of films posted on the site carry an “Amazing Spaces” bent to the “Open Your Eyes” theme. For instance, in Spencer’s N93-lensed mini-movie, we’re taken on an offbeat ride in an elevator. The suspense is that you never know what you’re going to see when the elevator doors open. Indeed each time the doors slide open, we’re treated to different sights and venues–all without ever leaving the lift, until the very end.
The project has captured the imagination of its contributors. In a released statement, Oldman related, “I am fascinated by the potential of mobile video devices like the Nokia N93. They allow us to catch the fleeting moments we observe in our daily lives and share them as they happen. The possibilities for filmmaking are endless. I’m looking forward to producing a short film on a Nokia N93 and I hope it inspires people to record the extraordinary moments in their ordinary days and share them with the world.”
A selection of the “Open Your Eyes” mobile movies have debuted on the Nokia Nseries Studio where they will be available for downloading to mobile devices or personal computers. Plans call for Nokia to open up the site this summer so people can upload and showcase their own mobile short films.
Videos can be enlarged, providing an opportunity to see the high quality of the video that was shot using the Nokia N93. Other options include downloading, video podcasting, emailing and blogging the clips.
The site contains assorted features, such as a workshop with bios of the studio directors/creative visionaries, and a section where other filmmakers can submit proposals for projects and potential sponsorship opportunities.
Another outreach initiative is realized through partnerships and events. For example, the Nseries Studio has a relationship with the Tribeca Film Festival. Via the site, users can access five mini-documentaries, each profiling a filmmaker (such as Rosie Perez, Ed Burns) at Tribeca. The documentaries were created using the N93 device.
Tapio Heldman, Nokia senior VP, multimedia marketing, stated, “Connected mobile video devices are the ultimate solution for spontaneous video recording. With the Nokia Nseries Studio we’re hoping to encourage more people to shoot and share their life experiences. And with the Nokia N93, people can capture these moments in unparalleled video quality from a mobile device.”
As earlier reported in SHOOT, R/GA opened a London office in August ’05, an expansion that was a direct result of its winning the Nokia Multimedia account business.
More recently, R/GA has embarked on growing its New York headquarters, adding an additional 11,075 square feet of space. The larger accommodations are needed for 60-plus new employees who have joined R/GA, New York, this yea due to increased business from new and existing clients. Once renovations are complete, the R/GA campus in New York will total more than 60,000 square feet. The new space will be used for offices, conference facilities and a full production digital studio that will expand R/GA’s capabilities to offer complete digital pre-pro, production and post services, plus full audio services. The studio will utilize state-of-the-art, Apple-based technologies for its clientele.