Los Angeles, CA-based entertainment company WINDOWSEAT tackles a massive, multi-platform, co-branded approach for one of the world’s largest yearly surfing events with their production of the 30th Annual Vans Triple Crown. WINDOWSEAT has been creating, capturing and syndicating content for this Vans-sponsored series for the past nine years, carrying the project for the 40-day pro surf series from concept to delivery. WINDOWSEAT‘s production team crafted the storyboards and handled extensive pre-production for the digital content. They will then be filming branded content for the digital platforms, filming and streaming the live surf heats and editing the daily highlights and digital content for distribution through the series’ multiple brand sponsors.
The Vans Triple Crown is being held from November 12th to December 20th in the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii.
Create
Months prior to the colossal surfing event, WINDOWSEAT began collaborating with Vans and the numerous additional sponsors including vitaminwater, Nixon, GoPro, Reef, Billabong, Skullcandy, Clif Bar, Hawaii Tourism Authority and Surfing Magazine. The production team worked closely with the individual companies to create the concepts for each piece of digital content to most authentically deliver the brand’s message to their core audience.
Notes WINDOWSEAT Principal/Executive Producer Moz Mirbaba, “We love the challenge working with such a wide range of sponsors and ensuring that each of them is able to reach their audience with content that is authentically and organically integrated.” After collaborating with the brands on the creative direction of their digital content, the production team dives into extensive pre-production, organizing all of the pieces for online lifestyle segments to be filmed once the team arrives in Hawaii.
Notes Vans Head of Marketing & PR Chris Overholser, “WINDOWSEAT has created such a variety of projects for Vans that they really know our brand inside and out. From athlete features to historical pieces, to live event broadcasts, the team at WINDOWSEAT has immersed themselves in our culture and truly gets it. Over the years, they have been able to tell the key stories of the Triple Crown season in a refreshing way and unearth new, compelling stories and angles.”
WINDOWSEAT also worked with in-house art departments at Vans and other various brand sponsors to utilize the existing art package to create a graphics package including replay, bumpers, lower thirds and scoring that would remain cohesive with the already-existing event branding.
Capture
As a comprehensive media partner for the series, WINDOWSEAT also crafted the promo videos for the event featured on the official website as well as event social media outlets. Footage for the :30/:60 promo spots was captured during last year’s event and edited with new interviews.
Though the live streaming video, viewable on the event site, will only be available for 11 days of the 6-week event series, a 60-person production team will be in Hawaii for the entire series capturing footage for the branded digital content and various non-featured surfing events. Extensive pre-production is done in order to most efficiently utilize their time in Hawaii and allow them to capture a wide array of footage.
The series will consist of three main events: The Reef Hawaiian Pro, The Vans World Cup of Surfing, and The Billabong Pipe Masters (also the final event of the Association of Surfing Professionals (ASP) World Tour). Though weather and surf conditions will largely determine which days will be live streamed, the designated live days will consist of 8 hours of continuous live coverage, following the competition all day with no breaks between the 25-30 minute heats.
Two additional teams will be capturing the digital content to craft the branded lifestyle pieces for the individual digital platforms (website, social media sites, etc.), led by Director Bill Kiely. One team will shoot the branded lifestyle pieces, while the other will capture footage from the free surf to showcase top athletes flexing their surfing talents away from the official competition heats. The crews will utilize HD DSLR Cameras, RED Cameras, underwater HD Cameras and the all-new GoPro to provide a wide range of images to allow for expansive landscape shots, high impact action shots and close-up people shots.
Syndicate
To deliver the live streaming portion of the event, 6-7 live cameras will be used with Jeff Doner directing and Jordan Valarde live producing out a state-of-the art HD truck, similar to those used for live streaming of major NFL and NBA games. In 2011, the series set an action sports industry record with over 10.4 million live streams on vanstriplecrownsurfing.com and on the Vans Live 2.0 app on mobile devices during the series’ 13 days of competition. WINDOWSEAT‘s editorial team cuts together daily highlights of live competition coverage by the end of the competition day, posted to the series’ website. Additionally, Time Warner Cable will be broadcasting full live coverage in Hawaii, Los Angeles, San Diego, and the Desert Cities as well as a delayed broadcast on Time Warner Cable SportsNet. WINDOWSEAT will also be creating a Billabong Pipemasters 30-minute TV show for international distribution after the event.
Footage for the digital content is immediately sent to WINDOWSEAT‘s on-site post production team. The team works continuously to deliver fresh web content pieces for the six weeks of the event series.
About WINDOWSEAT
Los Angeles-based WINDOWSEAT creates, captures and syndicates compelling entertainment. Utilizing the latest technology, WINDOWSEAT brings a fresh perspective to digital media, commercials, live events and webcasts, film and television.
With unique structural and operational independence, WINDOWSEAT teams with local producers, global distribution partners, and finance sources to launch each venture to optimal attention and influence. If you are looking for a full-service media company immersed in emerging cultural trends and burgeoning media, take a seat. The world is watching.
