Copenhagen

I can't really say that when we won the competition to produce the State Department's video on America's response to climate change that we fully appreciated all that we were getting into. The project as described was to be mostly interviews and the timeline very tight (about two months to get it done).

But we presented a different approach, suggesting that going on site, hearing from real people and seeing first hand some of the public and private initiatives around the country would be very powerful. And a potent message to counter the skeptics who felt that the United States had been asleep at the wheel on this issue.

Yes, the quick turnaround and complicated subject was a challenge, but an exciting one. We sent two producers to different sites around the country to capture a glimpse of the state of the art of weatherization initiatives, solar, wind, and nuclear power, cellugesic biofuels, carbon capture and storage, the future of electric cars and hydraulic hybrid technology, smart grids, and the like. And we had to become instant experts on those and other subjects. And while all that was going on, events made the content areas a constantly shifting target. But the entire GVI staff pitched in to make it happen, and our client tells us from Copenhagen that the video has been very well received. You can check it out for yourself on Youtube.

Esquire is Augmenting Reality

Okay, so if reality isn't real and varied enough for you, Esquire Magazine has come up with a whole new way to experience their magazine. You can read it, of course. But you can use their cool new augmented reality feature to watch magazine induced videos. Just follow the link to learn all about it. And even though they're really really excited about how you can shape your Esquire user experience, of course, someone else actually conceived, shot and edited the videos. And do you really want Robert Downey yelling stuff at you? Well, maybe you do. And it is pretty cool that you can imbed one format within another (we've been doing text on a video screen forever. So why not video on a text page?) Anyway, you can check it out, or read a longer piece about it in the Advertising column at the Wall Street Journal.

Up in the Air

Ever wonder about how they shoot in all those airport and airplane scenes for TV and film? Well, instead of complicated maneuvers miles above terra firma, or wading through a mountain of redtape to shoot in an actual airport, they're actuallyworking on an airplane set at one of two companies: Air Hollywood or Aero Mock-Ups. Hollywood and documentary producers go there to shoot everything airline, from baggage screenings to cockpit dramas to crowded jet interiors. You can read all about it at the Wall Street Journal travel section. Or watch a fun video intro to what they offer at the Air Hollywood site. It gives you a whole new perspective on air travel...

Capturing the Stillness

The New York Times' Chang Lee has another breakthrough with his piece on Wonjun Park, an artist suffering with cancer at the end of his days. Chang Lee's video on the NYT Lens site is beautiful in its simplicity and moving in its silences. It sets the tone with comments by Park anticipating the ending of his life, as we see him submitting to another round of chemotherapy "My body started to leave my spirit."

Feeling numbed by Western medicines' attack on the cancer in his body, we see Park struggling to give meaning to his life through his art. Perhaps that is how he will be able to honor his spirit.

Once again in his Second Chance series, Chang Lee mixes photography and video to create an indelible portrait. But most profound are the moments of stillness and his use of photography to stop time and allow us to reflect, just as Park is reflecting on his art and life and art. They beautifully interwoven in this video haiku.

Women in Film and Video

This week WIFV DC celebrated their 30th anniversary. I was just starting out as a film editor back then and remember very well when it started. It was just a handful of women who came together to help other women in a business that was totally male dominated at the time. 30 years later it's a vital organization with over a thousand members who generate millions of dollars in projects through out the Washington Metropolitan area. It's still a great meeting place for those starting out as well as seasoned professionals. And a wonderful example of the concept, "if you build it they will come."

The New New York Times

Perhaps no other newspaper is as forward thinking about the Internet and "new media" as the New York Times. They've been running a lot of video on their website, much of which I've celebrated on this blog. But where is it all heading?

According to a WSJ article, they have been giving advertisers tours of the living room of the future. Here's how the WSJ described it:

"a small room with a brown couch, a large flat-screen TV and four smaller screens on another wall. The set-up is designed to mimic how a reader will be able to receive Times content. In a demonstration, a staffer receives a Twitter message from a friend recommending a video from Times food writer Mark Bittman. Mr. Zimbalist (VP of R&D) touched the recommendation on one screen and dragged it to the flat-screen TV, which plays the video. A recipe associated with the video then appeared on Mr. Zimbalist's iPhone with an ad for a nearby Whole Foods store."

Hard to tell where the content ends and the advertising begins. But newspapers are in dire straights and they have to find new ways of making money. That's also why they're considering charging readers for access to their online content. If they continue to improve and add to their online content it very well may work. I find there's always something interesting that catches my eye. And I'm planning to write about another NYT Chang Lee video next week.

Cost v. Quality

What do you do when you need to respond to outside pressures, like cutting costs for example? Something has to give, right, but the choices you make can have long range implications.

When Martin Guitar was faced with that question, they decided they could not compromise the quality of their instrument. After all, that's what their reputation was built upon, and they knew that if they reduced quality they'd find themselves on a slippery slope. After all, Martin guitars have been the first choice of music greats like Elvis, Gene Autry and Eric Clapton -- who once said if he could be reincarnated as anything, he'd want to be a Martin guitar.

So they took another approach. Quality guitars are made by hand, and Martin did not want to lay off workers during the downturn. So they decided to produce the guitars just as they always had, but without the decorative inlay pattern that added a touch of style but didn't affect how the instrument performed. They picked this option during the depression and it kept the company humming along. You can read the whole story in the WSJ.

So what's the takeaway? Cost and quality can meet in the middle. It just takes some flexibility and planning. And like Martin Guitars, keeping your eye on the big picture.