Don't Make Ads, Make Fans
Starting a great business at the worst possible time. Kevin and his team at Danzeisen Dairy in Laveen Arizona decide to go big in Texas. Organic milk, bottled in glass and delivered state wide in a state of the art facility that has not been built yet. Watch as we tell their story from start to ribbon cutting on Amazon Prime coming soon.
When I heard Tito and Chuck were going for #3, we found one we did with Tito years ago at his gym in Huntington Beach. Golden Boy signed the two former UFC champions July 2nd and hope to get half million PPV buys.
One Family, One Chevy Silverado, One Road.
If you are ever heading to Durango from Arizona, this little gem is a great place to unwind.
Stopped by Pizza Rock in Vegas tonight. When we shot this, I remember eating the best Margarita Pizza of my life. He has 14 restaurants scattered over the West all center around his gift for pizza. If you are in Vegas, stopped by 3rd street. Here is the short, check out Self Made EP 1 on Amazon Prime for his full story.
Being invited to a man's wedding, even after almost killing him is truly an honor! Logan it was great to see you and Dakota again! Last time I saw you raising money for the Special Olympics at the Spartan Race Malibu course.
40 people, 40 ways to become Self Made. Season 1 on Amazon Prime will now be available for TV syndicators starting October 1st.
Watch our trailer and connect with us if you would like to connect Self Made people with your audience.
When I heard Ryan was being considered for a TED talk in Vienna this October, I knew I had to meet him. Ryan is seven. Ryan has built a $25,000 treasure chest for himself out of other people's trash. Along the way, he also saved Sea Lions by donating 10,000 LBS of fish to the Pacific Marine Mammal Center. Watch Ryan on Self Made, episode 2, on Amazon Prime.
Traveling through 100's of small towns over four years filming the Spartan Race series, we saw towns of 2,000 people double in size over an obstacle gorging race weekend. The towns received a quick economic jolt but our cameras focused on the athletes and the race and none of the buzz was extended beyond the finish line to the people that made each town one of a kind. Towns "The Series", was created to showcase people of towns and highlight brands that are real, organic and honest, just like the towns themselves. Like a highlight reel of unknown places bouncing off giant projector screens of known brands, their mutual self-interest creates their own buzz as they connect with viewers who appreciate finding new places, people, and brands that are confident enough to give the towns the spotlight.
A 35-year-old solar company wanted to grab viewers with two messages. They have a solution to A/C in the middle of nowhere powered by the sun, and reinforcing they are a "Made in America" company. No wires, off-grid. Something old meets new possibilities. They had 60 seconds to grab their audience on facebook. Two days to shoot, 4 days to edit.
We are not fans of commercials except Super Bowl ads. That may be difficult to reconcile with our accountant's long held beliefs, "any video, is good video". The problem with interrupting someone with an ad, the program is so unrelated to the ad content, you are talking over your own audience. It's noise. It is largely a waste of time and money unless the program content is so aligned with the advertising brands it almost becomes part of the show.
Martyr needed an ad for a national show on DirecTV that was a direct fit with their brand. We needed to create a seamless blend to Tivo stop all the Day+1 viewers.
Just to make sure, why not brand their brand on the owner! Spoiler alert, we had a 20-lb turkey stand in as a butt cheek double.
So you have an idea you want to pitch a company but you can't get the meeting setup or they are just too far away? Create a video pitch reel with your big idea to save time and get their creativity seeds planted before you harvest a call.
One of the craziest shoots was the 2011 Death Race. Imagine 72 hours of torture and we needed to cover it. Rain, mud, blood, lack of sleep and that was just the video crew. In 2018, they had a 12 hour long barbwire crawl as one of the little surprises. Peak Death Race 2019 is going international and crazier than ever.
On a trip to Sedona, some of our favorite spots. Nature writes it's own dialog.
At the back nine of 2015, it felt like Cuba was going to break wide open. A client wanted to be there when it happened. Their idea was to import the most exclusive coffee in the world that has been off limits until now. The big idea was to capture the mythical breeding ground when the beans were in heat and create a documentary that matched the new coffee brand and the place of their birth.
In October, the start of the harvest we made our way into the Crystal Mountain Preserve. Our documentary on the world's best cup is on hold until the political winds blow the elusive beans into the roasters of Miami.
For now, here is a short of our trip.
When Boston Scientific needed a way to attract viewers in pain to their site, we created a behind the scenes video with one of their patients. When one writes a check to spread a message, the natural instinct is to "get their money's worth" by showing the brand too much or fill it so full of corporate platitudes the viewers disengage and the message with the check goes in the wood chipper. In medical marketing, less is always more.
Imagine prior to 2010, mud run organizers struggling to get people to pay $20. The Spartan Race created a new category of racing and made collecting $100 from people look effortless. Joe opened our eyes to the fact sometimes raising the price and the experience is the answer to marketing problems you might have.
Before awards shows became 3-hour versions of CNN with a red carpet, the video obituary was standard filler. Those from the industry who passed away could count on seeing their work immortalized from above, or below depending on one's perspective.
We thought the fallen heroes of old school video games needed their own moment.
One of the most driven gifted athletes I have known. Winter raised $400,000 for cancer research after her Father passed away from prostate cancer. We met her doing her first Spartan Race in Utah as she was preparing for an Antarctic Marathon. Type A+ personality without an arrogant bone in her body.
The real genius of creativity is recognizing great circumstances. Preparation, hard work...that sells self-help books but sometimes it's just too perfect to screw up.
In the Summer of 2012, a hard overnight rain, steep downhill finish line and 5 meatheads from the city with sticks competing for a Roid Rage Emmy, created the perfect storm of content.
