Forrester Media's Atlanta Video Production Blog

Dow Jones, Nissan and Cobb County

It's been a busy April for Forrester Media. In the first two weeks, we've been on location for several productions. For a few, we've provided camera crews to out-of-town productions. The balance have been in-house productions for Atlanta-area clients.

Forrester Media frequently works for producers needing video segments shot in Atlanta. In today's economic environment, it makes sense to hire a local crew rather than paying travel costs when practical. For the Dow Jones company, we shot a location interview with an executive with Ameriprise Financial on a solid white backdrop. This video will be incorporated into an online series that Ameriprise has available on YouTube.

We also worked with an automotive advertising agency from Florida at a local Nissan dealer. Shooting HD footage on the Sony XDCam EX-3, we spent the day capturing beauty shots of the showroom and cars. We mounted the EX-3 on a Libec jib which we placed on our Doorway Dolly for easy movement around the property.

Medical and pharamaceutical videos are another area of specialty, and we found ourselves on location in Buckhead to shoot an interview with a representative from GlaxoSmithKline with our client from Pennsylvania.

As a Cobb County business, it's always a treat to work with other Cobb County businesses. This week we worked with two. Verde Pointe Dental Associates, based in Marietta, wanted to create a new promotional video about their outstanding dental practice. We found the perfect actress to host the 90-second video and used the Kessler Cineslider to create subtle camera movement in several scenes of the video.

We worked with the Marietta Daily Journal on a new commercial that features three Cobb County locations and demonstrates how technology has changed news consumption. Our EX-3 once again found itself atop the Libec Jib and Doorway Dolly making great shots, including one at historic Marietta Square.

Our green screen studio is also staying busy with everything from 60-second webisodes for client websites to interviews shot on one of our Westcott backdrops.

Lastly, if you haven't watched our new 2011 Demo Reel, which features shots from more than 20 recent productions, take a look:

 

No matter your video needs, Forrester Media has the team of professionals to help create a tailored solution. Give us a call at 800-201-8102 or locally at 770-226-9250. You can also visit our website 24/7 at www.forrestermedia.com for more samples of our work, our free production planner or to request a quote. Since 1990, we've provided clients A Higher Definition of Video.

'Tornado Alley' comes to you in IMAX theatres

I've always been fascinated with weather. Growing up in Florida introduced me to hurricanes and a lot of severe storms. In 1999, The Weather Channel became a client and allowed me the opportunity to start chasing storms and meet some fascinating people.

In 2001, I met Meteorologist Josh Wurman, best known for his Doppler On Wheels (DOW) trucks that ply the roads of tornado alley. I think it was in 2002 that I met IMAX filmmaker Sean Casey and his Tornado Intercept Vehicle (TIV). Over the years I chased, rode with and followed behind the teams during numerous storms. By 2006, they were becoming celebrities in their own right and in 2007, Discovery Channel premiered 'Storm Chasers.' The show documented Josh's attempts to collect needed data to better understand tornadoes and Sean's attempt to film enough IMAX footage of tornadoes for his company's next film 'Tornado Alley' which was a follow-up to their 2004 'Forces of Nature' IMAX film.

Fast forward to 2011 and 'Tornado Alley' is now showing in IMAX theatres around the country. In Atlanta, it opens today at the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. Sean and his TIV are scheduled to be at Fernbank on Sunday, April 3rd. One of the DOW trucks will be visiting Fernbank in the following week.

Back in 2004, I hopped in the TIV and shot some video of Sean at work. In the video below, Sean loads the 90-pound IMAX camera onto it's mount located in the turret of the TIV. By the way, one load of 70mm film lasts all of 3 minutes. Not exactly conducive to filming a long track tornado, but it makes you appreciate the work that goes into capturing such a powerful force of nature.

   

A few notes about the video and TIV. Before Sean had corporate sponsors, he decided to paint the name of his camo-clothing company, Bushrag, on the side of the TIV. Sean did most of the welding himself and built the steel shell on the frame of a Ford F-450. The turret was added to aid in getting better images of tornadoes. As originally built, the driver had to position the TIV at 90 degree angles to film out hatches located midway on both sides of the TIV. Sean deserves an award for persistence, perseverance and originality during his eight year quest to film 'Tornado Alley.' Now, it's off to see the movie!