Monday October 26, 2009 at 12:07
Today Keyframe busted out a portable green screen to record some footage to be used in some of our upcoming animations. The pictures above show some of our resident workers getting in front of a camera and doing scripted actions. Now that these have been recorded, the next step is cutting and editing before replicating the cutouts numerous times to form a digital crowd. Like I said, recording is the first step and, well, we felt like sharing. Enjoy the pics and visit our website or Vimeo for some highlights of our final projects.
Tuesday September 08, 2009 at 10:04
Here’s a quick look at what Bo Cordle, our event producer on campus at Auburn, is up to these days. Stay tuned – in the near future we’ll have more quick hits of what’s going on with Bo and also how things are going in ‘The Swamp’ with Mark Eisenstadt, our event producer at Florida.
Wednesday September 02, 2009 at 10:10
I’m a writer for Keyframe. I sit in the basement and don’t always get the opportunity to make my way up the steps to the outside world during the work day. That’s why I jumped at the opportunity to help out our game-day staff at Augustana College in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, for the Vikings practice and scrimmage.
After showing up at their brand spankin’ new facility, I immediately wished my alma mater would own such an amazing field on which to play football. Pushing past my awe for the field, I headed up to the control room to see what the morning would bring. After a briefing of the control room itself and the equipment it harbors, I was the lucky one assigned to man the replay station. I felt like I drew the long straw.
I acclimated myself to creating marks – or playback time codes – in the live recording of video to return to for the replays. I learned how to switch between the camera’s that I could record from and quickly learned how to keep an eye on the developing play as seen from two different cameras – not an easy task. Seeing both camera angles, I knew which view of the replay would be better to put up on the display so that when the director called on me, I was ready. After a few plays and some practice, I got more and more comfortable with my responsibilities. Hearing the director say, “Stand by One. Camera One live. Stand by Three. Camera Three live,” soon became very familiar and almost second nature. Especially hearing, “Stand by Replay. Roll Replay.” Those were my cues. I took them in stride, loving every minute of it.
Before I knew it, I’d shown a replay of an interception, a field goal and a punt that bounced off the return man’s facemask. Then, practice was over. Time flew by and it hardly felt like work. I never really knew how fun it could be to see a football game from a control room perspective, and I agree with a fellow employee’s comment: “It was like seeing a football game for the first time.”
Take it from this humble control room servant when I say that event support is an amazing thing. If you ever get the chance to help out during a game-day production on any level, don’t pass it up. I was only recording replays during a college practice, but the experience felt like so much more.
(Post by Justin Ochsner)
Tuesday June 30, 2009 at 15:07
How many people can say they got to play hooky from work for a day to go to a College World Series game?! I never thought I would be so lucky, but on Monday, June 22, as a Keyframe Intern accompanied by my supervisor and another co-worker, off I went.
So it wasn’t exactly playing hooky, but it felt like it when we arrived in Omaha – the atmosphere was wild. The temperature was in the upper 90’s with a heat index nearing 110. We had to drive around the stadium a few times until we got our parking situation figured out, but that gave us a great opportunity to check out the tail-gaiting parties. These were the die-hards determined not to let the intense sun spoil their good time. One group even had a small swimming pool under their tent to beat the heat where they dipped their feet and sipped their beverages. Others were not so lucky, and had to fight their way into the general admission area where they waited for hours in long lines. Their dedication amazed me. There was no shade in sight for these committed fans as we listened to repeated announcements that if we “started to feel dizzy, please head towards one of our emergency tents.” We headed up to the control room (equipped with A/C) to visit our Daktronics/Keyframe colleagues who run the scoreboard for the games, dropped off our bags and went back out into the heat to tour the stadium before the game started. On our way back up through the press elevator, I bumped shoulders with Erin Andrews, one of ESPN’s sportscasters who is no stranger to the College World Series. I couldn’t resist doing a little bragging as I sent out a mass text message to some of my sports-minded friends back home.
Out of the heat and back in the sanctity of the control room, I got a run-down of the equipment and did my best to stay out of the way as the operators went to work after the first pitch. This wasn’t always easy since I’m sometimes known to get a little camera happy! Lambert, the organ player, got us in the mood with “Take me out to the Ball Game,” and really got the crowd going with “God Bless America,” during which four jets flew directly above the stadium. He was entertaining to watch with his 70 year old sheet music that he doesn’t really use…he plays from memory. Lambert has been around since the very beginning and has seen multiple renovations to the facility. He is as much a part of the College World Series as the stadium itself.
Unfortunately, we had to cut the game short, say goodbye to the operators in the booth and start the long drive home. We kept track of the score on the way and realized we missed some pretty exciting moments. In the end, LSU took the prize. It was a good fight, a great game and an incredible day.
(Post By Jessie Wienhold, Keyframe Intern)
Friday June 12, 2009 at 8:05
In-Stadium Creative Media Interview With Account Manager At Keyframe, Ryan Pederson | StadiaTech.com
I was asked by the folks at StadiaTech to share my thoughts on digital signage and content. Click through and enjoy. Make sure to browse their site - there is some great information on the sports industry.
(Post by Ryan Pederson)
Thursday May 28, 2009 at 10:13
As Keyframe Manager, I am responsible for ensuring that our entire operation runs smoothly and as planned. This entails occasional visits to our various outposts. With studios in Tampa, Las Vegas, New York and Shanghai, I really can’t complain.
On a recent visit to our Shanghai facility, I was treated to wonderful food and a visit to the Harmony Times Square mall in Suzhou, China, which is just a short trip from Shanghai. Our Keyframe Shanghai team produced some amazing content for their huge Skyscreen LED display, including a couple of 5:00 animated short films. One of those short films (shown above) is about a UFO mother ship releasing smaller spaceships to descend on the Suzhou Mall and beam up innocent bystanders.
This video was shot with an HD camera, turned on its side so that the content can be viewed on the level. As you can probably tell, the Skyscreen is a long, narrow display that faces down from above the sidewalk in the Harmony Times Square mall. Next time you’re in Suzhou, I recommend checking it out.
(Post by Pete Egart)
Friday May 08, 2009 at 16:27
Event Producers constantly joke about how their productions could be the basis for reality TV. This was the idea when the stars aligned and two of Keyframe’s finest shooters had a free weekend that magically intersected with Auburn University’s spring football game. A full-scale reality show was out of the question, but A-Day was a prime scene for a quick behind the scenes look at what we actually do.
So, Garland Conger & Mike Procunier slung a camera on their shoulders, wired up a couple of mics and followed “AUHD” from the production meeting to the final frame. The final result? A successful production and resulting video showing what it actually takes to run a videoboard. While this video spotlights Auburn, it’s merely a peek behind the curtain of what Keyframe does for numerous colleges and universities across the country, for hundreds of events every year.
Also, check out the brief mention by our friends at Sports Video Group (SVG).
(Post by Bo Cordle)
Thursday May 07, 2009 at 12:46
Here’s something a bit different. The Keyframe NYC office was asked by our Daktronics brothers and sisters to create a model of One Times Square, which was later to be used in a sales pitch. Well, one thing leads to another and soon Keyframe was asked by the client to expand on the model and highlight more of their properties. This is what we developed. Enjoy our version of Times Square.
(Post by Ryan Pederson)
Thursday February 12, 2009 at 10:20
Hey, folks…long time, no post. I guess that means we’re busy, which is a good thing. However, we did put together a new demo reel. Check it out. (If you want to see it a bit larger, click on that “Vimeo” link over on the right side of this page.)
Tuesday January 06, 2009 at 17:46
When one thinks of Romania, they often think Transylvania or Dracula. Well, I wasn’t quite sure what to think or expect when I was told that I would be heading to Bucharest and helping out with a large Daktronics LED installation at the Cocor Luxury Store. The displays installed are the second largest in Europe, so no pressure.
My first trip was in late September/early October 2008, and I worked with the client to develop creative concepts to be produced for the December 1st unveiling. Given the language and cultural barriers, I quickly learned that visual exampleswere the best way to communicate with the folks at Cocor.
After heading back to the States to pow wow with our production staff and manage the projects to completion, I returned to Bucharest in mid-November and delivered the final content. I also met with Cocor’s advertisers to explain the difference between LED content production and broadcast and print production, as well as discuss creative ideas for ads.
Finally December 1st arrived and all of the hard work and hours spent on this project paid off as Cocor held an unveiling of Cocor Channel, their name for the LED displays (and their very own Vimeo account). The crowd response was overwhelming. There was applause after every treatment, with especially loud cheers after the Romanian flag and Bucharest/Romanian history animations played. You should have seen the amount of people taking pictures and all of the press and news cameras - heck, CNN was there! After the event, there was a lovely reception at the Intercontinental Hotel. The Daktronics representatives and I were approached frequently by those wanting to congratulate us on the amazing job on the displays and the content. Keyframe is continuing a working relationship with Cocor and their advertisers, and the Daktronics displays are already attracting a lot of positive attention (read more about the partnership here and be sure to head on over to our Vimeo account and watch a few of the treatments we created, including the one above).
This was not only an amazing experience because of the project’s size and complexity, but also because of the cultural experiences. With help from my friends at Cocor, I learned how to recognize certain words, especially at restaurants where a mistake could be catastrophic. “Pui” is chicken, which was my safety food. I also learned that carbonated water is not a favorite of mine, but is the standard there. So, “apa plata”, or still water, was added to my vocabulary.
My second trip was over Thanksgiving. They obviously don’t celebrate the holiday. However, Dan Barbulescu, the Chairman of the Board, and the other wonderful folks at Cocor entertained me and other Daktronics folks at an Austrian restaurant that day so that we wouldn’t miss out on a big feast. We had AMAZING schnitzel, potatoes, chicken, bread, sour soup, and the Romanian specialty, plum brandy (which, PS, is some of the strongest stuff I have ever encountered in my life and warms you up instantaneously).
The architecture in Bucharest and surrounding areas is quite fascinating. Styles from Baroque, to Rococo, to French and Italian Renaissance, to traditional Romanian architecture (wooden churches, Byzantine styles, etc.) can be found, and Russian influences are also apparent. I was also fortunate enough to take in a symphonic concert at the Romanian Athenaeum(a gorgeous building designed by French architect Albert Galleron, opened in 1888).
I am truly grateful for taking part in this project, and I can’t wait to see when Cocor Luxury Store officially opens for business in 2009! And to those of you who took the time to read this…Mult’umesc!
(Post by Stef Manning)
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