PETS ON DEMAND

At Stonefilms, we spend a lot of time getting a shot prepared, constantly adjusting the lighting and the framing, and making sure the overhead airducts are not too loud, or the backgrounds look perfect. Well, for the last three years we have been delighted to work in a more "freestyle" environment, filming pets for online adoption via Comcast's On Demand Channel. Through our friends at Center City Film and Video in Philadelphia, we have shoots each month at the Houston SPCA, BARC, and Humane Society.

Our Executive Producer, Katharine O'Brien has learned that puppies, no matter how cute, rarely sit still for lighting changes, or framing issues, and the crew adjusts to every situation. Impromptu bathroom breaks from the rabbits, unhappy cats, and hyper dogs make these shoots a blast.

And the benefits are amazing. Comcast subscribers can go online and meet several animals, and then get ready to go the location and adopt one of these great companions. The service has greatly extended the marketing reach of each of these three shelters, and we are honored to be a part of the program.

So this summer, go into your On Demand feature on your Comcast remote, and find a new friend!

-Billy

You Have A Story To Tell

Every company in America is struggling right now to beat you to the punch. They want to tell their story before YOU do. It does not matter the size of your company - from the one man office above the garage to the nationwide powerhouse - every business needs to tell their story. The trick is to do it first, and do it within your context. What does that mean? Well, here is a real world example.

Stonefilms produces an internal communication video for a large energy company needing to standardize their company's explanation of environmental policies concerning fracking. The message is honed with employees, and later a media training session is led by Stonefilms to prepare the executives for the challenges of a print interview and a television interview.

10 days later, an executive from the company appears on CNBC to discuss fracking policies and how that effects the company stock.

The work with Stonefilms has sunk in. The key messages from the internal communications video are offered during the interview. The executive looks relaxed - a real pro - so the media training sunk in, too.

So this is more than just a "Like" on Facebook. This is strategy, preparation, and delivery.

We invite you to visit with our team of writers, producers, editors, and videographers to see if we can help you tell YOUR story. We love this stuff!

-Billy

Full Circle

Stonefilms has been blessed to work with the Texas Business Hall of Fame for many years, and we are hard at work this summer producing the video profiles for this year's honorees. It is a great group:

Donald Adam, The Adam Corporation
Frank Bennack, Jr., Hearst Corporation
Doug Foshee, El Paso Corp
John Nau III, Silver Eagle Distributors
Todd Wagner, 2929 Entertainment

It is interesting to note that the Texas Business Hall of Fame provides scholarships to deserving college students throughout the State of Texas. Things do come full circle, as one of this year's honoree's, Doug Foshee, was a Texas Business Hall of Fame graduate school scholar many years ago!

To celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the Texas Business Hall of Fame, Executive Director Lynne Tiras and her team at International Meeting Managers are planning an incredible event to be held in October.

We will keep you posted!

-Billy

"Low Tech" To The Rescue

We are working on a project now that began over a year ago, and it is one of the most interesting projects that I have ever been involved with. We shot on location at the Utah / Wyoming border with our friends at BP, and the challenges for these survey crews were amazing. In order to get some very high tech equipment up the mountain, they had to use some very "old tech" modes of transport. These mule trains carried men and supplies high into the mountains, as no trucks could ever reach the destination.

It is one of the most beautiful parts of the US that I have ever seen, and we got some great high definition footage.

And in case you are wondering, the adage about "stubborn as a mule" is right on the money! They are rather set in their ways...

Storm Warnings

Hurricane Season is upon us, and at Stonefilms, Liz Chapman has been hard at work producing a new broadcast show called "Storm Warnings" which will air on the Houston CBS affiliate KHOU. Liz has been working with the reporters and weather team at the station, and the show has a great mix of history and practical preparation tips for this new storm season. The camera work on location is stunning - you will see great shots of the Texas Gulf Coast, and a really beautiful interview on board the historic ship Elissa, docked in Galveston.

Liz is a great example of what a great producer does for a show. Sets up interviews, writes the script, works with the crew, helps with the talent, and the main part - doing it all with a smile.

Watch the show and see if you are prepared! June 9 @ 7pm. KHOU Houston Channel 11.

-Billy

Technology and Storytelling

At Stonefilms, we are always excited about new gear and new technology. We have been shooting a lot with the newer DSLR cameras, still cameras from Canon and Nikon that can use still lenses, but are recording at full HD streams. They look great, and can get beautiful depth of field in the smallest of locations.

If has been fun to see everyone in the office become "techno- geeks" and discuss which black levels look the best and the pros and cons of XD cards versus P2 cards. Our editors are diving more into color correction, and are dealing with audio sync issues - in some ways it is like editing many, many years ago - but the results are pretty amazing.

But mainly, I love the fact that our company has always been about storytelling first. We have been fortunate to be surrounded by the latest and greatest cameras and lighting, but our real strength continues to be the ability to meet with a client, and then make their story come alive on the screen.

If you want to talk "techno-geek", or about how Stonefilms can best tell your story, call us anytime - we love this stuff!

-Billy

Online Videos Score a Hit With Bosses

Who has time to watch an online video? Apparently your boss does, and in many cases he'd rather view information in a video rather than in a text format.

Forbes Insights surveyed business executives in October 2010 to discover if they took a look at online video, and if so, how they reacted to that content. Three-quarters of the surveyed executives said that they watch business-related online videos at least once a week. Only 5% stated that they "never" viewed work-related online videos.

And what did they do after viewing that content? Over 50% made a vendor/product search for more information; and over 60% visited the vendor/product website. Executives in the survey aged 40 or younger were more likely to reach out to the vendor/product, with 51% of that group responding that they would make a business-related purchase following exposure to the video, and 43% saying they would contact a vendor whose business-to-business ad showed up in online video.

Our own experience here at Stonefilms supports these findings: more clients are coming to us for online video content, from You Tube channels to virtual provider fairs to online image and marketing campaigns. Let us work with you on your next online video project. We're sure your boss will watch it---and love it!