Creative director Mike Goedecke of production and design studio Belief in Santa Monica steps up to answer Five Questions.
1. What are you working on today?
We have just finished an amazing spot for Crystal Geyser, nearly done
with a Miller Genuine Draft spot, and are currently working on
packaging for a soon to be big show called Design Star.
2. What have you found is the best tool or innovation that has
come out in the last year?
The best tool (in terms of technology) in the past year has been the
Panasonic HVX200P. This camera is amazing when used with final cut, you
can shoot and just copy the files across. Its like a Digital Still
camera but HD and with Progressive Motion. Recently we shot a
time-lapse drive from Texas to Belief with this camera and it turned
out amazing! No more digitizing which is always a time killer!
3. The project (film, television, commercial or music video)
that most impressed you in the last year? Why?
The project that I saw that most impressed me was not a film, TV or
video, but an Artist exhibit from an LA based artist named Tim
Hawkinson. www.whitney.org/www/exhibition/feat_hawk.shtml
His work is so amazing. Its clever, thought provoking, and beautifully
bizarre. This exhibit moved me more than anything I have seen the past
year.
4. The best or favorite project that you worked on in the past
year? And why?
I'm most excited about some longer form work we have been working on
including a documentary about LA Artists and a feature film called
Placebo which we hope to start production on in September. On the
motion design side I'm thrilled with Crystal Geyser and a new set of
pieces we are doing for an in-flight network for an airline called
JETAIR.
5. Name the top 4 artists on your iPod?
MUM
Alex Smoke
Biosphere
Future Retro
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Recent Project
Belief Hangs Ten with Cyrstal Geyser
Belief, an award-winning Santa Monica based production and design
studio hit the waves in surf city for Crystal Geyser’s latest ad.
Belief produced this design heavy spot in conjunction with Galapagos
Media Inc., who produced and directed the live action. The spot is
currently airing in Japan
“Joel Peissig, the director for Galapagos, wanted this spot to be
reminiscent of the 1980s ‘Ocean Pacific’-style posters,” said Marcelo
Petrella, creative director, Belief. “He wanted it to project the
quintessential California vibe.”
“This was new ground for us (Belief) to work with an outside director
(live action) on such a graphic intensive spot,” said executive
producer Gregory Stacy. “But it worked out extremely well to have
another perspective during the design and compositing phases.”
Belief created an animatic that the live action director followed while
shooting the background plates and the talent against green screen.
Once everything was in the can, Belief only had about three weeks to
complete the spot. With the exception of a few stock footage surfing
shots, everything is heavily composited throughout the spot utilizing
real water, CG Waves, ink, and paint elements.
“If you look closely at this spot the attention to detail is
overwhelming,” said Mike Goedecke, Belief owner. “I don’t think there
is one scene that hasn’t been manipulated. Every transition and every
hero moment has been composited in swirling water and bubbles to help
give it that ultra-refreshing look,” added Goedecke
“One of the biggest challenges from a design standpoint was deciding
which features to create as 2D or 3D elements. Once this was decided,
we then tracked the footage so we could replicate camera movement
virtually. This ensured that all elements matched seamlessly with the
live action,” said Petrella.
The final spot is a tapestry of California sun, surfing and refreshing
water. Scenes seamlessly transition into one another as shots of
beautiful surfer guys and girls hit the waves while enjoying the
refreshing taste of Crystal Geyser.
Programs Used:
Final Cut Pro
Adobe Photoshop, After Effects, Illustrator
Cinema 4D
Maya