Television title opens and commercials. We have most recently been doing a lot of work for E Entertainment. It started with all the online color correction and 5.1 audio mixes for their shows. These shows needed fixes for graphics packages that they weren't happy with, and because we did such fantastic work in such a short amount of time this inspired E to fully create titles with us from conception to execution. "7 Deadly Hollywood Sins" was the first of these Titles. We are making a ton of E Titles now.
2. What have you found is the best tool or innovation that has come out in the last year?
The Pencil….Oh wait that's already been around awhile. Well, we are a Mac house and Mac has been on the innovation front line when it comes to operability and ease-of-flow. Mac has consistently been making stronger, faster and more efficient machines as time goes on. Just recently our 3D application, which has always been Mac friendly, has just been edited slightly by the engineers in Cupertino. They noticed that if two lines of code were deleted from the UI of the software it would run smoother, using open GL more efficiently. The 3D application is Maxon's Cinema 4D. They too have come out with a new tool that makes "designing" a truck-load of fun. It's called MoGraph. The potential is endless.
3. The project (film, television, commercial or music video) that most impressed you in the last year? Why?
Well I just saw Monster House and I gotta say… loved it. It's a fun little story about kids taking on a blood thirsty house. When we, my wife and I, were told (after we bought the tickets mind you) that it's presented in 3-D (involving separating the RGB channels to fake dimension) we thought we were going to have to wear those lame paper glasses that end-up making you sick at the end of the flick. But it wasn't. They were quite stylish and it actually made it quite fun. So a 3-D movie mixed with 3-D glasses makes for an impressive 6-D show.
4. The best or favorite project that you worked on in the past year? And why?
Right now one of our favorite projects is a commercial commissioned by Grey World Wide. We have an extremely active Energy Drink in a Club/Slash Highway. Don't want to say what it is until we release the spot, but it is completely in 3-D. This Commercial gives us the opportunity to show the potential of our 3-D power and creativity.
5. Name the top 4 artists on your iPod?
Andres Segovia
Sergio Mendes
Tipsy
Kinky Friedman.
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So, who is the biggest sinner in Hollywood? That is what the series purports to answer in a cheeky, tabloid-style approach. The show spoofs notorious examples of how Hollywood celebrities indulge in each of the seven deadly sins-anger, pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, and sloth. Each sin provided the producers with a bevy of recent celebrity news to poke fun at-creating a show that is uniquely humorous and stylish.
“This show is a mock-umentary of the common clip shows you see on VH1,” said Greg Heller, executive producer of, The Seven Deadly Hollywood Sins. “The idea was to make a show that seems serious while at the same time refusing to acknowledge how funny it is.”
The open had to look very reverent and stoic and it had to look totally real, but according to Heller there had to be an underlying current of absurdity. VBS understood the way to build the graphics that said what the show was all about in less than 30-seconds time. “Video Box did a great job…I think it would be impossible to watch the open and not know what the show set out to communicate,” added Heller.
There was nothing slothful about producing the series. Most of the episodes were finished 24-hours before air time. “They were literally delivering a day before each one of their deadlines. We were able to meet the demands and mixes for each episode,” said Jason Hearne, creative director for Video Box Studios.
The studio created a comprehensive graphics package which included the show’s open, transitions, and lower thirds. The concept of the open defined the grittiness of Hollywood. The main title begins with video of Tinsel Town at night. Traffic fills the screen passing recognizable landmarks that pepper landscape. Almost immediately the first sin (Envy) appears as if it were scratched into celluloid with a nail.
At this point a card flips up to reveal the first Hollywood star. “The card is a 3D layer that looks like a tarot card which displays a full frame picture,” said Hearne. “It is meant to communicate that the celebrity shown is associated with the particular sin.”
As each “sin” graphic is scratched into place more cards snap up on the left and right side of the screen. Each celebrity featured is severely backlit in red, offset by live action video featuring more of Hollywood night life.
Although the voice-over never utters the actual sin during the open, it effectively alludes to each one in what can be described as pithy, tabloid-style narrative that perfectly suits the genre. For example, the voice over reveals the sins in the following, tantalizing way: “too much is hardly enough (gluttony)”, “sex is served raw like sushi (lust)”, and “money is the only object (greed).”
“Again, the graphics are beautiful to look at but if you really listen to what’s being said, and what’s going on, you will know the show is totally absurd,” said Heller.
Prior to working on The Seven Deadly Hollywood Sins, Video Box Studios recently completed audio mixing and color correction services for Instant Beauty Pageant, which ran on the E! affiliated channel, Style Network. The company also provided similar services for the E! show, Last Bride Standing, which aired on May 27. Currently VBS is slated to work on the newest offering from The Style Network.
Technologies used: Avid and After Effects
Sections: Creativity
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