Brianna operating the teleprompter
WMS media just installed a new teleprompter system to help clients present more effectively on video. Now clients can just read the text while still looking into the camera lens thanks to a one-way mirror. If you’d like a demo, please call us at (800) 487-1073, ext. 101.
More viewers are watching more content on their mobile phones. According to a Nielsen report, the number of U.S. consumers watching mobile video increased 40 percent year over year in Q3 and Q4 2010. That brought the total number of U.S. mobile video viewers to just shy of 25 million by the end of the year.
For more information about this trend taking off, visit this eMarketer.com article.
Distinguished Citizen Award Winners (from left): Janet Lamkin, Ted Taube and Mary Cranston
Once again for the third year in a row, WMS media created a documentary-style video for the $1,000-plate Distinguished Citizens Award Dinner for the Commonwealth Club of California. The Club is the nation’s oldest and largest public affairs forum, bringing together its 15,000 members for events on topics ranging across politics, culture, society and the economy. Instead of long, boring acceptance speeches, the evening included a short 10-minute video, showcasing each of the three award-winners with short biographical info and on-camera interviews. Click here to view the video shown at the March 15 event in San Francisco’s Palace Hotel.
Jack London worked here!
You know those historical plaques we drive or walk by all the time without ever stopping to read them? Even in our own immediate neighborhood? (Yeah, I know, we’re all just too busy.) Well, I finally took the time to read one right outside our office. It had the peculiar, almost oxymoronic title of “Labor Temple” and referred to the small parking lot next door. That’s where San Jose’s labor union offices got started and once stood. What stunned me, though, was to learn that Jack London used an office there to write the latter part of “The Call of the Wild” and most of “The Sea Wolf.” Wow. Even longer-term tenants in our building were not aware of the history we are sitting on. Who knows, perhaps this location happens to have good karma for creative types?!
Welcome to the 21st century if you’re applying for a grant. Gone are the days when foundations relied on just a written application to determine funding. More and more decision-makers want to see, hear and experience for themselves what the written portion can only describe.
Case in point is our client San Jose Jazz who is applying to the Arts Council Silicon Valley and the National Endowment for the Arts. Both have new requirements that a video may be the most important aspect of their application and have the greatest significance on funding. Each group’s “panels really want to see/hear the quality of the art and see the festival attendees,” says Harley Christensen, San Jose Jazz Development Director. “Both organizations have informed me that funding is closely aligned with our videos.”
In her last year as a student at The Art Institute of California, Brianna Klus-Osban has been studying digital film and video production. Now she gets to practice her considerable reel talents in the real world. As a new hire at WMS media, she is already lending her creativity and expertise to our projects.
Born and raised in Santa Cruz, California, Brianna has worked on all aspects of film and video. In her rare spare time from work and school, she enjoys hip-hop dance, action photography and making music videos. Perhaps you’ll meet her soon on one of our shoots or in our studio!
With the holiday season behind us, and with hope for a bright and prosperous 2011, it’s time to start thinking about your media needs for the upcoming year.
One of the technologies that is really getting traction right now is 3D. Such technology has improved greatly since its inception in the 1950’s and can yield big returns for filmmakers who, by spending minimally more to produce, and by charging a couple of extra bucks per ticket, end up receiving dividends that greatly outweigh their initial time and money investments.
Unfortunately, 3D technology is not without problems. Some people still report getting queasy after extended viewing. Others who have recently purchased 3D televisions for their homes have said that they must keep their head in a specific position in order to get the full effect, and to reduce “ghost” images — it doesn’t sound that enjoyable, does it? From our standpoint, 3D really isn’t suitable for corporate marketing and educational videos because the return on investment just isn’t there. After all, companies are not selling tickets to their employees, students and/or clients. Besides, can you just imagine a boardroom full of execs donning the required glasses?!
The power of the visual is all around us this time of year. Decorations and baubles. Holiday-themed commercials with joyous music and heartwarming pictures abound. Life-sized print ads announce this year’s favorite gift ideas. And, of course, there are the requisite feel good Christmas movies that always happily end with peace and goodwill toward all. The effect on our mood, whether positive or negative, is undeniable.
We all know that the holiday season is supposed to have a higher meaning, but we are well-aware too that retailers depend heavily on the holiday season to make up for lost revenue during slower periods. For retailers and advertisers, the holiday season is a celebration of Capitalism! And for this reason they will pull out all of the stops to grab your attention in an effort to savor a slice of their seasonal pie. It is during this time of year that we often begin to begrudge media overload.
Thus, once the shopping is done, the meal enjoyed, and another year draws to a close, it is quite okay to sit back and take a break from all things media, including us! So for now, we’ll put our business on the back burner and just wish Happy Holidays to All!
As we’ve talked a lot about this past year, video is an experiential medium. To get the most out of it, you’ll want to look for interesting activities to capture and share. What better time to do this than over the Christmas holidays (or any holiday for that matter)?
Holiday celebrations provide a great way to display the team spirit at your company, show off the camaraderie among employees, or just reveal a glimpse of the holiday festivities around your office. Holidays are the perfect time to thank clients for their support throughout the year, and to leave a great impression.
Enjoy an example of a “Happy Holidays” video shot on behalf of The Hoffman Agency. It should put a smile on your face. (Note to women over 40: Gotta love the ending – listen closely!!!)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bIEKXw9PXls
The headline reads:
“Canadian company develops thought-control technology which uses brain waves. If you can plug it in, you can control it with your brain”
I won’t even pretend to know anything about how this technology works, but I can tell you that the idea behind it is that a person can learn to use alpha and beta brainwaves to control electronic devices such as computers, lighting, video games, etc. There are those that believe this technology will eventually be part of our everyday lives, the “way we engage the world on a daily basis”.
It all sounds a little freaky to me but it did leave me with a pretty humorous mental picture. Suppose you and your beloved are at home on a Friday night; a quiet evening of popcorn and a video. You’re both “plugged in” to the Blu-ray player. This is how it would unfold in my living room (Remember, there’s no fighting over the remote — this is all controlled by thought):
Car chase scene – must get full effect (Him: volume up) (Her: mute)
Favorite track from the ‘80s in the background – (Her: volume way up) (Him: knows better than to interrupt when she’s lost in the past…no action taken)
Gratuitous nudity – hot chick (Him: rewind) (Her: fast forward) (Him: rewind, rewind, rewind)
I’m sure you get the picture. I can think of about a million other scenarios where this type of technology could cause chaos (think crowds in Times Square messing around with the neons), or be used by evil-doers (don’t get me started). Yet, with our insatiable hunger for tech innovation, the less desirable applications are sure to be overlooked as we take this quite fascinating leap toward the future.
As for right now, I’m trying to use my alpha-beta brain wave thingy-s to shut down my computer, but the office lighting went out instead….
******
Read article here:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/canadian-company-develops-thought-control-technology-which-uses-brain-waves/article1658920/