Case Study: Storm Smart Testimonials
Client
Storm Smart creates, sells and installs innovative, multipurpose storm protection systems designed to withstand hurricane force winds. These include hurricane screens to protect a home’s lanai, as well as roll down aluminum shutters, and impact-resistant windows and doors.
Agency
Scale Marketing is primarily a media buying agency whose clients are mostly large regional companies. Scale’s campaigns often involve production of a variety of content, from broadcast TV commercials to images for social media.
Concept
Scale had created scripts for four 30-second, and four 15-second broadcast TV spots with Storm Smart’s marketing team. The scripts were based on client testimonials, and would use actors. Our task was to produce and direct the spots. We needed to come up with a production plan and creative treatment for the scripts that could work for a two-day shoot at the target budget, and then we needed to head to Fort Myers to execute it.
Campaign
With the scripts calling for the spots to mainly feature people being interviewed, we felt there was a risk of the commercials feeling generic. We knew we wanted to find a way to make the spots immediately recognizable to a viewer as Storm Smart’s, and further as a part of this campaign, so we shot some tests. In an alley, in Chicago, in January.
We locked in on an easy-to-execute and zero-cost approach to shoot with the subject’s eyeline going towards the short side of the frame. This is an uncommon choice, but not unprecedented by any means, and it accomplished three things: it gave the spots visual unity, it drew the viewer’s eye to the product, and it meant we could bring the lighting equipment closer to the subject, allowing us to use smaller heads to light, and in turn a smaller lighting crew.
Pre-Production
The shoot called for us to film at four total locations with six total groups of talent while recording location sound, and making time for still photography. And we needed to do it all with a small crew and no scout.
To accomplish that, we scheduled the days down to 15-minute increments, finding efficiencies like having the DP show up to set with the camera built, so he could shoot tight product shots the crew loaded-in and set up for the interview shot.
We also used google Earth and zillow imagery in place of a scout, planning our shotlist around the angle of the sun at each part of the day so our lighting setups would make the most efficient use possible of the natural light.
Production
At the end of the two days it was clear that the planning really paid off. The production went incredibly smoothly, and we knew we had some solid spots on our hands.
Our team was extremely intentional about their approach to every detail of the production, from shot scale, to eyeline, to schedule, and all those choices allowed us to make extremely efficient use of our time and resources to create high-quality and effective ads for this client.
“Thank you so much for the amazing work this week on set and making everything go so smoothly. And thank you to all of you for all of the thought and effort put into pre-production that made everything so successful!”
Post-Production
There was a tight post-production timeline, with the first spots due to be in the agency’s hands less than a week after the shoot. To get there we scheduled our colorist to work simultaneously alongside an editor over those five days, creating color looks that could be seamlessly dropped into the final edit.
“LOVE how these turned out — really great job to everyone!”
Timeline
We had just four weeks from the time the SOW was signed until the shoot. In post-production the first cuts were delivered just five days after we wrapped and the final spot was delivered two weeks later. This allowed Storm Smart to get their work on-air before hurricane season.
