Fischer Edit/FX Blog

Washington Lottery’s “Birds” edited by Fischer Edit’s Lindy Wilson took a Cannes Silver Lion last week, cementing its moniker as the spot that keeps on giving. Over 3, 400 spots were entered in the 2009 Cannes Lions – Advertising Festival, among them only 18 spots were from US agencies. “Birds” which originated from Publicis of the West, also took the title of “Best Entertainment & Leisure” spot in the world. The spot’s director Jerry Brown of Sticks + Stones studios was one of thirteen US directors to be recognized.

The Cannes Silver Lion is a major coup for Editor Lindy Wilson whose awards credits also include a Golden Bear, Clio and Emmy among others. “On this spot, I used my vast resource of storytelling skills that go back to my days as an editor at the Sundance Institute Feature Film Lab. I couldn’t be happier that “Birds” has been recognized for this many awards, and those of such great value to editors, directors and the advertising industry.”

This win follows its awards for “Best in Show” from the ADDY awards and “Best of Minneapolis” at the AICE show this spring.

Best Of Show ADDY Honor Is For The “Birds”

Washington State Lottery’s “Birds”

WASHINGTON, D.C., June 09, 2009, — From SHOOT’s “The Best Work You May Never See” gallery in June 2008 to a year later earning Best of Show distinction at the 2009 ADDY Awards in Washington, D.C., this past weekend (6/6)–that’s the progression for a Washington State Lottery TV spot titled “Birds” directed by Jerry Brown of Sticks+Stones Studios, Los Angeles, for Publicis in the West, Seattle.

In the commercial (which also copped a Gold ADDY), enterprising people take it upon themselves to give the gift of flight to birds who can’t otherwise–namely a penguin, a chicken and an emu. The means toward that end are hang gliders with harnesses on each to accommodate the penguin, chicken and emu, respectively. After we witness each bird get its debut flight experience, a voiceover and an accompany super relate, “Every bird should get to fly.” A tag appears with the Washington State Lotto logo and the slogan, “Whose world could you change?”

Director Brown noted that the penguin, chicken and emu didn’t actually fly in the spot. A prime challenge of the project, he said, was “how to seamlessly composite birds with hang gliders and still make it feel spontaneous and observed.” This meant that Brown had to capture the birds “enjoying flight” even through they weren’t experiencing it. Brown and DP Tom Olgeirrson deployed camera angles that “while interesting, didn’t stretch credulity,” said the director. “The animal trainers worked with the birds for more than a week, suspending them in harnesses and getting them used to being in their rigs.” Jake Parker of Fischer Edit, Minneapolis, served as VFX supervisor/Flame artist on the job. Fischer’s Lindy Wilson was the editor. Attracting Brown to the job was its positive, uplifting spirit, focusing on the good deeds lottery winners can perform–”to show someone,” said the director, “doing something for someone that they couldn’t do themselves.”

The Publicis in the West ensemble included creative director Dan Fietsam, art director Scott Rasmussen and copywriter Jeff Siegel. Among the other Gold ADDY winners were: Federal Express’ “Carrier Pigeons” directed by Tom Kuntz of bicoastal/international MJZ for BBDO New York; the American Legacy Foundation’s “Tough Love” (part of the “Truth” campaign), also directed by Kuntz, this time for Boston agency Arnold; and the Environmental Defense Fund/Ad Council’s “Polar Bears” directed by Tim Godsall of Biscuit Filmworks, Los Angeles, for Ogilvy New York.

The annual ADDYs competition is conducted by the American Advertising Federation (AAF). For a full rundown of this year’s ADDY Awards winners, log onto www.aaf.org and click on “awards.”

Washington Lottery “Birds”, edited by Fischer Edit’s Lindy Wilson with Visual Effects Supervision from Fischer FX’s Jake Parker, swept the 2009 ADDY Awards show taking “Best in Show” and a “National Gold Award.”

The awards show put on at the American Advertising Federation National Conference in Washington D.C, crowned all kinds of advertising both professional and student, including broadcast spots. Out of roughly 1600 entries judged in the national competition, “Birds” was chosen out of the 330 ADDY Awards presented.

This win trails on the spot’s win at the AICE in May, taking “Best of Minneapolis.” It’s been quite the year for this spot out of Publicis in the West, production company Sticks + Stones and director Jerry Brown.

Read what’s been said about this spot and its win:

“Best of Show ADDY Honor Is For The ‘Birds’” Shoot June 9, 2009

“News in Brief” Shots June 10, 2009

“Publicis In The West Takes 2009 ADDY Awards Best of Show” AAF June 9, 2009

“Those Birds Really Know How To Fly” Washington Lottery Press Room

“Publicis In The West Takes 2009 ADDY Awards Best of Show; Locally One Trick Pony Gets Gold and Silver” Philadelphia Ad Club June 10, 2009

As our move in date draws closer we’ve all been taking individual trips to revel in our magnificent new space, here are some of the most recent changes. To see the progress over the past couple of months see our first posting when Modern Music’s studio was just bare metal or even just two weeks ago before much of the flooring was applied.

Check back as we will keep the Fischer Edit blog up to date with where we’re at in our transition.

And then I found this upstairs:

With the 2009 “Dancing With the Stars” season already in full swing including a line up featuring the likes of Lil’ Kim, Denise Richards and Steve Wozniak among others, it seemed appropriate to reveal the spots cut by Lindy Wilson for the game version of the show. Fischer Edit, Activision and Gabriel deGrood Bendt all teamed up on a large campaign of some of the video-game giant’s cache of products.

Wilson edited “Dancing With the Stars” showcasing Nintendo Wii’s game and featuring some well-known talent (including GdB Creative Director Doug deGrood’s son). The talent’s spontaneity offered up great moments for Wilson. Of the dad character Wilson says,  “My selects of him were hilarious. It was hard not to use them all.” However she notes, “You didn’t want to have the same degree of wackiness the whole way through…Doug’s very good with humor, he starts it out part way normal and then it gets crazier.”

Wilson knows what she’s looking for when she delves inside spots, talking about the embarrassment of the family at their dad’s dancing, “You want them to look like ‘Wow?! We’ve never seen Dad do this!’ and you want the wife to look like ‘Gosh I love him but – what is he doing? He’s really suprising me.’” To find unison in their reactions took some time but overall the purpose for Wilson was really to make the game look fun, something she already knew firsthand.

After starting on the job, Wilson herself went out and purchased the game which her daughters loved. “Having the enthusiasm from my kids, to be working on something that was so positive. I felt good about doing it, I knew that it was good for people and families,” she explains.

Working with agency GdB and Activision proved to be a great experience for Fischer Edit and Wilson who went on to edit spots for many more of their games last year. Additionally, Wilson’s taken to playing WiiFit’s Yoga to complement her kid’s love of all the other games.

“Dancing With the Stars” for Activision Edited by Lindy Wilson from Fischer Edit on Vimeo.

Highlights from the art gathering hosted by Sabrina Ward Harrison and Fischer Edit’s Katie Carpenter

Over coffee and wine at the Warehouse District’s cozy Corner Coffee, an intimate group of the Fischer Edit family and friends took some time to engage in open conversation about art, advertising, and creativity with mixed media artist and author Sabrina Ward Harrison.

Sabrina shared with us some stories about her life living in a one-room schoolhouse on the coast of California and read us some poetry that inspires her.  We learned about her own creative process in making her artwork in which she beautifully blends photography, paint, found objects and ink writing.  Sabrina’s work tells stories of her life in layers of found “bits” and honors the people of her past by using family photos and treasures.  Her art beautifully illustrates her life philosophy which is “Make what you most need to find.”

A free-writing experience challenged us to think deeper, let go of our day-to-day thinking process and happily embrace the messiness and “mistakes” that come out of doing that… showing us that the process of creating in and of itself can ultimately open up new possibilities of creativity and self-discovery.

Sabrina and I screened the short film that we collaborated on this summer for the Beacon Film Festival in New York called “The Story is Happening.”  The film was created from 8mm film footage shot in Italy, projection footage shot in NYC, as well as Sabrina’s photography, mixed-media pieces and her beautiful ink line art.  The film is essentially a moving collage celebrating her philosophy of making what you most need to find.  It was an honor to collaborate with Sabrina on such a special project.

It is the first film created for the True Living Project. Sabrina’s True Living Project inspires a generation of mindful pioneers through global collaboration and generational partnership.

You can view “The Story is Happening” film here:

“The Story Is Happening” edited by Fischer Edit’s Katie Carpenter from Fischer Edit on Vimeo.

A huge thank you to Sabrina for sharing so much of her story and for inspiring us.  And thank you to everyone who came for doing the same.  You made it very special!

-Katie

“Me First” Edited by JoLynn Garnes for Nexxus from Fischer Edit on Vimeo.

(FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE) Minneapolis, Minn.: Fischer Edit, a creative editorial and post-production house works with Campbell Mithun, Motion 504 and Modern Music on Nexxus’ latest television campaign.
Editor JoLynn Garnes cuts “Me First” for product Dualiste, the newest spot from Nexxus. Needing considerable effects and color for the model’s hair, Campbell Mithun called on broadcast design studio Motion 504 for help. While there designer Scott Wenner and producer Eric Mueller suggested getting Garnes in as the editor. She explains, “the interesting thing is, usually it seems like the editor gets hired first…[but]…they said ‘we want to work with JoLynn’.” Wenner and Garnes had many years experience working with each other, “I’ve known Scott since the beginning of my career as an editor. We worked together for almost five years. I haven’t been able to work with him since then, so it was fun to get together again,” tells Garnes.

Fischer Edit/FX acted as host to Campbell Mithun’s team including creative director, Nicole Ackmann, producer Lisa Thotland, copywriter Peggy Arnson and art director, John Conroy throughout the span of the project. As editing began, Garnes already had some stills created by the director that were much greener than even the footage taken. The spots were filmed in Mallorca, an island off the coast of Spain with international talent. Inevitably the color was dialed back to the vibrant blue seen in the final version.

Hair at this level of detail wasn’t something Garnes had done before. “It was the first time where I had to overly pay attention to hair. I had to change my point of view of hair and recognize what would be an easy shot for them to clean up. These kinds of spots are challenging because you have to have it just right.”

For music, Campbell Mithun worked with Modern Music’s Daron Walker, the team was looking for a “sort of stripped down beat heavy track that was more atmospheric than safe.” Walker created a track that meshed well with the mood and visuals on screen.

Playing host to Motion 504 and Campbell Mithun throughout this process was a great opportunity for Fischer Edit/FX. About the team at Motion 504, Garnes notes, “it’s always good and fun to have that group all together again.”

Inspired by the memorable openings of “The Simpsons”, Burger King Kids’ latest campaign proved to need comic timing from Fischer Edit’s Brian Slater and visual effects finesse from Fischer Edit/FX’s Jake Parker. As Visual Effects Supervisor for “The Roof/Simpsons” Parker attended the Hollywood shoot to oversee production and provide some leeway for the enhancements that would need to be made in post. In the spot as a brother and sister eat their Burger King Kids meal while playing with their new toys, their Dad, Grandpa, Mom and family dachshund drop through the ceiling onto the couch.

On set, the adults were outfitted with climbing harnesses and safety wires to protect them. Initially Parker thought it would be mass chaos as all three tried to land at once, but the crew managed to perfectly choreograph each descent, doing all three in one take. To get things just right however, the cast ended up spending half the day just improving the fall. “It was pretty hard on them…especially Grandpa,” Parker says of watching the actors work.

The dog-falling gag required its own special technique. Rigging the small dog was prohibitive since the rigging gear would end up obscuring too much of the dog. Of course, dropping him from the ceiling would be legally (and morally) prohibited as well.  The solution was to drop the dog a very short distance (about 6-8 inches) on a very soft foam pad. Both the dog owner and the ASPCA were comfortable with that approach. The problem, Parker noted was that upon landing, the dog’s feet sunk into the foam and essentially disappeared. He was able to get the dog’s trainer to drop the dog from one inch above a hard surface in order to get the shot of the dog’s feet without any warping of the surface.

Once in post, Parker repeated the three inch fall shot from the ceiling to just above the table, then he combined the footage from the three inch and one inch falls to get the dog’s landing. Because there was a combination of the dog’s feet sinking and standing, Parker first tried to “glue” feet from other takes onto the dog, but using composited pieces of debris where his feet disappear ended up working better and made it into the final edit.

Rig removal, additional debris and particle dust was also needed on the actor’s shots. On set a small amount of debris was dropped with every fall but it didn’t carry the kind of effect needed. Parker used some raw element footage of debris and dust falling with debris rotoscoped (read: cut out) from other takes to drop into the scene. These extra pieces plunked down on the actor’s heads, all accurately missing the kid’s meals, made it into the final edit. Formerly of Fischer FX, Tony Mills lent Parker a hand with rig removal, cleaning up all the green wires and rotoscoping out their harnesses. The plaid flannel in the dad’s shirt was particularly challenging as the rigging wire lay across his shirt pulling and rippling the pattern. To fix this, Mills applied a matte and made a composite of the cloth eliminating the wire and easing the wrinkling in that area.

In the end, the grandpa stole the show with some improvisation about it raining. Parker added rain and synced up the lightning flashes to make it appear real. This ad for the Burger King Kids campaign from Campbell Mithun required a lot of work from Fischer Edit/FX but in the end conveys the humor and believability that existed in its initial conception.

Take a look at “Simpsons/The Roof” here or to view other Burger King Kids spots, click here:

Burger King Kids “Simpson’s/Wii” from Fischer Edit on Vimeo.

Students from Minneapolis’ Miami Ad School took a break from classes last month to drop by Fischer Edit/FX’s studios and learn about our work and how post-production fits together with the agency world. The group comprised of both first and second year students toured the space and met our editors, producers and visual effects artists. They asked some great questions and we’d love to seem them again soon.

Since it’s better to hear it from them anyway, take a look at the Miami Ad School blog where they have photos and commentary from their afternoon with us.

El Tinklenberg Campaign Ad Edited by Josh Thacker from Fischer Edit on Vimeo.

Fischer Edit and Runner Runner’s Josh Thacker shot and edited this spot for El Tinklenberg’s campaign for Congress in Minnesota. Fischer FX’s Alicia Reece made the still images 3D and created the motion graphics. Music was created by Modern Music’s John Hermanson.