THE PROCESS OF CREATING A COMMERCIAL PRODUCTION (Step by Step)
When filming a commercial, there are several moving parts to consider. Before making any decisions, it is best to zone in on what you want the commercial to represent. For example, what style you would like to portray and what the mission is. Decide what the overall message is and consider who the target audience is. Once you decide what tactics you’ll use to grab the audience's attention, it is now time to strategize.
The reference used in this post was from a commercial shot in November 2020 for a company called “Carupi.” Carupi created its own phone app that buys and sells its client's cars.
THE MESSAGE
The message in this commercial production states that cars are part of our lives, not just vehicles that get us from point A to point B. Carupi believes that cars help us to create our stories. Cars help us to discover new adventures, journeys, and growth. Carupi believes your car matters.
Based on our message, a father and son are seen driving in an old car, exploring, driving together, and enjoying themselves. Our idea was not just to have the father and son together all the time but to have the car apart of their lives as well.
BEGIN PRODUCTION
Once we had our idea, we started working on the script. Our team wrote down all the details of how we would bring the idea to life. Myself, Rafael Fernanz and Laura Busija brainstormed and wrote together what we thought would be best for the video production. We made sure the message was clear.
Keep in mind that, when writing your script, you are thinking about the possibilities based on the film's budget. You need to make sure you will be able to film what you proposed in the budget and during the timeframe scheduled. It helps to write down how many hours you must film, how long will it take to shoot the scenes, how many scenes, and how long it takes to set up and take down each scene.
Once the script was completed, we created a storyboard. Allowing us to be more detailed with how each scene should look, the mood, camera movements, and angles. The client was then able to visualize the project before filming.
CHOOSING THE CREW
Choosing the right crew is an important step to get the desired results. There are a couple of ways to find the right crew. What helped me the most for this specific project was Facebook film crew groups, LinkedIn, Instagram, and referrals. I searched for who would be the best fit based on budget and experiences.
FINDING THE RIGHT LOCATION
To find the perfect location for our project we hired Lisa Roti, the Location Manager. She was in charge of finding the perfect locations for our project based on our script and the permits. This location we shot was in Lemont Quarries, IL.
LOCATION SCOUT
It is important to scout out the location(s) chosen for the day of filming. We used natural light and light modifiers so we had to know the position of the sun for the best light. We were able to see how far we were from each location and how long it would take us from scene to scene and access to the crew.
PRODUCTION
Izabella Kaczor was the producer in this production in charge of details such as renting an RV as a base camp. The RV was used for hair and makeup, wardrobe change, and for people to eat. We found an RV through the app called RV Share and it was quite an easy process. We also had to rent two cars, one modern SUV that we rented from a car rental place, and a classic 1965 Mercury using DriveShare App.
PRODUCTION DAY
We shot the commercial within 10 hours and we had 14 people total on the crew. Since we planned ahead we were able to accomplish the results the way we wanted without facing any problems on the day.
The commercial was shot on Red Gemini 5K using Atlas Anamorphic Lenses rented from Camera Ambassador in Chicago, IL.
POST-PRODUCTION
Since the commercial was all scripted out and we got the scenes we needed the editing was easier. A few changes were made during the editing process compared to the initial script. We finalized the editing with color grading, music, and sound effects. Watch the final product here.
Get a Quote from a Thousand Birds in Chicago, IL
A Thousand Birds in Chicago IL is an award winning video production company. Their work ranges from corporate video production, music videos and video commercials, to personal projects with advanced expectations. Contact us today to get a quote for your video production project in Chicago, IL. info@athousandbirds.us
#chicagovideoproduction #videographernearme #corporatevideoproduction #videoproductioncompanieschicago #videoproductionchicago #corporatevideos #commercialproduction #chicagoproductioncompany #productioncompanychicago #videoproductionagency #chicagomusicvideo #chicagoportraitphotographer #portraitphotographychicago #chicagocorporatevideoproduction #corporatevideoproductionchicago #videographynearme #videographerforhire #musicvideoproduction #athousandbirds