TVP racked up another national award recently, when our production “Sounds Like an Oil Change”, for ConocoPhillips’ Kendall Liquid Titanium, won a Silver ADDY for Sound Design at the National American Advertising Federation awards celebration in San Diego, California, on June 4, 2011.

The viral video depicts a team of ConocoPhillips’ lube technicians breaking into a percussion groove while performing an oil change in a lube shop.

“For our new product, Kendall Liquid Titanium, we wanted to do an advertisement in a new and intriguing way,” says Phil Sontag, Director of Marketing, Automotive Products.

Denny Phillips, Art Director at T3, ConocoPhillips Lubricants’ agency, says, “after concepting a number of different ideas with our client, we all chose this one because it was authentic, and we knew that, after seeing the video, people would remember Kendall Liquid Titanium.”

The success of the commercial was heavily dependent on creating an original and engaging soundtrack. Alan Villatoro, of Texas Video and Post, composed the score, created the track and served as music director during shooting. “To build the track, I sampled sounds from a lube shop: an air gun, a car door, the horn sounding, different kinds of containers being hit. It was a complicated project, and it took a lot of planning and rehearsals, but I loved every minute of it, and am very grateful I could be a part of the project.”

TVP earned five Gold ADDYs, a Silver ADDY, and two Citations of Excellence.

Gold ADDYs

• Advertising for the Arts
• Animated/Special Effects
• Exterior Animated
• Sound Design
• Special Judge’s Award - Breakthrough Idea

Silver ADDY

• Exterior Animated

Citation of Excellence

• Animated/Special Effects
• Internet Commercial

Pioneering a creative new production technique in the U. S., TVP recently completed four new TV spots for long-time client JWT, for Texas Ford Dealers.

TVP produced four :30 spots, each featuring a Ford vehicle in an urban, after dark environment. The creative centerpiece of the spots is Kinetic Light Painting – a new and ingenious fusion of performance art, High Def video, photography, and post-production.

To capture the images for the spots, TVP built a custom two-camera beam splitter rig. “It was critical that we capture precisely the same image on both cameras, so we had to be absolutely accurate in positioning and locking them together,” said Director of Photography David Nance.

Monica Haddow, TVP’s General Manager, says the spots wouldn’t have happened without the client’s confidence in TVP’s abilities. “Our client wasn’t afraid to take a creative risk in order to produce memorable spots. This technique is something truly brand new, and we are thrilled with the result.”

Sato Wood, Director of Special Effects at TVP, helmed the spots. “We were definitely breaking new ground with these spots. We had to plan everything precisely on both the production and post-production sides before we shot anything. We conducted numerous technical tests and multiple rehearsals with the light painters, camera crew and post team, and that resulted in a smooth production process with outstanding results.”

Check out the spots on the home page of our Web site.

TVP’s clients love our commercial photography services! What? You didn’t know we offered photography? Hey, it’s not your fault. We’re a bit overdue in creating the Photography section of our Web site. However, it’s now easily accessible under the “Services” tab.

So give our latest portfolio a look, and then give us a call. We shoot anytime, anywhere, and as always at TVP, with unmatched creativity and the latest technologies.

TVP has always been known for its early adoption of the latest industry technologies. TVP recently completed an HDTV commercial for Taylor Morrison Homes, using exciting new camera technology.

“After thorough research, we believe that Taylor Morrison’s spot, ‘Inspired by You’, is the first TV commercial shot solely on a Canon 1D Mark IV”, says TVP’s Jack Hattingh, who directed and shot the ad.

Primarily known as a premiere stills camera maker, Canon has caused great excitement in the film and video production community with the HD capabilities of its 7D, 5D, and now, the top of the line 1D Mark IV.

Hattingh says, “We worked hard to get our hands on one of the first of the Mark IVs, and after putting it through extensive tests, we were convinced of its value as a solid HD production camera, and, of course, for stills as well.”

Because of the camera’s remarkable performance in subdued light, Hattingh and his crew were able to use smaller lighting instruments, enabling them to craft and shape the light for each scene, capturing stunning footage.

“Right out of the box, the Mark IV produces images that are rich in color and contrast, and that’ll be more than enough for most situations,” says Hattingh. “But as a DP, you want to be able to fine-tune, to make the images really sing, and the Mark IV gives you that control, without taking forever to do it.”

In addition to the HD shoot, the client also had requested high-res stills, so when it came time to shoot photos for each scene, Hattingh simply switched the Mark IV to stills mode, and, as the expression goes, “Bob’s your uncle.”

Using the latest technologies, TVP is now offering virtual editing. Our busy clients can’t always spend the day out of the office to come to an edit, so we bring the edit to them. From the comfort of their own desks, they can watch their edit come together on a high-res monitor, and they can talk directly to the editor in real time. One producer even watched his edit live on his iTouch, as he needed even more portability.

“Virtual editing saves me two hours travel time, and it allows me to keep up with my other projects in a way that can only be done if I’m in the office,” says one satisfied customer. Virtual editing is a big advantage for busy or out of town clients who want TVP’s famous quality and dependability, but need the convenience of supervising the edit at a distance.

At TVP, we’re always thinking about the future, and how to make things better and easier for our clients. Come by sometime soon for a cup of coffee, and let’s talk about what we can do for you.

TVP earned three Gold ADDYs, a Silver, and a Citation of Excellence.

•    Two  Gold ADDYs for our Big Motion Media extravaganza for the City of Houston. Just click Big Motion Media, under the Services tab, to see the latest example of this new hotness, a kick-butt 3D whiz-bang we produced for New Year’s Eve in Sugar Land.

•    A Gold and a Silver ADDY, and a Citation of Excellence for viral ads we produced for ConocoPhillips.

It’s teatime at TVP around 4 pm every day, so if you are in the area please pop in for a cuppa.