Mike's Blog

Blu-ray Primer

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:13:00 +0000

Because most people do not have access to a Blu-ray player, distributing your video on Blu-ray is often not a good option. But for those times when you want to show HD video and you know where it will be played, Blu-ray is the perfect choice.

5 Reasons to Embrace Blu-ray
• Show your video in true high-definition
• Looks amazing in a trade show booth
• Up to 50 gigs = lots of great looking video
• Enhanced interactivity
• Generate buzz

5 Reasons NOT to Embrace Blu-ray
• No one can play them
• It is easier to distribute videos over web
• More expensive to produce than DVDs
• Standard Definition DVDs are acceptable quality
• Many production companies can’t do Blu-ray (hint: we know one who can).
READ MORE

We're All Flyers

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:42:00 +0000

In 1990 I had seats in the 2nd row of the student section for Flyer basketball games. That was the year Negele Knight, Anthony Corbitt and company took a 10 game winning streak into the NCAA Tourney and knocked off #18-ranked Illinois. And that was the year I became a Flyer fan for life.

The 1990s almost cured me of that, but Oliver Purnell brought the Flyers back to life, and Brian Gregory has taken them to national prominence.

And so, as one of the most anticipated seasons in recent memory gets set to tip off, it was a lot of fun to put this piece together for UD, using highlights from the Red and Blue Game. Go Flyers!

Our Kanye VMA Parody

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:31:00 +0000

Our production group got some unwelcome attention at the VMA's when our editor, Brian "Kanye" Mills, let his emotions get the best of him.

Just a little fun with green screen, graphic effects, motion tracking and audio sweetening.

Hyper-viral video in the age of social media

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 13:18:00 +0000

What’s up with that wedding video? Surely you’ve seen it – the one where they break into dance as they are coming down the aisle. As I write this, it’s only been posted for 1.5 weeks, and it already has over 12 million views!

How did it spread so fast? That’s the power of social media. When people see something compelling that they want to share, social media makes it easy to share with 100+ friends, who then share it with their friends, and sham-wow it’s all over the place!

We saw it recently with the Britain’s Got Talent video featuring Susan Boyle. The video told a story. Here was this frumpy woman everyone was mocking. The video led you to believe she was going to make a fool out of herself… and then you hear her incredible voice. Professionally produced video. Amazing, feel-good story. Add to that the power of social media – people sharing it with their friends – and it was across the Atlantic and around the world like a flash.

If you’re a B2B marketer, should you care? What are the chances that your video will get millions of views? I guess it could happen if you hit on a concept that really connects with people. But it’s much more likely that your video will only be of interest to a niche group. And that’s OK too.

We produced a video about a robotics lab at the University of Dayton which got the interest of a robotics blogger, and it now has 4,700 views. That’s no Susan Boyle, but it’s a bunch of people who probably didn’t know anything about UD before watching our video. How can you use social media to spread the word to your audience?

Mobile Video

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 22:15:00 +0000

Remember when we used our mobile phones to have verbal conversations? Now people use their phones for texting, checking email and surfing the web. And increasingly, people are watching video on their phones.

We have been researching best methods for converting video for mobile viewing. There are a variety of phones with different screen sizes and capabilities. So there's no "one-size-fits-all" solution. But if you have invested in a quality video presentation, mobile provides one more platform to share it with your target audience.

For more, check out our mobile video update.

Mercury Award

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Wed, 20 May 2009 13:50:00 +0000

For the third year in a row, we were named the best Video/Film/Post-production company by members of the Greater Dayton Advertising Association. This is a huge honor for us. We value this award because it's not for a single project, but for our work throughout the year.

How do you determine who is the best video production company? Do you look at demo reels? Do you judge the creativity of their projects? Do you measure the effectiveness of their programs? It's all a bit subjective. In this case, members voted for companies they believe are the best - the company they trust to do the best work.

We are proud that we have won this award three years in a row. I think it says more about our group than a demo reel ever could.

High-Definition Video on the Web

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Mon, 04 May 2009 20:11:00 +0000

I remember the first time I saw video on a computer. It was 1993 and someone had a video file on a floppy disc. It was ugly and played at about 1 frame per second. But I was still amazed. Not long after that we could watch little mushy videos over the web. The compression tools have continued to improve to the point where you can now get pretty good quality video over the web.

We have been shooting a lot of video in High-Definition lately. It has to be compressed to play over the web, but the final quality is rather impressive. For an example, check out our HD sample.

YouTube Is Finally Catching Up

A few months ago we were lamenting the poor quality of YouTube videos. No matter how good they looked when we uploaded them, they turned to mush on YouTube. Since then, YouTube has improved their compression and now videos on their site look pretty good in "HQ" (high-quality) mode, and really good if you upload them in HD. In the default/standard mode, the videos look, well, not too bad.

Here's an example of a frame of SD video uploaded a year ago, and a similar frame uploaded recently (and played back in HQ mode).

You can really see the quality difference in this portion of the frame.

Video on the web has come a long way from the early days of small boxes that looked like mushy postage stamps. Streaming HD video over the web? Bring it on!

Flying with the Flyers

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 12:17:00 +0000

I have been a Dayton Flyers Basketball fan for years. So traveling with the team to the NCAA Tournament was a labor of love. Each day I videotaped the team, edited the video on my laptop in my hotel room, and then posted the video on UD's YouTube site. Here's the first video from the trip.

Other videos from the Flyers trip to Minneapolis:
Dayton Flyers defeat West Virginia
Flyers Ham It Up

Hermes Videos

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 14:16:00 +0000

Videos produced for the 2009 Hermes Awards.

(Almost) Being Part of a Historic Moment

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 14:50:00 +0000

My wife and I took our 11-year-old son to witness the historic Inauguration this week. I took a small camera hoping to interview some UD alumni and get highlights of the event from the crowd. My story turned out a little different than I expected.

Armed with official tickets, we arrived at the Mall at 7:30 a.m. We stood with a massive crowd for over an hour. There were no signs, no crowd control, no one to tell us what was going on. The crowd was very calm and cooperative, given the circumstances. You could feel the positive energy and excitement. But as time passed with no movement forward, the crush of the crowd became too much. We eventually got away from that crowd and walked along the perimeter trying to find a way in. We found numerous police officers, but none who knew what was going on. After three hours, we found a gate for our tickets. We got in a line which stretched for blocks, but they soon closed the gate. We walked toward the Washington Monument trying to find any gate that would let us in, but by then the inauguration had started. We left and, along with other families who had been shut out, watched the end of President Obama's speech on TV at a restaurant.

As I said in the video, I don’t regret going to DC. It was cold, it was frustrating, but, in our own way, we were part of a historic moment for our country.

Meeting Moses on his Road

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 20:39:00 +0000

I have been driving on Edwin C. Moses Boulevard for over 20 years now. I had heard that he was an Olympic athlete, but that’s about the extent of my knowledge.

I am a bit embarrassed that I didn’t know how incredible his accomplishments were. Not only did he win a couple Olympic gold medals, but he also went nearly 10 years without losing a race! He was named to ESPN's SportCentury 50 Greatest Athletes. Oh yeah, and he’s also a physicist who went to college on an academic scholarship. He’s certainly someone we can be proud to call a native Daytonian.

We videotaped Mr. Moses for the Dayton/Montgomery County Convention and Visitor’s Bureau as part of a video to help the region land the AAU Jr. Olympics.

Making a connection

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 17:14:00 +0000

Last week, someone compared me to Barbara Walters. Well, I don’t look much like her, but since she was referring to my interviewing skills, that’s a pretty big complement. The person I interviewed said, "I can’t believe you made me cry; I never cry."

As an interviewer I’m never trying to make someone cry, but I am trying to make them feel. I want to see and hear their joy, their pain, their passion. I’m trying to tap into a place in their heart, to connect with their emotions. Not every video lends itself to personal stories. But when you can make an emotional connection, you give the audience a reason to care. When you connect on a personal level, you can tell a compelling story they will remember.

At least it's functional!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 17:01:00 +0000

We've been busy lately. When I realized that I would be reviewing footage all weekend, I decided to take an old edit system to my house so that I could work from home.

We're talking an old Windows NT machine from 10 years ago. But the Avid editing hardware still works great for cutting together a story. So now I have this lovely edit station stacked on a couple of filing cabinets in my basement. Only problem was when I went to save my project on something I could take back to work. No USB ports. No disc burner. Anybody have any floppy discs?

MPG Celebrates 20 Years

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Fri, 01 Aug 2008 17:13:00 +0000

MPG is celebrating 20 years in the video production business! I remember when the facility opened. I was a student at the time, and I joined the group a year later. It’s hard to believe that was 20 years ago. Looking back at the production companies in Dayton in 1988, I believe we are the only one still in business. We have seen a lot of change in our industry. We have adapted with the changing technology. More important, we have kept our focus on our customer’s needs.

Thanks to everyone who helped make our first 20 years a success. I’m looking forward to the next 20… then, who knows, maybe I’ll retire. But for now, I’m having too much fun.

Mercury Rising

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 19:34:00 +0000

What a huge honor. For the second year in a row, members of the Greater Dayton Advertising Association chose us as the "Best Video/Film/Post Production Company."
Awards are always nice, but this one is particularly gratifying because we were chosen by our clients. While most awards programs recognize a particular project's creativity, this one recognizes our quality productions and customer service over the long haul.

Raising RISE

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 13:47:00 +0000

Last week was the University of Dayton's RISE Forum, the world's largest student investment forum. It takes a bit of work to get the UD Arena ready for the event. We recorded about 11 hours of work and sped it up to this 30 second video.

Happyness is...

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 11:45:00 +0000

...the pursuit of an interview with Chris Gardner.

With the RISE Forum in the background, Nasdaq VP Maribel Aber interviews the man whose life was the inspiration for the movie The Pursuit of Happyness. We provided the equipment and crew for the interview.

Hermes Night

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 00:23:00 +0000

Last week was the Advertising Association Hermes Awards. It was a fun night, and the videos we put together for the show were a hit. You can see them here. No Hermes Heads for MPG this year, but 2 of our 3 entries won awards. We received a Silver Addy and a Bronze Addy.

Great Creative Happens Here

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 00:40:00 +0000

I like the theme of the Ad Association Hermes Awards this year – Great Creative Happens Here. The invitation came with a sticker and instructions to take a picture to be included in a video montage at the show. We took a couple snapshots to submit.

Character

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Sun, 27 Jan 2008 00:16:00 +0000

I spent the day yesterday listening to people talk about the company where they love to work. Then I rushed home to make it to the Hamilton Chamber of Commerce Annual Dinner where Joe Nuxhall was honored for what he did and what he stood for.

The day reminded me about the importance of character. On our video shoot, we were working with producer Jeff Cutlip recording oral history interviews for Midmark’s 100th anniversary. The employees really love the company. They talk fondly about what the company has meant to their lives. And they talk about the character of the people they work with.

After the shoot, I checked in with Brian, our editor, who has been taking care of all of the projects while I have been out gallivanting with the video camera much of the week.

Then it was off to home to join my wife at the Hamilton Chamber Dinner (Kelli is plugged in to the Hamilton elite... I was just tagging along). In a moving speech, Joe Nuxhall’s son, Kim Nuxhall, thanked the community for all of the sympathy and support the Nuxhall family received. Nuxhall’s character was also lauded by Reds owner Bob Castellini and citizen of the year Tim Nichting — who led the Hamilton West Side All Stars to the Little League World Series.

Ad Industry

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Sat, 19 Jan 2008 00:10:00 +0000

Every organization has a personality. It’s a reflection of the people who work there. I had the opportunity to visit a variety of ad industry organizations earlier this week as we videotaped segments for the Ad Association Hermes Awards Dinner.

Our first experience of an organization was the décor of the building as we walked in. We saw playful, creative environments as well as conservative, corporate environments. Often those conservative facades belied the personality of the creative groups who were able to function quite well within a larger organization of left-brain thinkers.

We went from the corporate-meets-cool offices of Hafenbrack to the lawyer-like, wood-ensconced board room of Excellence in Motivation, from fun and hip ad agency spaces to the design-house-meets-high-school environment of the School of Advertising Art. The common denominator was the creative work being done at all of these places. And some of that creativity will be on display through the videos at the Hermes Awards. See you there!

From Ugly to Awesome

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 02:53:00 +0000

In an earlier blog, I mentioned the Norwood 911 dispatch center that was getting a Miller-Valentine Extreme Office Makeover. Well, the renovation is complete, and we had some fun documenting the process. Check out the transformation here.

A Digression and A Confession

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 02:51:00 +0000

Allow me to digress from the topic of video for a moment. I have a confession to make. I’m just going to come right out and say it… I like Michael Jackson music. I didn't realize it until I heard an NPR story about the Thriller album, which was released 25 years ago. That was about the time I was learning AC/DC riffs on my new electric guitar. I did not like pop music… period. The "King of Pop" was not cool in my book.

But then came Beat It. I still remember the first time I heard that song. I was riding the bus to school, and a song came on the radio. Synthesized drums – hate it… wait, cool guitar riff… Oh, it’s Michael Jackson – hate it… wait, a guitar solo in a pop song?... whoah! that’s Eddie Van Halen!

Eddie Van Halen was my guitar idol, and I knew his distinctive sound right away. But how could this be? How could Eddie be playing with Michael Jackson? It was like Trump joining up with Rosie O’Donnell... It was like chocolate on your spaghetti… it just didn’t go together.

OK, I told myself, I like the guitar solo, but that’s it. I continued to profess my dislike of MJ his whole choreographed, staged, crotch-grabbing, "ooh"-ing, MTV persona. And how could anyone like that comically campy Thriller video? But, though I wouldn’t even admit it to myself, I secretly kinda liked his music.

We all know about Jackson’s spiral into weirdness and inappropriate behavior. His life turned into a freak show, and I forgot that he was once making fresh and exciting music. The NPR report reminded me about those days in the late 80s when, against my will, Billy Jean would get stuck in my head… Uh oh, now I’ve done it… Billy Jean is not my lover. She’s just a girl who says that I am the one… ooh!

Bring the Love Back

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Sun, 04 Nov 2007 01:50:00 +0000

I saw this video on another blog. Good stuff. The needs and expectations of consumers (both B2C and B2B) are changing. Smart advertisers are evolving to meet those needs. Old school advertisers who want to keep the status quo will continue to struggle.

Celebration of Flyer Basketball

noreply@blogger.com (Mike Kurtz) — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 01:49:00 +0000

Last week, we helped produce "A Celebration of Flyer Basketball." More than 2,000 basketball fans joined many legendary Flyer players in celebrating the winning tradition at UD. We produced videos covering the modern era of UD basketball. We also wrote the script for emcee Jay Bilas, and we were in charge of the staging for the event.

This project combined two of my passions – video production and Flyer Basketball. What an honor it was to work with legendary coach Don Donoher. He is as classy as they come - humble, down-to-earth, nice guy with an amazing knowledge of the game.

Another guy I had the pleasure to meet was Don May. May might be the best player to ever play at UD, but you wouldn’t know it by talking to him. He was quick to deflect any praise to his coach and teammates.

I felt like I already knew Bucky Bockhorn, having listened to him on the radio for many years. And he is the same friendly, folksy personality in person that you hear on the radio. Bucky is UD’s Joe Nuxhall.

I don’t want to keep namedropping, but the list of classy people I worked with goes on – Larry Hansgen, Bucky Albers, Bill Uhl, Roosevelt Chapman, Brian Gregory. It was also a pleasure to meet ESPN’s Jay Bilas, who was a real pro as the emcee and also a very nice guy, even if he didn’t graduate from UD :-). I didn’t get to meet Bobby Knight, who was whisked in just before the event while we were busy making final preparations.

We had a short timeframe to produce the videos, given the scope of the project. But Brian worked his magic and we got them done with enough time to edit a cool intro montage that still gives me goose bumps when I see it. James Brothers and the folks in Athletics did a great job putting the event together, and it was a pleasure to play a part in such an extraordinary event!

Go Flyers!