Crafting a National Commercial under $30k? Writing. Writing. Writing.

This blog is a shout out to the creative minds out there who really think through what a brand should be able to accomplish for the least amount of money. They are the creative directors and writers out there who make the themes, characters, and script become a moment in time for a brand.

Sure there are commercials out there that amaze us with super-expensive seconds of high-impact effects and outrageous staging, but the truth is that I have seen many commercials with incredibly inexpensive production means make the same impact if not greater because the themes were clever. Not cheeky. Clever.

So, can a commercial be produced cheap? Cheap ones can...you know "I'm the Cash Man" (the look awful and feel awful and work locally) and then there are commercials that work with budgets which need to be extended through the only means available: creative.

It is possible to write a low-budget, effective commercial for TV, cinema and web. We have done it. Peel Region Public Health Unit and Fingerprint Communications brought us a commercial that was so clever that the budget was invisible to the viewer. The spot won an international award of excellence and a year and a half later, I am still seeing it in my local cinema. Here is that commercial. It has almost 30,000 views on YouTube, as well. Not a costly commercial, but a very clever, one. I have noticed teens snickering in the cinema and at one showing I saw of it, it got more laughs than any other commercial - one of them for Pepsi using a major sports celebrity.

The message here is this: Only You Can Prevent Big Budgets (I am Woodsey the Production Owl, I guess). Creative can be written to be really effective and make your brand stand out without spending more than $20 or $30k. Sometimes even less.

Using Social Media Along with Traditional TV

Look how much information we get that starts with a social media tipping us off. The blog, TMZ is a great example. In fact the more accurate this information is, the more likely we are to "follow" that information provider, 'tweeter' or 'facebookie'.

Now celebrities tell us about their every bowel movement and we are able to use newsfeeds and IM to update each other instantly.

How do we apply this to the world of television programming? Well it seems obvious, but a little planning goes a long way.

Thinking about what information you will use your show or commercial to push is important. It has to be good to get an audience and keep it.

It has to offer more than your show or spot does-added value if you will- or it has to provide linkage to information in the show. If you provide good info, promoting your show has value, too.

You have to be ready to operate your social adjacent media. Will you update it weekly, daily...hourly...as it happens? Make sure you have someone who will manage the updates you have planned.

Social media is a great promotional tool. After all, what is better than personal ensorsement in a social scene?

Find out how we can plan your social media adjacent production.

www.theredfish.ca

Hey, Conan! Any offers so far? Prime Time Debacle Dept.

Let me start by stating that Jay Leno is a total idiot.

Thank you.

What his ego has done (with the help of NBC executives) to prime time TV is disgusting. NBC Affiliates across North America are quivering with hunger pains from the one/two punch they got with the vaporization of the economy followed by a devastating blow to the abdominal region when Jay Leno moved into prime time with an almost-show that has driven audiences to fill their evenings with anything but his show....or TV in general. Families are reuniting. Renovations are getting done around the house. Volunteerism is up 71%! Well maybe not, but he did change the landscape of TV- for the worse.

Meanwhile, Conan O'Brien is being tossed around like a chihuahua in a Kansas dirt devil. His ownership of The Tonight Show has gone from triumphant to worthless in a matter of half a year. Reunited with his old time side-kick, Andy Richter (some are blaming Andy for carrying bad juju from cancelled show to cancelled show), Conan seemed to have a lead on funny over the Jay Leno show in a big way. Leno was sure to fail. Conan should surely do well. The numbers did not end up looking like that at all. Both were doing miserably by ad revenue and audience totals. The affiliates were left with no one watching their news. That is their main source of revenue and so at every level, prime time TV began to crumble on basic cable across North America.

Was it Jay that brought down new Tonight Show numbers? Was Conan doing that bad? It seems that with a lack of general interest in Prime Time TV as this experiment took place viewers were simply finding other options outside of regular network TV.

Now NBC scrambles to put everything back as it was (what tools!) and find an audience that has already subscribed to and committed their viewing time to second and third tier specialty cable avails. Looks like cooking shows and reality shows are going to continue to have an audience for a while thanks to Jay Leno....who is a selfish, self-centered, unfunny man.

What will Conan do? Seems he will cut his losses. He has already listed The Tonight Show on craigslist.com as a "slightly-used late night talk show".

Here is the link to his listing: click here

I will be amazed if NBC comes away in the lead over their competition anytime soon. I would imagine Conan will land at FOX, and we will see a whole host of make-do programming in prime time until the next big drama series takes hold. They are going to have to spend a massive amount of money getting back to mediocre. Good on ya, NBC.

Mike Wixson

Executive Producer

RedFish Studios

mike@redfishentertainment.com

RedFish has focus on International Markets

There comes a time in the life of every production company that makes TV shows when the content you have made has reached critical mass and is ready to hit the road in search of other markets.

RedFish Studios is in that very era of it's existence. After three years of production, the company has entered into several distribution arrangements to capitalize on the programming that is already in the can.

In preparation of this timeline marker, about a year ago we began to brainstorm about what content we have that would be good for the rest of the world. We talked about TV distribution and mobile content, web content, streaming content. All of these options became interesting in their own right so we began to develop our content to hit all points of distribution while still building in sponsorship opportunities and localized ad revenue models.

So, after thinking through as many options for content as possible, our discovery is that we have created a more full package for almost any content distribution means available. We have web content that is backed by TV programs. TV programs that resolve themselves on the web, and interactive informative programming that calls on mobile technology to access more information than is available on the show...the circle of content has begun to oscillate sending us in new directions in search of the next show, webcast, or mobile project.

RedFish showed up in the production field at the right time and place. Our theories about content are realities now and I am glad we took the time to figure out where content was needed most before we began distribution. Now we have more to offer than most producers in the market today.

Why is the world going nuts for product placement?

We hear more and more about product placement these days but why is it becoming so prevalent?

1. The ad landscape is so cluttered at this point that cutting through the pollution is a near impossibility.

2. TiVo and PVRs have created another hit against 30 second TV creative. More and more viewers are able to eliminate commercials from their view entirely.

3. Product credibility is a big factor in adding value to product placement as an incredibly viable media. Simply put, if we see actors/hosts on TV and we identify with them, we find the product to be more desirable and the brand instantly more credible.

Over the last five years product placement, title sponsorships and inserted billboards have added more to the bottom line on TV budgets than any other integrated budgetary factor I have seen.

Working your brand into the show makes more sense than ever. Write me to find out more. Send your questions or post a comment:

Mike Wixson
Executive Producer
RedFish Studios
416 593 8881
mike@redfishentertainment.com

Cosmetic Transformations - Get built into the show

RedFish Studios has finalized a deal to put a one hour special on TV across Ontario on SUN-TV that focuses

on Cosmetic options available to consumers. Now you can look younger, lose the weight, get the hair, or lose the

glasses.

This hour revolves around what can be done to create the new you. From procedures to treatments, Cosmetic Transformations

is the ultimate makeover showcase for everyone who is anyone in that industry.

Find out more about Cosmetic Transformations, the one-hour special: Call Rob Pagetto at 416 593 8881, ext 22.

Download a PDF with more info about Cosmetic Transformations

Rob Pagetto - Producer Cred.

Rob Pagetto. Where do I begin? Actually, even before I begin I can hear him giving me his list of credits and credentials in this biz (he is a good self-promoter for certain). Okay, I know. Rob Pagetto is an outstanding Producer. There. That's a good start because if it is produced at RedFish, the likelihood that Rob was the Producer on the project is almost 100%. He is the machine that we turn on when we go into production. From soup to nuts (and he is nuts!) Rob is who we rely on to make sure the show, commercial, event actually comes together. He and his team of super-energized APs are the first there, and the last to leave on everything we make.

I remember Rob calling me one day and I asked him in passing how things were going. His response lives with me still to this day: "Great. I just got the cocktail wieners and the sumo suits don't smell that bad so we are good to go. Oh, and we go the Borat Bathing suits we needed." We needed those? Who knew? Rob did and that's the point. As an executive producer you can only hope that the vision you are promising a network, a client or even talent will execute perfectly. Rob answered that call in my world a lot of years ago now. Since that time we have made over 100 commercials, almost 100 episodes of TV and countless corporate events and projects. He rarely gets upset. He always gets excited. That is the ultimate recipe for good morale on set, perfect execution of the project, and a happy client and crew who will return the next time the need arises.

I tip my hat to Rob. He is an huge amount of fun. He is a pillar in our business. I wish him a Happy New Year. Check your schedule...we are in production right now Rob! No rest for the wickedly funny, sorry bud. I know you would have it no other way.

You know, he was on YTV for a lot of years as a host?

Sometimes we forget that Rob is talent, too.

But not too often because he is a good reminder!

Here is a one last thing about Rob: Look for him as the HOST (yes, host) of THE LAST THREE coming to Canadian airwaves this summer.

Top three things to do with video to build your business

I was speaking with a colleague during the break about the real advantage to using video from a corporate perspective. We came up with a number of good applications that we had seen throughout the years and then really boiled them down to three really good uses for video on a corporate level:

In a truly Lettermaesque fashion:

3) Use video to capture training, annual meetings and corporate events. This footage is gold when it comes to HR uses, staff-motivational moments, and for use on your website/corporate DVD.

2) Showing off exactly what your business does. Is it hard to explain? Well, real footage of what you do speaks volumes. How you do it, and what the client can expect are really helpful in the selling process of any business.

And the number one thing your company should do with video....

1) Introduce the people who are your managers, customer relations personnel, and executive and put a face to the brand that is your company.

Of course, there are many, many other uses (Product Catalogues, Commercials, Weekly News Updates....the list goes on and on). However, the basis for using video as a business is really easily boiled down to these "top three".

I would recommend that you call us to talk about how to use corporate videos to enhance your business and build profits.