Telling Human Stories. Authentically.

Towards that goal, we produced a series of videos to raise awareness about the availability of accessible outdoor adventures for individuals with disabilities.

How did we do it? First, for realism we film and edit in 4K resolution, and use gimbals to convey action and motion. For mobility, we use a two-man team to plan, direct and film the videos. Our experienced film crew is agile and can mesh easily with the logistics of our participants’ support teams.

From a social media sharing strategy, Moab’s three biggest outdoor user groups are mountain biking, jeeping and rafting – so sharing these very visual experiences through the eyes of a disabled person makes a strong emotional connection.

But it’s the accessibility stories that really take these videos to another level because there’s human interest and emotion and inspiration in those stories. Its a positive message in an age of negativity.

Working with our partners like National Ability Center we chose participants who were willing to go on a trip specifically to be filmed and were willing to tell their story on camera.

For more information, visit Discovermoab.com

For more information on National Ability Center’s adaptive sports and outdoor adventure programs, visit discovernac.org

Moab Adventure Accessibility Promo for TravelAbility Summit in San Francisco. November 2019

Breathtaking on a budget.

Redtail Air Adventures of Moab, Utah needed an instantly intriguing ad for their new “Airvan” airplane dedicated to scenic photography tours and professional-level photographers.

The Challenge: Requirements were for a video of modest budget that could be easily re-purposed to fit the viewing preferences across all platforms, devices, social media, streaming services and web sites. The ad should be appealing on platforms ranging from 4K 65″ hotel lobby big screens to tiny square-format Instagram video.

We started by filming and editing in 4K to capture and preserve the breathtaking details of a flight over Canyonlands. Delivering the final video in 4k resolution satisfies the 4K viewing needs for big screen TVs, and the 4K fans of YouTube and Vimeo.

We flew two planes side by side using a gimbal-stabilized 4K camera from the chase plane, and a photographer/model to operate the unique feature of the “Airvan” that any photographer would love – a sliding door you can open in flight! Several flying hours were spent filming spectacular B-roll to entice any would-be photographers.

“Bullet point” animated text was added to convey the messages and engage users of Facebook, Instagram, Hulu and Google ads where the sound is likely to be turned off. Finally, two version lengths were edited – 30-second and 1-minute to be applied as needed.

In all, the client was very satisfied with the look, feel and effectiveness of the video promotion.

The road less traveled.

Summertime is almost always the busiest time for any outdoor destination. It’s the season tourists love to travel in most, and for good reasons. But with popularity also comes crowds, and when trails are crowded that special sense of being one with nature is harder and harder to attain. That’s why the folks at Moab love the off-season days – they are quieter, calmer, and more intimate.

After we had finished creating the new theater film for the Moab Information Center, the Moab Area Travel Council asked us if we could help them with their plan to spread the word about the region’s best-kept secret and create a TV commercial promoting the off-season in Moab. They hope that people who learn about the delights of fall, winter, and spring in Moab will be inspired to come experience it for themselves.

This commercial ended up playing in local and regional networks around Utah, including a special marketing campaign in Salt Lake City.

To learn more about the theater film watch “Welcome to Moab”.

Into the past.

On June 30th, 1891, a specially-built steam locomotive made the first passenger trip to the top of the Pikes Peak, Colorado.  Today, on special occasions, you can still ride engine #4 as the Pikes Peak Cog Railway celebrates 125 years in operation.

The Manitou and Pikes Peak Railway Company built six of these special steam engines in 1890, and Steam Engine No. 4 is the last of the six still operating.  On special occasions, it is fired up and makes special short runs up the mountain – 125 years after it was built.

Capturing the adventure.

Every destination has its experiences it is known for, and The Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs is no exception. The organization owns nearby South Cheyenne Canyon and has created a singular zip-line experience for guests. They wanted an exciting video that would give viewers the sense of soaring through the trees and over 600-foot canyons.

For this destination film production, we created custom camera mounts and used three-axis gimbal cameras that would capture stabilized footage in 4K, while still being small enough to operate alongside guests while zipping down a line at speeds up to 55 mph! Our camera operator spent hours filming zip-line courses and capturing the experience of other visitors.

The result? A thrilling film that truly gives you the sense of soaring through the air and builds excitement for The Broadmoor destination.

Uncovering a legacy.

This project originally began as a centennial anniversary video for Ruby’s Inn – a historic hotel near Bryce Canyon. They have been providing western hospitality and entertainment to travelers from around the world for 100 years.  Founded by Ruby and Minnie Syrett in 1916, family-owned Ruby’s Inn has grown to 800 rooms, adding activities, attractions, and even their own nightly rodeo. The Syrett family wanted to capture the wealth of stories about their history and family before they were lost to time, and to tell the story of their legacy.

From that film, we created a second important project – a half-hour in-room video to provide guests an orientation to everything there is to do in and around Ruby’s Inn. We interviewed staff and founders and filmed everything the Inn had to offer. In the end, we delivered both videos as well as smaller highlight segments for them to use on social media and their website.

The Syrett family loved what we delivered to them, and now play the videos on their in-room TV channels and use the social media videos to promote their hotel online.