Recently Litewave Media took to the ice at Amelie Arena, home of the Tampa Bay Lightning, for a Volvo TV commercial shoot with Victor Hedman, one of the top defenders in the NHL. The spot was produced along with Moore and Scarry Advertising for Crown Automotive Group and will be airing soon! Our Tampa video production company was thrilled to be back on the ice as we filmed with the Lightning last year for a production as well.
Director/DP Christian Cashmir & 2nd Cam Tony Ahedo plan out some action shots of Victor with the Sony A7s Mk2 & DJI OSMO.
Crown Automotive brought in seven cars and SUVs and set them up on the ice rink as a back drop for the shoot. The Litewave Media Tampa video production crew began work lighting the cars, with only a short window between the Lightning’s practices to set up. Our production crew brought out 5 cameras to film with including our Canon C300, Canon C100, two Sony A7s mk2’s, a DJI OSMO, and a myriad of Canon L series lenses – all from our Tampa video camera rentals package.
The Litewave Media Tampa video crew at work filming Victor Hedman of the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The crew filmed some lines with Victor and the teleprompter, but the shoot really charged up when Victor got on his skates, and the camera team chased him on the ice.
Director Christian Cashmir and 2nd Cam Operator Tony Ahedo go over lines on the prompter with Victor Hedman.
We used the Sony A7s mk2 mounted on our MoVi M5 gimbal stabilizer as well as the DJI Osmo to capture smooth creative action shots and POV shots of the hockey puck. Some 120 frame slow motion footage accented the skates tearing up the ice.
Director/DP Christian Cashmir gives chase to Victor Hedman with the MoVi M5 gimbal camera stabilizer.
Victor Hedman stylishly skids on the ice as the Litewave Media team captures it in slow motion
One of the highlights for our gaffer, was incorporating our newest light, the ARRI Skypanel S60 from our Tampa grip truck rental on the shoot. The Skypanel packs quite a punch and acted as the main key light to illuminate the shots of Victor with the Volvos.
Our ARRI Skypanel lights up the shot as Christian Cashmir directs with producer Andrew Hebert & Devon Mackinnon runs sound.
The shoot literally went out with a bang as the hockey stadium fired up their Tesla coils and shot electricity charges for our cameras to capture. This electro static footage will be used for a dramatic insert shot in the commercial. The Tesla coils typically only fire up at a hockey game when the Lightning scores, but we were able to turn all the lights off in the entire stadium so that the coils were the only thing lighting the arena – it made for quite a unique effect!
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[All behind the scenes photos captured by Joe Malo]
Our Tampa Video Production Company, a veteran of the Gasparilla International Film Festival (Litewave Media screened 2 films last year in the festival: Jules Dongu Saves the World and F ), was proud to be a part of a very exciting film premier this year. Litewave Media’s Christian Cashmir was the director of photography on the film Sisters, directed by Sabyn Mayfield and produced by Vivian Alvarez and Grant Johnson.
Christian (Cinematographer), Sabyn (Director), Vivian (Producer/Writer/Actress), and Grant (Producer/Actor)
Sisters was among another round of amazing talent and creative independent films this year at the festival. Sisters is a suspenseful drama about a mother who becomes blindsided by a soul-scorching event and finds a way to get through it, while also exacting a bit of revenge on the way. ABC came out to do a news story on the film at our Tampa video studio. (See the link below)
Litewave Media began work on the short movie last September after getting a call from Sabyn who had worked with our gaffer Andrew on his last film. The entire short was filmed within three days in locations all around Tampa Bay. One of the locations we used was the Bank of America building in downtown Tampa. The room was luxurious and the epic view was perfect for the ending sequence of the film.
The Tampa video crew filming from atop the Bank of America building in downtown Tampa
A number of the Litewave Media video production team worked on the film. Our Tampa film crew’s Christian Cashmir was the Director of Photography. Andrew Ortoski was the gaffer for the shoot. Mike Barnitt served as audio tech with Rachel, his boom operator. Anya Yuschenko also assisted with makeup. Josh Long, Pinky, Lyssia Roussel and Sasha Sebesta were all grips on the film. The remaining production crew were brought on by Vivian and her producers, who all worked so hard to bring her project to life.
The Sisters‘ Film Crew
After the screening, there was a quick Q&A session with Director Sabyn Mayfield, Actress/Producer Vivian Alvarez, and Director of Photography Christian Cashmir. The responses were positive and we received a lot of compliments on our hard work. Following the session, the Litewave Media crew attended the Gasparilla Film Festival’s after party and met up with actor R.J. Mitte from TV’s Breaking Bad, who also happens to be a huge steampunk fan (like us!). We got to talk about future plans for our next film The Skyship Chronicles with him. Blake Berris, known for Days of Our Lives, also joined in to talk about upcoming projects.
Left to right: Blake Berris [Days of our Lives, Big Bang Theory], RJ Mitte [Breaking Bad], Cathy Cromar [GIFF Coordinator], Christian Cashmir [Litewave Media]
The Litewave Media team also discussed a new film project with C.S Lee from Showtime’s Dexter.
Litewave Media Team with C.S Lee [Dexter]
To top it all off, Sisters recently found a distribution deal on the Shorts HD TV Network this fall….so keep a lookout to watch it on your local cable station soon!
Overall, the event was a blast! Litewave Media loves going to the Gasparilla International Film Festival to support the local Florida talent and encourage local independent films. We will definitely be there again next year!
Do you have a video project coming up? You can email our Tampa video marketing company at [email protected] for a free consultation. Please like us on Facebook, and be sure to keep up with the blog for more Tampa video production news.
Our Tampa video production company had the unique opportunity to produce a video presentation for Dixie Hollins High School’s 2014 graduating class. The school’s guidance counselor, Cynthia Burnett, who wanted to give the students more information on choosing Creative Career Paths and Entrepreneurship, approached us early in April about the project. Litewave Media’s founder, Christian Cashmir, gladly took on the task of advising and with the help of the company’s video production crew created an inspiring and fun video that young students could relate to. The Litewave Media team felt this was a great opportunity to help the students learn more about how to enter a creative field like film, video, photography, or music .
Our Tampa video marketing and post-production company pieced together clips of career advice along with snippets of some of our favorite video production work to give students an insight into the industry.
The video was well received and the school’s guidance counselor, Cynthia Burnett, raved about how the students and faculty enjoyed the video:
“I asked for a video presentation on Creative Career Paths and Entrepreneurship to add to my “This Could be You in 20 Years Series.” Christian, and Litewave media went above and beyond my expectation. It was “Academy Awards” awesome! The students were very engaged in the video. The ninth and tenth grade were especially engaged. The counselors and assistant principal were also very engaged in viewing the video and said it was a very good presentation. Thank you Litewave Media for helping to make the Dixie Hollins Spring Honor Roll Celebration a success!”
Litewave Media is proud to have been a part of this project and hopes that students will find a career they are passionate about. Cynthia has since shared the video with numerous other schools in the district in an effort to raise awareness on creative career paths. We are very excited about helping more students and developing the arts and creative careers in the Tampa area for many years to come!
Do you have a Tampa video project coming up? You can email us at [email protected] for a free consultation. Please like our Tampa video company on Facebook, and be sure to keep up with the blog for more Tampa video production news.
Our Tampa video production studio had the unique opportunity to work alongside Sims Crane & Equipment Co. to produce their reality show “Heavy Lifting” which gives viewers an inside look at the crane industry. Sims Crane is Florida’s premier Crane and Equipment provider and partnered with Litewave Media to make their vision a reality. Litewave Media also produced a series of training videos at their Tampa location. The entire project spanned a total of over 20 videos.
With a number of reality shows under their production belts, including ABC’s Shark Tank, TLC’s Extreme Couponing, and the Cayman Island’s Paradise Pawn, the award-winning Litewave Media film crew brought their expertise to the “Heavy Lifting” film set. The crew explored the daily trials of Sims’ crane operators, from erecting entire buildings to lifting whales at a theme park.
When Sims Crane first contacted our Tampa video production company, we set up a series of meetings to plan the logistics of the shoot. Director and cinematographer Christian Cashmir alongside producer Andrew Ortoski collaborated with Sims Crane’s director of marketing, Dean Sims on the creative direction for the show.
The Crane Yard at Sims Crane in Tampa, FL
With the use of GoPro Hero 3, the Litewave Media camera crew was able to film stunning overhead shots of the crane’s movements. Other video production equipment including the Canon C100, 2 Panasonic HVX200’s, 1 Panasonic HPX-170, and a Canon 5D Mark III were used for filming.
Sims Crane Crew with Litewave Media’s Andrew Ortoski (Producer/Camera) and Mike Barnitt (Audio)
Camera operators Christian Cashmir, Taylor Girard, John Jones, and Andrew Ortoski captured all of the action, while Jeff Zampino scripted the show along with Dean Sims. Mike Barnitt and Tom Hurxthal handled audio and Jamie Parslow served as grip. Christian Cashmir and Andrew Ortoski edited and tackled post-production work at Litewave Media’s Tampa post-production company.
Sims Crane also teamed up with our Tampa video crew in creating a number of training videos on crane safety called “Sims Crane Minutes”. These educational videos inform viewers on how cranes function and the potential dangers of operating a crane. Several of the videos were even selected by O.S.H.A. as official crane safety and training videos.
Candace LeRae with Litewave Media’s Tampa Film Crew
These safety videos were a unique opportunity for Litewave Media to get creative with Sims Crane. One video had the distinct style of “Film Noir”, beginning the video in black and white, as if it were an old-style detective movie. Andrew Ortoski created dramatic lighting and even simulated a thunderstorm in the rain. Candace LeRae was the beautiful femme fatale actress who brought the scene to life along with Sims Crane’s very own Safety Director, Bob Berry. The scene was shot in the Sims Crane headquarters in Tampa, Florida.
Litewave Media also produced another training video for Sims in the style of ABC’s hit TV series “Lost”. The video makes an homage to the Dharma Initiative videos within the series and was filmed as if they were found on an old film reel.
Litewave Media’s Video Crew Sets up for the Dharma Initiative-style Training Video
Do you have a Tampa video project coming up? Give us a call for a free consultation. Please like our Tampa video company on Facebook, and be sure to keep up with the blog for more Tampa video production news!
When it comes to Fantastic Sams, the client chooses their hairstyle. In the case of their advertising though, Fantastic Sams sought out Litewave Media and their award-winning Tampa film crew to write, shoot, cast and edit a series of national quality TV commercials.
Fantastic Sams with the Litewave Media Film Crew and Cast
Litewave Media’s veteran Tampa video production company brought their comedic expertise to the project to create some truly unique commercials. Writer Jeff Zampino scribed three scripts, and director Christian Schwier along with the Fantastic Sams marketing team chose two which eventually became the “Night Owl” commmercial featuring a vampire who is in dire need of a haircut and the “3 Color Days” commercial featuring a Snidely Whiplash type character set in the 1920’s.
Larry Bukovey as The Vampire in “The Night Owl Special”
The Litewave Media team combined with the technology of their newly acquired Canon C100 camera, produced exceptional results. The commercials were filmed over a series of 3 days at the Litewave Media video studio‘s backlot and two Fantastic Sams locations. Video editing and special FX compositing took place at Litewave Media’s Tampa post production facility.
Actors Ed Olson and Serrelle Baker in “3 Color Days
The first of the two scripts promotes Fantastic Sams “3 Color Days” special, and takes place in the 1920’s and features a Snidely Whiplash character. Christian and his Tampa video company decided to give a vintage film treatment to this commercial. It begins in black and white then shifts to color when the female lead goes to Fantastic Sams to brighten up her style. The second script focuses on the salon’s late night hours and highlights characters who can only visit during the night. The main character is a friendly vampire…who needs his hair done, just like everybody else.
Fantastic Sams Salon Set
Be sure to stay tuned to your TV to see these two commercials next week!
[UPDATE 6/11/14 Videos online!]
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