BEST BRAND FORCE FOR GOOD  Critics Picks/Services

“It’s difficult to meet the team at Butler Bros without feeling as though you’ve already known them forever. Accountable, honorable, advocates for positivity — these are words not often attributed to folks in the ad biz. They’re apt descriptors of this team, not just for the widely recognized and lauded branding work, but also for the humility and heart they put into everything they touch. Whether it’s a branding campaign or
the annual bring-your-own-chair neighborhood event, if the Butlers are involved, count your blessings.”

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The Facebook contest film is after the jump.

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When organizations are interested in our brand film content they often ask how they can measure ROI for it. One of the first answers we give is – flexibility and durability of use. When you craft a traditional :30 spot, the use and shelf life of that piece of communication is very limited. With our brand films approach we can leverage the content to drive different initiatives and program offline and online channels. It’s all about designing in use scenarios upfront. As a production company / agency hybrid we have the ability to project and exercise content strategy. The metrics that are built on the back of the strategy are unique in every case.

When we looked at content gathered for the Southwest piece we saw opportunities beyond the first use edit. First use was a 40th anniversary video that rally’s internal stake holders. But the content is about the love people for have for Southwest and more specifically what they “like” about it. This type of documentary gold scores high on the “authenticity meter”. In a world where organizations need to be increasingly transparent and engaged in an honest dialogue with their customers this style of content connects. The edits above are simply speculative proof points.

Thanks to Andrea Perry for use of her track in the Facebook piece. And just to remind everyone – this isn’t a real Facebook contest. Yet. But we still encourage you to like Southwest on Facebook all the same. It’s, “Better than Farmville.”

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We produced the event, and brought URDB [The Universal Record Database] and Do512.com onboard to help make this event unique. Nine cancer related word records were set that night, and can be viewed individually at BreakCancer.co. We also connected with Omega Broadcast Group in North Austin, who generously donated several thousand dollars of video gear for us to use to capture the event. Their desire to help “break cancer” and raise awareness for the cause provided us with some phenomenal gear, including a 20′ Jib, 1080p HD cameras, and more!

I’ve been a fan of Omega for a while now. Having worked with many gear rental houses during the past 9 years here in Austin, and up in Dallas, and Omega Broadcast Group is one of the best by far. The staff is extremely helpful, they have a phenomenal inventory of gear that’s all clean and in great working order, and the prices are pretty much the best you’ll find. They also have a great studio space with a huge infinity cyc wall that we’ll be shooting on in a few weeks. I realize I’m sounding like a paid spokesman right now, but I assure you that I’m not! Having had many frustrating experiences with quality control and inventory over the years with other companies, I was excited to find Omega. Dave, Gabe, and Robert are great, and will help you out.

-@BBrosTravis

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Stepping into the cottage the day before the COMMON launch was energizing. It had pitch energy. It’s a hell of a pitch when you think about, trying to convince people to share a brand in service of the greater good. Everyone was fried but inspired. The close proximity of the unveil provided the adrenaline to finish strong or, more accurately, to start strong. Because really that’s what the “launch” was, the start. But still, the baby was about to get a christening. And it was gonna be live streamed.

About a month prior to this day Alex and I discussed documenting the launch. He was totally game. Felt like an important moment to capture. At Butler Bros we are big fans of organizational documentary work. We call it Brand Films and more recently Advermentary. This content helps drive stakeholder conversation and create the feedback loop needed to make things better. Again this is only the beginning of COMMON and likely the first of many films. But this is a raw look at what happened on day one and what Alex, Rob, and John had to say hours before the launch.

Butler Bros pre-produced the film with the merry band of insurgents over at the Cottage. It was a fun collaboration. Art, Jeff, Isaac and Evan worked their butts off on this little production. I had the pleasure of talking to people and bringing the idea to film. Then I brought the footage back to Butler Bros and my bro and our editor Travis hammered it out. Special thanks to Moby and Monahans for the tracks.

Many of you have had Alex as a creative director or your agency guy. Let me assure you it was fun heaving him as a “client”, I mean an insurgent collaborator. Please continue to share your thoughts and ideas over at COMMON. The world’s first collaborative brand needs just that – collaboration.

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We lifted this :30 out of 32 hours of footage captured for the Brand Film.

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Legacy exists to ensure longer healthier lives for Americans through outreach that prevents youth from becoming smokers and programs that enable and empower adults to quit smoking. Their effectiveness is legendary.

This film shares the scope of Legacy’s work and the stakes of their success. It will be used to connect with partner organizations to inspire them to help further development of Legacy’s existing activities and perhaps even innovate their own. Legacy is open for partnership.

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Founded in 1976 Jason’s Deli is family owned company that currently operates in 25 states with 215 locations. This film articulates the story of the brand. From its humble beginnings in Beaumont, Texas to its growth across the nation. This is the tale of a company that consistently takes the road less travelled in service of people. Sound lofty? Watch the film and see for yourself.

Want to give credit to our collaborator and director / camera / editor Keith Maitland for bringing his intensity and documentary prowess to this process. Tod Campbell for his contribution as a DP at the bulk of our locations. Ben Powell for his jack of all trades impact along the way. To Julian Londono for being more than an assistant editor. To David S Gardner for prepping the edit with the precision of a librarian. David Hamburger for the pitch perfect score. Joe Malina for the color correction. And finally Alison, Parke and Lyman at Stuck On On for helping us finish it all with style.

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The brief – design the program for the TEDxAustin event. The theme – PLAY BIG. The solution – kids. Special thanks to Ben Powell for jumping on board and helping us capture this amazing event. See the finished piece here.

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Shot on location in Austin with the co-founder of Jason’s Deli, Rusty Coco. We created this piece to amplify Jason’s PR efforts around their new kids menu which reduced saturated fat, sodium, and calories while adding organics. Additionally all of their food is high fructose corn syrup free, MSG free, and artificial trans fat free. This is an ideal example of our Brand Film content. The ingredients are – a company that is behaving in a very progressive way, the real people that their actions impact and our crew. No actors. Everyone is “playing” themselves and being given the freedom to communicate in their own words. This is where brand communications meet the documentary ethos. We are experts at channeling this interaction.

Jason’s Deli is a thought and action leader in the restaurant chain space. We are honored to help fuel their growth via our services.