“The image featured…might be simple,
it nonetheless denotes some powerful
and poignant features which might take
audience by surprise.”

Online Movie Hut

“This poster has a perfectly eerie feeling
to it that captures the film’s tone…It’s a
great indie poster design, eye-catching
yet still inspired by the film itself.”

FirstShowing.net

Here’s the trailer. Go see the movie in October.

 

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The Ponderosa Stomp is a cultural warehouse. A rock-and-roll defibrillator. A creaky wooden ship helmed by Ira Padnos (Dr. Ike) that sails through the seas of music history and smashes cannon balls through the cliches of American Rock understanding. Stomp founder Dr. Ike is an anesthesiologist by day and and a vinyl hoarding musicologist by night. This New Orleans based Foundation hangs on by bloody knuckles to preserve the past and engage with rocks obscure still-living legends. This film, directed and edited by Jeff Nichols, is dedicated to all those who make this inspiring foundation go.

We didn’t know we were making “brand films” then. We were collapsing the strategic planning discipline with the creative development discipline out of necessity. We had just formed our shop and the budgets were small. It was just Marty and I, a Canon GL2, a 35mm still camera, going crazy on a road trip. We put the money into original music and post. In the end, we discovered a method of working that is very hands on and frankly we’ve never walked away from. We just gave it a name – Brand Film.

So what is a Brand Film?

It’s a strategic, stylized documentary about your brand. The story is authentic and compelling because you, your product and or service is authentic and compelling. You do your part. The film does its part. Your narrative already exists. The emotion is there. It is all waiting to be captured by us in high definition. We use our deep understanding of messaging to outline the films potential plot, cast real people and draft the questions we will ask the cast. We scout the locations. Then it’s the discipline of production and the skill of film making. In the end, you receive much more than a strategic 3-5 minute film that deftly communications your value to the world. You also have content that can live:

• Online (your home site, promotional micro-sites, blogs, podcasts, e-mail, social networking sites, affiliate sites)

• On air (TV spot, infomercial base content, radio spot from audio, press outreach, EPK, and b-roll for news media)

• On the road (sales kits, investor relations materials, trade show presence)

Today we are an ad agency and production company under one roof. We’ve refined our process. We added partners across the production spectrum. Our Brand Films benefit greatly from the world class film talent Austin hosts.

We would love to hear your thoughts and feedback on what we are producing. We have a LinkedIn group for this express purpose. We believe that now, more than ever, Brand Films are a brilliant marketing investment. Please challenge or support this notion with your experience…

The first conference call is almost over but the project is just getting started. Brian Gourley (executive producer and passion player) + The Butler Bros. + Jeff Nichols + Scott Bomar + some of the most amazing musicians on the planet are getting together to make a movie. The piece will help tell the story of the Ponderosa Stomp before it’s too late…

Thanks to Jacob Blickenstaff for the shot.

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In 2006, GSD&M asked us to produce what amounted to a video annual report. We created the concept of a stop motion animated book. Then we executive produced and creative directed writer/director Jeff Nichols, Shiny Object, and Randal Ford to bring it all to life. The resulting piece takes a pile of disparate elements and weaves a compelling narrative about the scope of the tobacco control issue and the Legacy Foundation‘s effective movements therein.

The piece was used to communicate with key stakeholders of the Legacy Foundation.