Next time you’re out and about, take a look around at just how many of your fellow citizens are scrolling through some kind of digital feed. Maybe you’re one of them. Whether it’s a healthy culture shift or not is debatable – preferably over a flight of whiskey. But the new reality is certain: With the surge in smartphones, we have access to a world of news and entertainment at our fingertips. It’s pretty … well, liberating.
Switch has this new reality front of mind as we plan for clients’ meetings, events and experiential activations. Take our client, Primerica: Housed every other year in Atlanta’s massive Georgia Dome, Primerica’s North American network of independent agents convention is dedicated to recognition, leadership, communication and rejuvenated focus. From a production stance, the task is pretty simple: Make top earners feel like Taylor Swift taking the stage with her supermodel squad during The 1989 World Tour. (You can feel the energy in the opening video below!)
Motion video graphics are ingrained into large-scale, high-end concerts, conferences and ceremonies to energize the crowd and supplement the speakers’ talking points. But even the most dazzling content can get stale over time or become irrelevant depending on the mood of the crowd.
In the weeks leading up to the show, our team was consumed with developing, tweaking and diversifying supplementary content – varying logo animations, special effects, coordination with mood lighting – to keep people tuned in.
When Is It a Good Idea to Edit On-Site?
There may not always be room in the budget or the run-of-show for on-site editing. But for Primerica it made sense because a variety of factors:
Large-Scale Projections or Screens
Once stage lighting was queued up for rehearsal and the video was displayed on the show screens (which totaled more than 200 feet in width), the client and Switch’s video motion graphics team could pick up on design flaws that require attention. Colors may have varied among screens, or animation may have needed to be looped to take up the full time allotted for speakers or awards. It’s a similar phenomenon to looking at a document on-screen vs. printed out; it’s easier to identify flaws when the content exists in its final form. To grasp just how expansive the stage and screens were, watch the snippet below.
Messaging Objectives
Primerica wanted to elevate their top performers by making them look and feel like rock stars on stage. They wanted the audience shaking thunder sticks and high-fiving their neighbors in celebration of Primerica and each other. These expectations affect everything we touch. For example, instead of spelling out “million” in motion graphics when recognizing million dollar earners, the client might decide in rehearsal that “$1,000,000” packs more punch. A meeting with a different focus, such as education, may not need so much emphasis on supportive motion graphics.
Convenience
In many cases, hosting an editor on-site comes with upfront costs: Travel, accommodations, etc., but the convenience might greatly outweigh those costs. An obvious benefit is the lack of communication barriers. Without having to worry about disparity in time zones and schedules, we can quickly implement feedback from the client. No emails, no texts – just instant, open communication. Other potential holdups, such as wavering internet connection, server issues or visual inconsistency among devices, are less of a problem when everyone is physically present.
Switch’s Video Motion Graphics team (from left – Doug and Jeremy, respectively) and our client enjoying a celebratory champagne toast
Video motion graphics can set the tone of the production. In this case, on-site editing didn’t only make sense – it made it possible to reach our goal. Scanning the audience, attendees were on their feet, holding out their smartphones to capture the sheer mind-blowing intensity of Primerica’s event and sharing it on their social channels. Mission accomplished.
To find out how Switch can ramp up your next corporate event, trade show or exhibit, drop us a line. And in the meantime, check out the rest of our capabilities.
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