ASL 2020 Year End Review

2020 was a year we will never forget. There were so many new challenges to the way we lived and worked. In the face of these challenges, ASL created new opportunities. Our year not only saw growth in our business, but also saw growth in our ability to adapt to whatever obstacles are put in our way.

The ability to overcome these challenges truly showed what we’re made of. Adapting to new normals including working from home and remote producing were difficult at first but they quickly became second nature and are what we now hang our hats on.

As we move into 2021, lets take one last look at some of the projects that made last year memorable. 

In 2020, we created five comedic spots with social media agency, Attention Global, and their client Abbott Laboratories. Each spot showcased the ways that Abbott’s Freestyle Libre Diabetes Testing device was better than their competition’s.

We used two different sets for each spot which played out funny scenarios highlighting why the Freestyle Libre is a superior product. One set had a bright, yellow background representing Abbott’s brand color and the other had a drab, green background representing the color of the competition. 

These comedic spots were a new direction for us in our relationship with Abbott. The content we normally create with them are testimonial stories of how the Freestyle Libre has changed the life of Abbot’s customers so this was a welcomed addition to our Abbott library of content.

We look forward to many more collaborations with Attention and Abbott in 2021!

ASL partnered with McGarryBowen and Intel to create video campaigns explaining breakthroughs in Neuromorphic and Quantum computing, as well as showcasing the teams behind the developments in these areas of computing.

We were tasked with providing gear and crew, creating custom props and sourcing locations in Portland, OR and Los Angeles. The multi-city shoot included casting and filming an amazing synchronized swim team and choreographing their performance. 

Besides synchronized swimming, we used other visual metaphors to simulate the high speed neuromorphic and quantum computing. We created a prop to replicate active neurons in the brain to represent the way a neuromorphic computer works.  Also, using high frame rate slow motion, we captured coins spinning to show the amount of equations quantum computing can simultaneously process. They were both fascinating to capture on camera and made a big impact in the final videos.

Our project with McGarryBowen and Intel was one of our most creative to date. Take a look at one of the final videos above.

Barstool Sports has become one of ASL’s most consistent partners and 2020 continued that trend. During the fall, we collaborated with Barstool to produce two live shows every week, The Pro Football Football Show and the Norelco College Football Show. 

These shows included custom building both sets, live recording with our Tri-caster, providing our Quasar, Aputure, Lite Panel and Arri Skypanel lights, as well as technicians for every show.

Besides the in studio portion of the shows, we shot remote segments for each show with crews across the country who needed to be prepped for COVID and ready for any Barstool wackiness that might ensue. Additionally, we filmed a show open that captured a Chevy Silverado driving around New York City with a device similar to a Russian arm connected to a gimbal and mounted to our production van. 

One of our new partners this year, TEAM Enterprises, provided a range of opportunities to work on but one that stood out was working with Bombay Sapphire and their Most Imaginative Bartender series.

ASL captured 12 bartenders performing their creative outlets that brought them out from behind the bar. We filmed an eclectic mix of contestant activities including acting, modern dance, art collecting and sustaining a community garden. We provided crew all over North America in places like San Francisco, Colorado, Texas and Toronto.

Not only did we film all of the bartenders performing their creative outlets but also created intro and outro graphics, staged mock interviews with the host of the show which we put together in post-production and edited video content for the marketing of the contest.

It was a whirlwind production that moved at a an extremely fast pace. The new episodes are rolling out now and we are having a blast watching the branded content series on the Bombay Sapphire social media channels. 

Another multi-city shoot highlight of our year as we filmed with Zi Footwear. Zi creates shoes specifically tailored to pregnant women. We were brought on to produce their launch video in LA and a video highlighting their owners and designers filmed in New York City.

We cast five women at different stages of pregnancy to represent the resilience and comfort of Zi’s product line. ASL also provided crew in both cities and all gear, as well as, booking indoor and outdoor locations in Los Angeles. This shoot was an opportunity for ASL to collaborate with a director we hadn’t worked with before, Sophia Banks. Sophia is an award winning director who has worked with brands such as Pepsi, Target and BMW and getting a chance to team up with her was definitely a thrill.

Working on a project like Zi Footwear represents the variety and depth of projects we work on at ASL as we continue to expand the scope of our talented team and range of projects. Creating with new partners on challenging projects makes our day to day exciting and helps us tackle new opportunities. Zi is a partner we definitely hope to work with again in the future. 

We also would be remiss if we didn’t point out the steady assignments from global audit, tax and consulting firm RSM, where we highlight their diversity and inclusion efforts, as well as ADP and Hand & Stone Spa’s, who we assist with video marketing materials.

One thing is for sure, our year would not have been memorable at all if it wasnt for our partners and supporters. Without which we would not be able to share all of our projects along the way. To that end, we say THANK YOU to everyone who was there for us in 2020! We hope to see you all very soon to work together on more successful collaborations. 

Here’s to a great 2021!