Parc Entertainment - A Video Production Company - Birmingham, AL

I’ve been doing some self-evaluation recently in an effort to better define my company and our mission. If you haven’t been keeping up with the latest developments here, we will soon be Red Fox Media. I know, you have questions:

• Has Parc Entertainment been bought out?
• Will Clint be moving on to work for someone else?
• Is this the end?

The answer to all of the above is, “no.” Our business is growing and so we are expanding our services. Therefore, we have decided to change our name, to more accurately reflect the company identity. Here’s a brief synopsis of who and what Red Fox Media is (this will appear on our new website - www.redfoxmediainc.com):

Red Fox Media, formerly Parc Entertainment, is a digital production company in Birmingham, Alabama. As today’s media becomes increasingly integrated and pervasive, clients need dynamic and visually stunning content. That’s where we come in. Through HD video production and website design, we create compelling multimedia solutions that engage, inspire, and entertain. As media and technology continue to evolve, we readily adapt. That’s why we’re relentless. It’s why we hold ourselves to a higher standard. And it’s why we work everyday to provide our clients with visual excellence.

As we work toward the launch of this new brand, I’ve been thinking about our core values.  I’ve compiled them into a list. This list isn’t meant to be all-inclusive, but it will certainly give you an idea of what motivates us throughout every stage of every project:

• We believe in challenging ourselves to create the best content for our clients.
• We believe in having a passion for what we do.
• We believe in creating content that stands apart from the others
• We believe in high-production standards
• We believe in constant improvement.
• We believe in adapting to meet the needs of our clients and the marketplace.
• We believe in greatness, not mediocrity
• We believe in treating everyone with respect
• We believe in prompt, courteous communication with all clients.

Experts agree - online video will continue its growth over the next several years as consumption of video content continues to increase. In this video from Beet.TV, Jeff Cole, director of USC’s Center for the Digital Future, predicts that people will soon be spending up to 50 hours per week watching video. This rise (up from only 16 hours in 1975), will be due to the popularity of mobile video. This presents an incredible opportunity for advertisers and marketers, who will be able to use video to reach their audience while consumers are outside the home. This is TV without borders.

The question, however, is on the content itself. Where do you see the trend heading? Do you foresee an audience willing to watch 30 or 60-minute shows on their mobile devices, like Cole predicts? Or, do you you predict that the trend will continue to favor shorter, easily consumable 2-3 minute clips?

In regards to advertisers and marketers, what direction do you see video taking? Will production quality give way to production quantity? In other words, is it more important for advertisers to churn out as much video content as quickly as possible? Or, should they take their time with crafting and creating a well-polished, well-produced marketing video that has a longer shelf life?

Parc Entertainment is now in a new location in the heart of Five Points South. Our new address is 1312 20th Street South, Birmingham, AL 35205. We occupy the second floor of an old white Victorian house that backs up to Cobb Lane. Email addresses, phone and fax numbers remain the same. More exciting developments are in store for our company as we work on expanding our resources to help our clients execute their marketing strategies. Send us an email or give us a call if you are interested in video production, web design/development, or graphic design & identity.

Okay, I’ll admit it. This post will be a hard sell for the benefits of video. But you have to admit that video can grab an audience’s attention. It can raise awareness. It can move people to action. In short, video can get things done.

Look no further than musician Dave Carroll. In 2008, he and his band were on a flight from Halifax to Omaha by way of Chicago. While waiting on the tarmac, the band noticed the United Airlines ground crew throwing their instruments around. Carroll later discovered that United’s blatant disregard for other people’s property had resulted in $1200 worth of damage to his guitar.

After about a year of jumping through corporate hoops, Carroll could not get United to pay for the damages. So, being the creative person that he is, Carroll wrote a song about the experience, created a music video, and on July 6 posted it on YouTube. As of this writing the video has over 4 million views and Carroll is now officially on the map. His story has been picked up by a number of news outlets, including Fox News and BusinessWeek magazine. As a result of the video, United gave $3,000 to charity at Carroll’s request.

This is but one example of how video can be utilized to help you get noticed. Below is Carroll’s video United Breaks Guitars.

For marketers and PR professionals, timely communication with your audience is important to maintaining a strong brand. In a world where news, opinions, reviews, and customer feedback is almost instantaneous, issues must be dealt with now, not later. You must actively engage in an upfront and honest manner. Consider the following story about director Michael Bay’s recent PR mishap (from Cinematical.com)

Never keep hundreds of people waiting in the rain for hours. Michael Bay, Shia LaBeouf, and Megan Fox did just that in South Korea on June 9. An estimated crowd of 600 fans and press lined up in Seoul early to see the red-carpet premiere of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, according to Screen Daily, and were then disappointed when the Transformers entourage arrived 80 minutes late, spending only a few minutes with the crowd. Members of the press were further distressed when the group arrived 30 minutes late to a scheduled news conference the next day, and some staged a walk-out.

Bay has now issued a written apology, explaining that “traveling from another country, and not allowing enough time for airport delays, city traffic and hotel check-in,” and that the press conference delay was due to the “serious pain” he was experiencing from a pulled back muscle. (The group traveled directly from the premiere in Tokyo, Japan.) Damage control was necessary, not only because it’s the right thing to do, but because bloggers had started a campaign to boycott the film in theaters, while local distributor CJ Entertainment insists that interest in the film remains high.

As in the U.S., Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen opens in Korea on June 24. The first Transformers made even more money outside the U.S. than within, so it makes sense to court international audiences, but this incident demonstrates once again that no one likes to be shortchanged or taken for granted.

I particularly like the last line of this article, “No one likes to be shortchanged or taken for granted.” Let your audience know you appreciate them. Communicate with them. Ask for their ideas and input. And utilize the power of video to get your message out to a mass audience.

I’ve written several posts discussing Web 2.0 and the evolution of media across all platforms. Any person, business, organization, etc. that fails to recognize the participatory nature of today’s media and refuses to get involved, will fall way behind in the areas of marketing, advertising and public exposure. I came across this great video today by Niko Pereira, featuring Henry Jenkins of MIT, who discusses how media is changing. Worth watching.

Henry Jenkins on Transmedia - November 2009 from niko on Vimeo.