Heritage Minutes
Proposal Package
Producers: Kisholay Ray, Kevin Valbonesi
Executive Producer: Geoff Whitlock
Director: Daniel Riley
Vision and Approach
History is anything but boring or irrelevant. Some of the greatest and most
unbelievable stories come from the lives of real people making decisions that
would change the future. What we intend to do with these Heritage Minutes is
provide a generation who have grown up with constant visual stimulation a fresh
way to look at history, a way that interests them and most importantly, allows
them to relate to the events that helped shape who they are. Of course, we do not
do style simply for style’s sake, rather, every beautiful frame and note of music
will serve the heart of the Heritage Minute, the story.
It is simply not enough to drop in on a point in history, throw a bleachbypass filter over the footage, and edit out all but the most dramatic scenes of
war. Even in the private lives of the masses, there are nuggets of drama that
encapsulate the values and challenges of an era. It is one thing to show the
dramatic arrival of European colonists on the shore, but it is another to see a
young Native boy squirm in the strange clothing of the Europeans as he is forced
into a residential school for the first time. There is also power in the
manipulation of time. By shooting the past and present, we can see how history
has changed things, and reveal how it is still relevant, still being made. Of
particular importance to our director is to show the way Native culture has both
clashed and fused with European culture to create a uniquely Canadian identity.
Part of our approach to the obvious expense and scope of such a project is
the ability to have a small production footprint. With an experienced team we
deliver quality content while keeping the production mobile and efficient. Most
importantly, with the acumen brought on by Surround Integrated Marketing, we
can draw on a larger talent pool and on greater resources to bring this project to a
timely and satisfying completion.
Proposed Stories
The French & Indian War
A Treaties Heritage Minute
1760. The remnants of a French battalion run through
the woods, fleeing a battle they’ve clearly lost. In their
hurry, the French soldiers stumble upon an equally
battered group of Native Americans. Weapons rise on
both sides, but when they take a good look at each
other, they recognize that they are allies. Not a moment later, a pursuing British
force surrounds the beleaguered French and Natives. Once more, weapons come
up, with muskets, bayonets, and bows aimed in every direction; it’s a Mexican
standoff. Realizing the hopelessness of his situation, a French soldier lowers his
weapon, and everyone else follows suit.
1763. In France, halfway across the world, British and French
ambassadors meet in Paris to sign the Treaty of Paris. The British ambassador
coolly slides the document across the table, and hands the French ambassador a
quill pen and inkwell to sign the document. Reluctantly, the French ambassador
signs the document and storms out.
Given the intense nature of the conflict, the first part of the minute will
play out in fast cuts, with tight composition. The idea is to emphasize the chaos
and intensity of the war. In the latter half, smooth camera work, wide
compositions, and a slower pace of editing will underscore the turn to diplomacy
and triumph of treaty over total war.
The music will build up to the Mexican standoff. At the peak of the beat
the voice over will be introduced indicating “there’s always a better solution to
war”; and right after that the music will change into an upbeat tone, emphasizing
the return to peace, however temporary it may be.
The Grammar Lesson
A Residential School Heritage Minutes
1899. A Jesuit priest leads his Native students in practicing English Bible
passages on a blackboard. In the back of the room,
a nun watches as the lesson takes place. One of
the students struggles with one of the passages
and when he can’t get it right, the priest comes
over and strikes the student for every further
failed attempt. The student cannot manage, and
as the priest winds up for another strike, the nun
snatches his wrist, stopping him. Later, the nun
watches as government officials show up and close the school down. Glancing
over, the nun’s eyes meet the grateful eyes of the Native student she saved.
1960. A young woman helps an aged Native man up the steps of the old
residential school. The old man lays his hand on the doors of the school,
remembering.
Stylistically this episode will be divided into two parts. The first part will
be shot much like an old film. But as the situation changes i.e. when government
officials show up and close the school down it will switch to a modern day look,
marking the huge progress. Synonymously, the camera will be static one for the
first part and the situation changes it will be dynamic. Also, much of the first part
will be shot with a vignetting wide lens to match the old look. A wide lens also
adds to the distortion of the time. After the beat it everything will be shot with a
normal lens.
The music will build up to the major beat till the government officials
arrive. The first part will add to the sad old tone. The second part will indicate a
major change and it will highlight with a music indicating relief and happiness.
The first part will have a sepia monotone color scheme. As government
officials show up and close the school down we switch to a modern day look in
full color, indicating a huge trend.
The New and the Old
A Residential School Heritage Minute
A couple of hipster Native students sit at the back of their class, not really
paying attention until their teacher calls them out. The teacher puts on a
slideshow about colonial history. The teacher slides through the photos, talking
all the while about the history of interaction between the Europeans and the
Natives. One picture in particular, of a Native family sitting around a fire, catches
the attention of the hipster boys.
We transition into the past, when the photo was taken, in the 1800’s. A
photographer watches as the village elder teaches the youth about how to stitch
together a dream weaver. An Englishman opens the curtains and enters the tent,
beckoning for the children. The elder gives each child their dream weaver and
watches as they leave.
We cut to the outside of a residential school. The photographer from
earlier is setting up a shot. The children all fuss with their western-style clothing.
Huddling together, the students pose for a picture in front of the school.
We return to the present and watch as the hipster students pack their bags
as the school bell rings, their eyes drawn to the photograph of the Natives in front
of the residential school.
It will begin with a modern day feel and look in the class. Stylized
sequences will be introduced when the teacher starts to introduce colonial
history. The photo slides will be dynamic and they will have a sense of motion to
them. It is a 2.5 D style with real life photos, which will give the impression of a
three-dimensional look indicating precious moments frozen in time. The color
scheme for the 3D slides will be in sepia monotone and much closer to an old
daguerreotype photo. When we return to the present day class, everything comes
back to normal as before.
The music will be inspirational as the teacher starts going through the
slides. A voice over track will provide inspirational speech, which motivates the
students present in the class.
Production Process
The production has been designed to incorporate stylistic elements, which
drives the narrative. Style includes infinite zooms, animations, color schemes, etc.
which helps to tell the story better. But, this also means a lot of complex green screen
shoots, compositing, visual effects, color grading and hence the budget is slightly
heavy on the editing side.
DEVELOPMENT: 4 Weeks (End Mar 2015 – End April 2015)
The pitched ideas are an outcome of the initial research combined with
several rounds of creative session. However, the ideas are still raw and they require a
thorough research to begin with. Then once the research is complete a formal script
needs to be finalized for each of the videos.
PRE-PRODUCTION: 8 Weeks (Beginning May 2015 – End June 2015)
Once the script is finalized it needs a detailed breakdown in order to make an
accurate shot list, schedule and budget. The budget provided earlier is an estimated
one and the breakdown will give us exact figures. The recruitment process for the
production also gets initiated at around that time along with other negotiations. The
rest of the month will be spent on location scouting and fine-tuning the production
requirements as per the stylistic plan. During this time we also set the final dates for
the shoot.
PRODUCTON: 2 Weeks (One week for each minute, Early July – Mid July 2015)
The actual production begins. Here we aim to complete the entire production
for the two projects i.e. two weeks for each project.
POST-PRODUCTON: 10 Weeks (Mid July – End September 2015)
Editing begins and we aim to deliver the first rough cut by end of Aug and we
hope to lock the picture by mid Sep 2015. Once the picture is locked the rest of the
month will be used to color grade, dub in French, and complete the audio treatment.
Once they are locked the projects will be broadcast ready on 1 of Oct 2015.
st
Key Creatives
Director: Daniel Riley brings more than fifteen years of
award winning creative leadership in interactive, integrated
marketing, and product design. Daniel is a one-man army
with proven skills in art direction, graphic design,
copywriting, user experience, interaction design, motion
and video production. He has directed several awardwinning commercials and counts himself a proud member of the Inuit people.
Executive Producer: Geoff Whitlock brings years of
experience in advertising and television. As the CEO of
Surround Integrated, Geoff leads a creative team in redefining
the way visual marketing is done. A pioneer of social media for
promotion, Geoff understands how to find, define, and reach
an audience in a way that feels personal.
Producer/Cinematographer: Kisholay Ray does things
with style. A background in photography and film has
helped him create stunning hyperlapses, documentaries,
and commercials, As a member of the Surround Integrated
team, Kisholay has produced many commercials for brands
including Holiday Inn, Master Mechanic, and Skylon.
Writer/Producer: Kevin Valbonesi is a Canadian writer and
filmmaker. After graduating top of his class in Film and Media
Production, Kevin is pursuing a career as a screenwriter,
journalist, and scholar. In addition to writing for and about the
cinema, Kevin's endless curiosity has led him to write many
articles and essays on world religions, history, and the fine arts.
Currently, he hosts the popular podcast Voices From The Ages.
Budget
Appendices
Surround Integrated is a digital marketing agency that is both creative and
accountable to plan and execute media programs. Surround works hard to build
long lasting relationships and to execute well thought-out programs that get
better and better as with each new project. Surround is an expert in making
commercial ads and delivers a high quality whether it is for online or broadcast.
At Surround, we bring in the new ideas to life.
Recent commercials with Master Mechanic earned close to 200,000 hits on
Youtube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJ3IoZmIdaM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5X-kUshrG8w
Holiday Inn commercial:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rY0NEvRCbUc
Surround Reel (work in progress):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMlPHIRlbko
Contacts for the project:
Kisholay Ray: 647-308-8208, [email protected]
Kevin Valbonesi: 416-347-3644, [email protected]
Address:
Surround Integrated Marketing
2285, Wyecroft Road
Oakville, ON L6L 5L7
Toll Free Number: 1-855-561-4487
Website: http://www.surrounded.ca/