Chicago Video Production

Labor Day weekend is upon us and people are preparing to travel. Choosing a destination can be both a breeze and a challenge. While some travelers know they’re visiting Topeka to keep their long-distance relationship alive, others just want to get away. With so many places to choose from, travel agencies and tourism bureaus must be assertive while engaging travelers.

Since Video One is located in Chicago, we encourage tourists to visit our lovely and windy city. After some rigorous YouTube research, the best video we found came from none other than the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau (made with the help of Insider Perks).

The video is short, beautiful, and poetic. It uses some of Chicago’s best imagery, coupled with excellent narration that not only makes Chicago seem exciting, it’s uplifting to those from Chicago. Professional and homemade travel videos about Chicago are a dime a dozen, but this one truly stands out. It captures all the intensity of the city, and delivers in a video that is charming and peaceful.

The Insider Perks website has another video about Chicago. This video is a bit longer, but has higher production values. It uses the same combination of beautiful imagery and inspirational narration, but features well-known actors speaking to the viewer. Together, these are the essential tourist videos for Chicago. If these don’t draw people to the city, nothing will.

For creating beautiful tourist videos that make me proud to be from Chicago, and creating movies that can capture potential tourists as soon as they decide to travel,  Insider Perks and the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau have earned this week’s Video Professionals Award.

Anyone who has been following the trials and tribulations of the journalism industry is aware that many newspapers and magazines are having trouble competing with the Internet. But it seems that Craine’s Chicago Business isn’t even trying to compete with the Internet. Rather, it is embracing the power of the web to deliver news content in a rich media format.

In addition to the typical business news that is covered in Crain’s Chicago, their website has a video series that looks and feels like a nightly news program. Although the videos aren’t as long or detailed as television news, new videos are produced every weekday, they are always available online, and they never exceed 5 minutes.

These videos allow Crain’s to deliver their branded news content in an easy-to-consume format that anyone with Internet has access to. Although their news program doesn’t advertise the magazine, the video established a level of trust among devoted viewers. This type of trust and familiarity with a publication is what newspaper have traditionally relied on to enhance readership. Otherwise, no one would accept their articles as fact.

Tragically, these great videos are hidden behind some pretty unappealing thumbnails. Seriously Crain’s, I’m looking right at you now. I bet if you fixed those thumbnails, changing it from the woman in front of a blue screen to something that reflects how sophisticated your videos are, your click rates will jump up in the first week. Seriously, try it and see what happens. Seriously. Seriously…

Thumbnail or not, Crain’s not only has a good reputation in the realm of journalism, these videos will earn them a positive reputation in the ream of online content. For creating a regularly-updated news program that delves into important issues in news and business, and doing it with free online videos, Crain’s Chicago Business earned this week’s Video Professionals Award.

Well this is just unheard of! This week, we were so impressed with two of Chicago’s museums, that we are awarding both of them the Video Professionals Award.

The Museum of Broadcast Communications has a vast collection of television shows, past and present. It’s no surprise that they would have clips and samples on their website, but it’s how they use video that is truly impressive. We’re not sure how the museum website operates, but we are assuming that an incredibly cultured, well-researched, and nerdy elf must be keeping a calendar of celebrity birthdays and notable television milestones.

For instance, on David Duchovny’s 50th birthday, the website posted an episode of the X-Files. On the anniversary of Richard Nixon’s resignation, the museum posted his resignation speech. We don’t care how they’re doing it, we’re just glad that their site is incredible. What was once the ugly step-child of the New York Museum of Television and Radio, is now a staple of museum/new media integration.

But lest we not forget the Museum of Contemporary Art. The website is as colorful and multi-faceted as a piece of modern art. And the first thing visitors to the site see is… A VIDEO! Oh but not just one video. The video changes whenever the page reloads, bringing up a different artist interview every time. It’s also nice that one of the videos is with the very cute Kristie Lippire.

In today’s digital world, the museum experience no longer begins when a tourist goes through the door, it’s when people visit the museum’s website. Here are two museum sites that outshine all the others in the city. Thank you for the engaging sneak peak into what is certainly a fascinating and educational experience. We hope you enjoy your blogosphere fame.

Deciding this week’s video professionals award was easy. Almost too easy…

Let this be a lesson to every sandwich company, social brand, and advertiser out there. Fat is the future! Any video that features and speaks to those of us who love food, meat, dancing, and short-shorts is an automatic winner.

There’s something magical about the new Quiznos ad. Perhaps it’s the dingy, retro basement and throwaway techno music. Or maybe it’s the way the camera lingers on that black dancer just long enough for him to blink three times and while we fall in love. Either way, Quiznos is no longer the worst sandwich place in America (sorry Arby’s…).

While Subway is touting weight loss by sending out Jared with a pair of saggy pants, Quiznos has put together one of the funniest and strangest commercials of 2010. For that, they have earned this week’s Video Professionals Award and a free tour of our state-of-the-art production facility.