One of my favorite work projects in awhile is the “Save Our City” promotion for 105.7 the Point and Shapiro Metal Supply. I’d been looking for a creative project for our video team that would break away a bit from the usual documentary style of our productions.

Shapiro didn’t lend itself easily to typical promo ideas outside of your basic radio spots. What can you do to make a metal supply yard exciting for a male 18-34 demographic?

Being a lifelong fan of sci-fi and cartoons, the first thing that came to mind was the construction of a giant robot, Asian b-movie style. And why would you need a giant robot? Why, to stave off the attack of a giant monster!

I proposed a pretty crazy promotion, led by an in-house created video (see YouTube video above) shot to look like an amalgam of 50′s sci-fi noir and Sin City style green-screening. The client loved the idea – turns out they have a nice niche business selling scrap and parts to guys building Battle Bots. There was a thematic fit, and we were off and rolling.

The video was shot in a make-shift studio with green screen fabric drops. Documentary portion was shot on location. Filmed on DV tape in 1080i HD, edited in Final Cut Pro. Key Art backgrounds designed in Photoshop.

Special thanks to my co-conspirator Nathan, who really busted his hindquarters on the editing and learning the chroma-key and desaturation techniques on the fly for this project.

• Written, Designed and Directed by Adron Buske (me)
• Videography, Motion Graphics and Editing by Nathan Cowen
• Narrators: Ed Brown and Drew Patterson
• Costumes and Props courtesy of Jason Heeren and Lisa Foiles
• Featuring: Sammy Caputa, Ashley Elzinga, Katie Sorensen, Nathan Cowen, Patrick and myself

Click here for the promotion page on the 105.7 the Point’s website.

Hustler Hollywood Holiday Gift Guide 2009

Last week, under a serious short-term deadline, I produced another digital catalog for St. Louis retail store Hustler Hollywood, in conjunction with a promotion on 105.7 the Point. You can view the Flash catalog here (pretty SFW, unless your workplace is really prudish).

This was definitely a “so many irons” project – I contacted models, arranged the shoot, did all the photography, performed all post-production on the photos, designed the catalog and set up the Flash interface.

Because of the aggressive schedule from client sign-off to launch deadline, I wasn’t able to give this one the high-gloss look on the models that I used in earlier digi-catalogs (Holiday 2008, Valentine’s 2009). Instead, I went for a more natural feel, closer to some of the stuff I’ve seen in magazines like Nylon. The local HH store manager really wanted the models in this catalog to have a girl-next-door approachable vibe, as opposed to the adult stars that usually populate their print catalogs. I think we pulled that off.

The paneled backgrounds were inspired by the DVD box set packaging for Batman: The Animated Series.

The Point models here are Meagan Adamo, Sheila Shafie and Danielle Stewart. They were all a lot of fun to work with and very accommodating given the short notice.

EcoLifeSTL.com is a Green-lifestyle portal focused on promoting sustainability and environmental awareness in the St. Louis community. Our aim is to bring the green-lifestyle message to both the average consumer – new to eco commitment and wanting to learn, and to aid and connect those actively pursuing a sustainable lifestyle. As a gathering place for green-minded individuals, companies and organizations, we facilitate connection, education and cooperation in St. Louis’ eco-lifestyle.

EcoLife is Emmis St. Louis’ first truly web-only brand (the general focus usually being radio stations and their online brand-extensions). The Emmis team perceived that while the Green movement is alive in the StL, and there are many small sites addressing various sustainable businesses and topics, there wasn’t a hub – a natural starting place for the St. Louisan looking to go Green. So that’s what we set out to create.

From conception to site launch was a scant couple of months. The aggressive schedule and nature of the product (content-oriented as opposed to promotion-oriented, as our radio station websites are) made EcoLifeSTL a challenge. However, I’m really proud of the way the site came together. As a hands-on creative director, I designed all visual elements of the brand – logo, color scheme, website design and all promotional materials.

My mission was to create a logo and website that communicated a friendly, organic tone, and that differentiated itself from other green-related brands. So many of the non-regional sites devoted to eco-matters feel cold, cookie-cutter or corporate – the antithesis of what our brand needed to convey.

Did it work? Our clients and visitors seem to think so. But what about you?  EcoLifeSTL.com

A little exposition: I launched my first personalized website sometime back around 2003. That original site was focused on my music projects. I’d recently “gone solo” as a singer/songwriter/acoustic guitar slinging performer, playing coffee shops, bars, charity events and the like around the St. Louis area. After awhile, music slid from my first priority project to somewhere around #5, so I pulled down that site and began work on a new one devoted to a broader mix of my activities.

And… it all sat dormant for a looong time. The demands of my career and side projects hindered my web project. I would work on the site in bursts of downtime, often getting whole designs completed and coded, only to be sidetracked at length before content-population. I’d return to the site months later, find myself dissatisfied with the previous effort, and start all over again. As a professional website designer and maintainer, I’d try to challenge myself and add to my skill set with every project. Eager to exercise my new tricks, I’d attack my site design from a fresh perspective, just to get bogged down again and renew the cycle.

The biggest stumbling block in the creation of my site was the need to serve several very different pursuits. I struggled to come up with a look and feel that suited a designer, a musician, a writer, a comic book creator, a photographer. The desire to be “everything to everyone” drove me a little crazy. I needed something I could update quickly and easily – last thing I needed was a high maintenance time-suck. It was time for a new approach.

So here it is, late in 2009. I’ve decided to launch this fairly simple, WordPress powered website. I first tried WordPress with a client site for Emmis that had to be launched only 30 hours after the design was finally approved. (Not even business hours, total real-time hours!) Impressed at the ease of use and expandability in the WordPress system, I decided that perhaps it was time to let a blogging database take some of the heavy lifting off my shoulders. I put together this basic design and skinned it over Michael Hutagalung’s attractive and very functional Arthemia theme.

I have a plan for the creation of more content-specific page designs for my various projects, but rather than let my digital brand remain stagnant while they are under development, this version of AdronBuske.com will hold the line for the foreseeable future. I’ll be making tweaks and changes and adjustments as we go along, so please pardon the growing pains.

I appreciate you dropping by, and having enough interest to spend a little time exploring my creative pursuits. Please leave your comments, questions and suggestions in the comments – I’d love to hear from you.

- Adron