Author: carl

The West Virginia Lottery won a Batchy Award in the Best Use of Humor – TV category at the 2009 North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries (NASPL).  Named after lottery pioneer Ralph Batch, the award honors excellence in advertising.  iAproductions was pleased to be a partner on this project.

The concept, “The Nanny”, was developed by West Virginia Lottery agency Charles Ryan Associates.  Directed by iAproductions Bill Hogan, the spot features a weary housewife, whose daydream of winning the lottery transports her to a place of tranquility, complete with an English nanny, only to  be brought back to reality by her misbehaving children.

Since Charles Ryan Associates became the agency of record for the West Virginia Lottery, iAproductions has produced the majority of the TV work that CRA has created for the Lottery.

Just last week the West Virginia Lottery and Charles Ryan Associates took top honors for the Lottery’s “What’s Your Dream” campaign and for a 30-second TV spot that, along with the five other spots, was produced by iAproductions and directed by IA’s creative director Bill Hogan. Both the campaign and the spot garnered top awards, the Silver Addy.

Six Commercials Completed for the West Virginia Lottery

iAproductions, a subsidiary of Image Associates, LLC, recently provided comprehensive high-definition production services to Charles Ryan Associates for a new series of “What’s Your Dream?” commercials for the West Virginia Lottery. The concept was created by Charles Ryan Associates and the production bid received by iAproductions on September 22nd. The job entailed producing six commercials. An unusually short deadline was presented to our staff, and the brainstorming began immediately. The pre-production process for a shoot of this magnitude generally takes at least one month, but within 13 days the production was in full swing.

I.A Productions utilized two Sony Cinealta HD cameras during the shoot. These state-of-the-art cameras are the industry standard for high-definition images and they were exactly what Charles Ryan Associates requested. One of the most dynamic visuals was created when our camera was mounted to a red Chevrolet Corvette. The scene called for fluid movements while the car was being driven at high speeds around sharp curves. Our professional crew was able to secure this shot and move on to the next scene without breaking pace.
Our talented art department envisioned multiple locations and sets for the production. For one spot, our crew constructed a haute-couture dressing room that was designed and furnished with items chosen by Image Associates’ award-winning Art Director Sharon Harms and approved by Steve Grey, Charles Ryan Associates’ vice president/creative director. The dressing room scene required the cameras to be mounted on our jib to create a surreal effect. Lighting effects combined with unique camera angles and movements created just the look that the concept team at Charles Ryan Associates had envisioned.

During the middle of the shooting week, the weather did not cooperate, and producer Dianna Ballard had to make last-minute changes and preparations to overcome an intense rain storm. A jib was required in an outdoor setting, but ultimately Ballard was left with no choice but to reschedule the crew and make special arrangements for the jib operator to return to Charleston the following day to secure the specialized shot. The crew relocated to the Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences and began work on a separate spot as a result of the rain. Ballard arranged together all the missing components such as talent and location details, and without delay the production continued. This allowed all parties involved to stay on schedule.

The five-day shoot included stops in eight locations around the Charleston metro area. The shoot was comprised of 26 mainly local professionals. A total of 25 regional actors were hired and costumed in clothing and props all purchased within the local Charleston area. Space Junk Media was contracted to assist Director Bill Hogan in all areas of special effects, and Hogan was involved with the post-production editing and special effects throughout the process.

In the end, Charles Ryan Associates was quite pleased with the creative process and the final product. The West Virginia Lottery commented on how smooth the production process went in addition to the professionalism and timeliness of the I.A. staff and crew. According to Director Bill Hogan, what should have taken at least one month of pre-production planning only took the iAproductions’ team two weeks to complete. By the end of the following week, the product was out the door!

Image Associates, LLC arrived at Snowshoe Mountain on November 26th, 2007 with a crew of 75 local professionals to shoot the fifth in the series of “Games People Play” TV spots for Charles Ryan Associates client, the West Virginia Lottery. Over the last year and a half, iAproductions has produced four muli-spot sets for Charles Ryan Associates and the West Virginia Lottery with creative concepts built around Joe South’s 1970s hit “The Games People Play.”

The shoot required weeks of pre-production planning, a crew of 40 and a cast of 35. The weather played a major role in the production. With temperatures ranging from 34 degrees to 12 degrees fahrenheit, producer Dianna Ballard went through enormous efforts to make and keep track of real snow on the slopes and in the remote locations used in the production. High winds and steep inclines made every setup difficult and taxed the crew and its equipment to the max. With the extreme terrain and temperatures, safety was of great concern in the potentially dangerous environment. Snowmobiles were used to transport the equipment and crew to the slopes safely.

Two Sony HDW-F900 Cinealta high-definition cameras were used to capture the action during the intensive production. Steadicam mounts, a 30 foot jib and cameras mounted on snow mobiles yielded many high energy shots. The wind and snow only added to the action.

“This is where experience counts,” said Image Associates managing member Bill Hogan from beneath layer upon layer of protective clothing. “With the high winds, ice and snow this is not the place to teach the basics.”

iAproductions’ experienced crew braved the elements, the steep terrain and a tight production schedule to complete the fifth installment of the West Virginia Lottery’s “Game People Play” commercial series. The shoot began November 26th and the set was wrapped on November 30th, although over a month’s worth of preparation went into the week-long shoot. The shoot required long 10-12 hour days and the treacherous footing and biting cold made the days seem even longer, but as many crew members were jokingly saying, “this business if for the passionate, not the meek.”

iAproductions was selected to produce the West Virginia Lottery’s 20th Anniversary Game Show.

The hour-long show was hosted by veteran television game host Bob Eubanks and taped before a studio audience in the West Virginia Cultural Center theater. Twenty contestants were introduced by the host and were asked to select letters on giant game boards to determine whether they would move to the next round.

Bill Hogan not only directed the show but also was responsible for set design, lighting and sound and scripted the made-for-television event. The production was pre-taped and televised to a statewide audience in December 2006.

The contestants were selected to participate in the 30-minute game show as a result of a random drawing of monthly winners from the 20th Anniversary second chance drawing that was held on November 20..

Nearly $3 million in prizes were awarded during the show. The show finished with Gladys K. Shilling of Charleston winning the $2 million grand prize drawing.

iAproductions produced four new 30-second television commercials for Massey Energy that began airing statewide in early August.

Bill Hogan wrote the scripts, directed the action and completed post-production in the new Image Associates Final Cut Pro HD editing suite.

Utilizing a Sony Cinealta High Definition camera, the television commercials highlighted the economic contributions made by West Virginia’s largest coal producer and featured a crew of 12.

While most of the shoot occurred above ground, one of the most dramatic visuals occurred when the iAproductions’ crew went underground to shoot Massey Energy miners boarding a man-trip.

IA Production crewmembers were required to undergo specific mine safety training before being allowed to enter the deep mine.

iAproductions provided comprehensive production services to Charles Ryan Associates for the latest series of Games People Play television commercials shot for the West Virginia Lottery.

The five-day shoot included stops in 10 separate locations in Huntington, Charleston and Morgantown. Along with the human cast, IA brought in California-based animal actors who provided 2 trained dogs. One dog appeared in a hayride scene while the other was used in a camping scene.

Working with CRA creatives, Sharon Harms designed the production that included 10 different sets and a myriad of detailed props. Harms set the look for a fall hayride shot, Marshall and WVU tailgate parties, a classic barbershop, a moonlit campsite and turned a hot August day at the Capitol Market into a cool fall day.

With assistance from Parker Webb and Britain Walker, Harms also created several special effects including a birthday gift box with a life of its own and a kinetic hay bale that sprang to life on cue and propelled a bouncing lottery ball down a country road.

iAproductions simultaneously utilized a pair of Sony Cinealta High Definition cameras for the shoot. One camera was mounted on a jib to capture aerial views and fluid-motion shots.

iAproductions provided CRA with turnkey production management, creative art direction, extensive location scouting, talent coordination, a 30-person professional crew, IA’s fully equipped grip truck and complex logistical management for 10 locations around the state.