Tennessee Aquarium “Look Deeper” TV Commercial
“Look Deeper” is a cinematic TV commercial with a dash of quirky. It was directed by Leif Ramsey for the Tennessee Aquarium. The spot was produced by Pathfinder Films, a Tennessee-based production company.
TV COMMERCIAL DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
The Ask
Find all the “little wows” along the way.
The Solve
A cinematic TV commercial with a dash of quirky.
Leif’s Director Statement
My goal was to create authentic moments that had a storybook finish. The brand wanted to feature the unexpected creatures and moments, and how educators come alongside visitors to enhance the wow moments.
I felt that the character reactions and filming from a unique camera perspective was key:
For lensing, we used a probe lens to get closer to small animals and make them feel more important — poison dart frogs, turtles, butterflies. The key character reverse that plunges us into the world, was shot fish-eye to exaggerate the scale of the visitors.
Character blocking and camera movement should always work to draw us in. For the opening scene with the aquarium’s educator, I borrowed the blocking from a scene in Dead Poets Society where the boys were all gathered around Robin Williams.
I wanted the visitors to feel as unique as the animals, part of that was casting the right faces, the other part was brought to life through the fantastic eye of our wardrobe lead, Haven Howell.
CREDITS
Director: Leif Ramsey
EP: Lucky Ramsey
Line Producer: Derek Peters
Key PA: Luke Chandler
DoP: Chris Stiles
1AC: Dillan Forsey
2AC: Garrett Henderson-Black
Gaffer: David George
Key Grip: Glenn Stegall
Grip: Rhyan Simmons
Wardrobe: Haven Howell
Editor: Edy Recendez
Sound Mixing: Daniel Cooper
Colorist: Chris Stiles
Kentucky Tourism “Fireside Fortune” Branded Content Series
A healthcare advertising campaign directed by Leif Ramsey for AdventHealth. EVERY BEAT features the cardiologists and their teams that provide Northwest Georgia’s best cardiac care. Locations include AdventHealth hospitals in Rome and Calhoun. The spots were produced by Tennessee production company Pathfinder Films.
BRANDED CONTENT SERIES DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
The Ask
Reveal Kentucky as the ultimate destination for a family roadtrip.
The Solve
This adventure takes a Chicago family to every corner of the state, with the family members trying activities unlike anything they’ve experienced before. The catch? The roadtrip itinerary is a secret - each adventure is a surprise! Experiences are revealed to the family during a “Fireside Fortune” nightly.
Watch the Series on YouTube
Director’s Statement
My goal for the series was to make it a hybrid between reality TV and documentary. The adventures had to be a surprise, the family must be out of their comfort zones, and I wanted to know their honest feedback about their experiences.
“I’m super proud of how it all came together.”
Behind the Scenes
We worked in collaboration with Miles Partnership on the 12-day production, traveling throughout the State of Kentucky. The Simmons family were truly stars. After two weeks on the road they still had a sense of humor and were a joy to work with every day. The crew roadtripped alongside our family, and our hero camera truck was DP David George’s schoolie conversion bus “Blue Bird.”
AdventHealth “Every Beat” Spots
A healthcare advertising campaign directed by Leif Ramsey for AdventHealth. EVERY BEAT features the cardiologists and their teams that provide Northwest Georgia’s best cardiac care. Locations include AdventHealth hospitals in Rome and Calhoun. The spots were produced by Tennessee production company Pathfinder Films.
HEALTHCARE CAMPAIGN DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
The Ask
Create an ad campaign that connects heart doctors with patients in Northwest Georgia.
The Solve
We took a page from The Documentary Filmmaker’s Guide to Good Storytelling (a fictional book that should be written) and dug in deep with the real people who save lives. We created two different ads one for each geographic market.
Every Beat :30
“Fully invested in the story. Made our team of providers shine.”
— Rika, Marketing Manager
Behind the Scenes
The people we met were some of the nicest folks you could imagine — if you needed a place to stay, they’d put you up for the night. They were also incredibly good at their job. One of the doctors was a first in the country to perform certain cardiac procedures.
Sometimes low tech solutions turn out to be the most awesome…CHAIR DOLLY for the win!
PF Wins Three Telly Awards
Pathfinder Films wins three Telly Awards. Award-winning ads include projects for Ford, Bang & Olufsen, Tennessee Aquarium, and Twin Lakes Fiber. The spots were directed by Leif Ramsey, and DoP’d by Chris Stiles and Bryan Fowler.
“The Telly Awards annually showcases the best work created within television and across video, for all screens…. [It] receives over 12,000 entries from all 50 States.”
Gold Winner: Ford + B&O “Sounds of Adventure”
The open road has never sounded so good! Directed by Leif Ramsey and captured by Chris Stiles, the ad won a national Gold Telly Award for Cinematography.
Collaborating with Ford, B&O, Miles Partnership and DMO Chattanooga Tourism Co. the commercial was a unique audio-first experience that brought the sounds of adventure to life.
Silver Winner: Tennessee Aquarium “Endless Adventures”
Like the opening sequence of an epic IMAX movie we fly across a great space revealing a world of water and striking architecture. This grand, sweeping tourism commercial won a Silver Telly in Travel / Tourism for the Tennessee Aquarium. It was directed by Leif Ramsey, written by Steven Preisman and captured by Chris Stiles.
Silver Winner: Twin Lakes Fiber “Sorry for Your Internet”
Killing lag with kindness, that’s what fiber internet providers do in the South. Ready? And…cue death joke! “Sorry for Your Internet” is comedy dialog ad for Twin Lakes, a 10-gig rural internet provider. It won a Silver Telly for Regional TV and was directed by Leif Ramsey, written by Steven Preisman and captured by Bryan Fowler.
CORT Events “Blank Slate”
A six-ad campaign directed by Leif Ramsey. The actors looked at me in disbelief. "Are you sure?" I was sure. Because with timelapse the timing is critical. The commercials were filmed in studio in Georgia for CORT Events. The production was a collaboration with Atlanta agency Hothouse and Tennessee production company Pathfinder Films.
SIX-AD CAMPAIGN DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
The actors looked at me in disbelief: “You want us to do…what? Are you sure?“ I was sure. Because I knew that with timelapse the timing is critical.
The Ask
Build out an event from nothing in timelapse, then seamlessly break into real time for a human moment (an introduction, the end of speech, a cheers, a selfie), return to timelapse to tear the event down.
The Solve
“Good! Hold it. Hold it. Hold it.” — the handshake seemed to last forever — “Seven-one-thousand. Eight-one-thousand. Nine-one-thousand.” A key moment might end up an unrecognizable smudge in the edit — which is why I was asking the talent to do something that felt really awkward. Awkward on set looked great in the final edit.
Blank Slate - Meeting :15
Blank Slate - Gala :15
“Happy client. The shots look great. Excited to get into the edit.”
On set dozens of tweaks happen before every shot: “Rotate that chair leg 5˚ toward me. The other way. Now 1 inch to the left. Perfect!”
The Ask
Choreograph and capture the perfect build-up and teardown of an event.
The Solve
We built each set with all eyes adjusting the elements for camera. But we only rolled cameras on the teardown. That way the team could remove each piece in just the right order, like a well-oiled machine. Then the footage was reversed in post, making it look like they were building the set with the precision of a marching band.
Blank Slate - Conference :15
Blank Slate - Celebration :15
Ford Ad “Sounds of Adventure” Wins ADDY Gold and Judge’s Choice
ADS DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY WIN AWARDS
Ford + B&O “Sounds of Adventure”
The open road has never sounded so good! Directed by Leif Ramsey and captured by Chris Stiles, the ad won a 2023 Gold ADDY and Judge’s Choice for Cinematography. It also received a Silver ADDY for Sound Design. Daniel Cooper was the sound designer on the ad.
Collaborating with Ford, B&O, Miles Partnership and DMO Chattanooga Tourism Co. the commercial was a unique audio-first experience that brought the sounds of adventure to life.
Text Request “The Way Better Way”
"Sick of customers not answering your phone calls? We get it!" Text Request is the way better way to reach your customers.
The witty, dialog-driven commercial won a Silver ADDY in Internet Commercials. It was directed by Leif Ramsey, written by Steven Preisman and captured by Chris Stiles.
“Endless Adventures” TV30 Tennessee Aquarium
BROADCAST CAMPAIGN DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
Like the opening of an epic film — we fly across a great space slowly rotating in a world of water and grand architecture. At each stop a different group of people stand silhouetted against the scene reacting to what they see. "Explore a world of endless adventures at the Tennessee Aquarium."
”Endless Adventures” is a broadcast TV campaign produced for the Tennessee Aquarium, a popular family tourism destination.
Endless Adventures TV30
Endless Adventures TV15
Endless Adventures :10
Director’s Treatment
BY LEIF RAMSEY
“These spots are dynamite.”
“A Little Space for Everyone” Smart Furniture
"A Little Space for Everyone" is a connected TV campaign directed by Leif Ramsey for Smart Furniture, an online retailer of high-end home and office furniture.
CONNECTED TV ADS DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
Bing-bong! Furniture boxes pop up around an empty room. With a final pop the home office is fully furnished. There’s a comfy sofa and end table setup, along with a desk with all the bells and whistles.
"A Little Space for Everyone" is a connected TV campaign produced for Smart Furniture, an online retailer of high-end home and office furniture.
In the spot, the furniture adapts as each member of the family using the same home office in a different way.
A Little Space for Everyone :30
A Little Space for Everyone :15
“Sue Your Baby” for Heal at Home Moms
SLIGHTLY OUTRAGEOUS INTERNET ADS DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
New Moms: It might feel like your body has just been assaulted by a tiny human. Things aren’t working the way they used to. Somebody should pay for this mischief....
"Sue You Baby" is the slightly outrageous idea behind an internet ad that we produced for Heal at Home Moms. The program was created by a doctor of physical therapy, Jena Beise, and its mission is to put moms back in control of their bodies. So moms: "don't sue your baby, heal your body!"
Leif Ramsey directed the commercials. The concept and production for the spots was a collaboration with The Company Lab (CO.LAB), The Sasha Group, Humanaut.
Sue Your Baby :60
Sue Your Baby :15s
“The Curious Map” for the Tennessee Aquarium
A WES ANDERSON INSPIRED TV SPOT DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
A child’s hand smoothes a Wes-Anderson-style world map. Another child’s hand reaches in and taps on a continent: Antarctica. Eyes raise with a question? Eyes respond with a nod. Narrator: "Explore the world in one amazing place, at the Tennessee Aquarium."
We produced a hero TV30 spot for broadcast and social, and :15s and :10s cutdowns. Just for fun, there’s a director’s cut :60 that gives the commercial a full Wes Anderson treatment, featuring the map and characters.
Leif Ramsey directed the commercials. The production for the spots was a collaboration with the marketing team at the Tennessee Aquarium.
The Curious Map :30
The Curious Map :15
The Curious Map :60
GET BEHIND THE SCENES
Did you know that otters are treat motivated? They’ll do anything for a carrot. Trust us, they were shameless in their frolicking. You can browse the director’s treatment and see behind-the-scenes photos from production here.
CINEMATIC MOMENTS
To bring the director’s treatment to life the DP, Chris Stiles, leaned in with the perfect marriage of pixels and glass. The spot was filmed on IMAX spec’d Sony VENICE with anamorphic lenses.
#VisitChatt for Chattanooga Tourism
DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
Chattanooga’s tourism industry didn’t take 2020 lying down. They put out the Bat Signal and said, all you “hair-on-fire Risk Takers” and “art-loving Experience Collectors,” it’s time to #visitchatt.
We produced two sets of creative: “Risk Taker” and “Connoisseur.” :30s ads were the hero content for the campaign , and :15s and :06s cutdowns used for preroll ads and social.
Leif Ramsey directed the commercials. The production for the spots was a collaboration with tourism specialists at the Miles Partnership.
Risk Taker :30
Risk Taker :15
RISK TAKER: FEATURED LOCATIONS
“Risk Taker” shows off some classic adventure locations in Chattanooga:
The Block & High Point Climbing Gym, is a massive outdoor climbing wall in the heart of downtown and only a 5-minute walk to the Tennessee River.
River surfing, SUPs, kayaks, Bass boats (and really almost any water sport) thrive on the river. Adventure Sports Innovation’s team is featured in the river surfing shots.
Lookout Mountain Flight Park runs amazing flight experiences in the flight park off the west side of Lookout Mountain.
Other featured locations include: the Incline Railway in St. Elmo; Point Park, an overlook and historic Civil War battlefield; Gate 11 Distillery in the Chattanooga Choo Choo.
Connoisseur :30
Connoisseur :15
CONNOISSEUR: FEATURED LOCATIONS
“Connoisseur” is for art lovers, craft curators, and people who love the hand-crafted. This list should have been three times this long! But you can only fit so much into a 30-second commercial.
Featured stops include:
Dr Teal’s Social Campaign
DIRECTED BY LEIF RAMSEY
If you walk into your local Target or Walmart, you’ll find the beckoning blue & white label of Dr Teal’s® Epsom salts. And for good reason — a soak with Dr Teal’s® soothes tired muscles and uplifts the mind.
Collaborating with The Sasha Group, we had the opportunity to produce Dr Teal’s® 2020 social campaign. Leif Ramsey directed the ads. The project focused on bite-sized videos tailored for social platforms, with :06 cuts being the hero content produced for the campaign. The production included both stills and video; and was filmed on location in Tennessee. Ursula Wiedmann Models, based in Atlanta, provided talent.
Fun fact: We shot on the same lensing that was used by Roger Deakins for the movie “1917” — ARRI Signature Primes — creating a light, airy look with smooth skin tones that enhance the vibe of elevated health & beauty content.
:15 Spots
:06 Spots
The Making Of
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither is a commercial. There’s director’s treatments, casting, shot lists, location scouting, lighting, and set design. Now for the fun part—filming!
Behind-the-scenes photography provided by the talented and kind Reed Schick.
“Ice Cream Tango” Behind the Scenes
Hard to believe it's already September 1 and that summer is almost over.
By way of catching up — first, let's talk gravity-defining-ice-cream. It's real. It exists. Yep! Perfect, delicious ice cream that rotates slowly for hours without melting.
And thanks to some amazing intel from a photographer friend on LinkedIn, we made some studio-perfect-ice-cream and shot a dancing commercial "Ice Cream Tango." For now, you'll have to live with a BTS video (more eye candy from that project soon.)
Also, the world of lighting on film sets has completely changed. Five years ago, it would have taken an army of grips to pull off the live lighting cues that we were able to do on set with the push of a button on a laptop.
ATTENTION GAFFERS! I'm pretty sure you need to start learning CSS and Javascript (forgive my complete ignorance about coding) because programming lighting cues is where the industry is going.
Oh, and finally — yes, you can do productions safely during COVID. There's some things that are cumbersome, but you can be safe. We've done several shoots now without incident.
Honda Powersports SxS Commercials
At Southern Honda Powersports every day is Demo Day.
Literally, their vibe is like you’ve walked into your buddy’s garage. There’s keys in every ignition and gas in every tank.
We filmed two really fun commercials for the dealership (BTW they’re the largest Honda powersports dealership in the U.S.) Both spots are for Honda’s newest side-by-side offerings.
The first “My Turn” sends a mother and son combo out on the track for some thrills in a Honda Pioneer 700. Rather than specific product or a sales event, the creative focuses on the dealership’s relationship with customers.
Naturally that means taking a local celebrity out and scaring the pee out of him, right?
The Honda Talon 1000R spot featured local celebrity Peter Fuller, coach of the Chattanooga Football Club. "Your Turn" was slated to premiere at the season-opening game for the CFC (it's soccer, not the other football). But in an effort to keep everyone safe from the coronavirus, the game was cancelled, and the commercials were released digitally.
Make Together: Our 2020 Reel
Let there be new adventures.
Let creativity bloom.
Let there be more meaningful moments.
Let us make together.
It is good.
Let there be new adventures.
Let creativity bloom.
Let there be more meaningful moments.
Let us make together.
It is good.
U.S. Navy Branded Content: Submarines
Deep in the water where the fish hang out lives a giant metal beast that might be one of the scariest military deterrents in existence, the Nuclear Ballistic Missile Submarine (SSBN). In the Navy, it is affectionately known as a “Boomer.”
Deep in the water where the fish hang out lives a giant metal beast that might be one of the scariest military deterrents in existence, the Nuclear Ballistic Missile Submarine (SSBN). In the Navy, it is affectionately known as a “Boomer.”
Being a submariner is not for everyone. As one sailor put it, “We don’t see the sun much. But I never have to worry about the weather— it’s always 72˚F and florescent.”
For a visitor, navigating the interior of an SSBN is surreal. On three levels of the boat are corridors lined with missile tubes that feel as big as grain silos, and on the other side of each tube wall a nuclear missile might be resting.
There’s no behind-the-scenes photos to prove we where there. Cell phones and personal cameras are a no-no in this highly sensitive environment.
Submariners are a tight-knit community, but friendly. The sailors we talked to were more than happy to explain their work to our wide-eyed and curious film crew.
“Call of the Wild” Motorcycle Short Film
The Honda Pioneer side-by-side chattered around the hairpin corner, struggling to grip the road. $100,000 of camera equipment was swinging off the back. Five feet away — in the lane for on-coming traffic — a 998cc black cafe-style Honda CB1000R downshifted once, twice, and three times to keep the RPMs pegged on the inside of the hairpin.
The Honda Pioneer side-by-side chattered around the hairpin corner, struggling to grip the road. $100,000 of camera equipment was swinging off the back. Five feet away — in the lane for on-coming traffic — a 998cc black cafe-style Honda CB1000R downshifted once, twice, and three times to keep the RPMs pegged on the inside of the hairpin.
“Bad news. But don’t worry, no one is hurt….”
Philippe, the driver of the Pioneer called his boss, “Hey Casey, bad news. Don’t worry no one is hurt. (Pause) Yeah. Mmm-hm. I kissed the guardrail. (Pause) The Pioneer is in pretty bad shape...”
The project started with a handshake agreement and a lot of goodwill. The partners were Godspeed Co, an apparel company; Southern Honda Powersports, the largest Honda powersports dealer in the U.S.; and Pathfinder Films, a commercial production company.
“On a cycle the frame is gone. You’re completely in contact with it all.”
The story was inspired by a quote from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: “On a cycle the frame is gone. You’re completely in contact with it all. You’re in the scene, not just watching it anymore, and the sense of presence is overwhelming.”
Watch the film.
The bike in SHP’s fleet that fit the ethos of the script was a CB1000R, Honda’s 2019 ode to a sport café-racer. It’s powered by a 143 horsepower, 4-cylinder, that lays down 76 pound-feet of torque and has a top speed of 141mph. There’s a tradeoff for all that power, at 467 pounds wet, the CBR has some mass. That didn’t stop Kyle, our stunt rider, from burning out and riding wheelies for camera.
Riding in the South is a very different experience…than traveling through the desert
Production for the 90-second film ran for three days. The script was written to capture the feel of the South — the patina of the mom & pop gas stations, the intense green of the deciduous forests in the summer, the drone of cicadas, and the twists and turns of the country roads. Riding in the South is a very different experience than traveling through the desert landscapes of the Southwest or forests of Western Canada.
Southern Honda Powersports supplied the bike, the side-by-side and drivers. The side-by-side made for a great camera vehicle, it had excellent mount points for building out a speed rail frame, allowing for forward and rear mounting positions for the camera. The camera was an ARRI with vintage Kowa anamorphic lenses stabilized on a gimbal rig. (Anamorphic lenses are what gives the horizontal light streaks from lens flares.) Everything was controlled remotely from the back seat with a joystick.
Everything was controlled remotely with a joystick
After a pause that must have felt like an eternity to his boss, Philippe fessed up.
Sweat rolled down cheeks in the 90-degree weather. After a pause that must have felt like an eternity to his boss, Philippe fessed up. The Pioneer was fine. No accident had happened. The side-by-side probably needed a new set of tires after a dozen passes in the hairpin, but we had safely filmed some very cool shots.
Read the Making of Call of the Wild, a photo story.
U.S. Navy Branded Content: Aviation
One of the coolest production trips of our year was riding on board the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) for a week. We walked on in San Diego and flew off in Alaska.
One of the coolest production trips of our year was riding on board the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) for a week. We walked on in San Diego and flew off in Alaska.
The first half of the trip was focused on flight operations. Flight ops are loud, both on deck and throughout the ship. We found a quiet place in the ship’s museum to film interviews. Behind the subjects hung a flag that had hung in Teddy Roosevelt’s Oval Office, and the ship’s company is affectionately known as the “Rough Riders.”
On deck we discovered that allergies to JP5 jet exhaust are a real thing. But despite watery eyes, our crew got to do the foul-line dance between Cat 1 and Cat 2 during F-18 launches. That is probably one of the coolest experiences that a film crew can have.
Stand aside F-18s and warbirds, we’ve got a drone warming up on the deck!
Watch the Films
Director Leif Ramsey is featured on a podcast.
Picture's Up! was started by my friend David George. He's interviewed Sound Mixers, Camera Assistants, Composers, Animators, Gaffers, Actors. I've learned a lot about my own industry from his guests.
Listen to Picture's Up!
On the podcast our director Leif Ramsey talk to David George about recent production work for the U.S. Navy, including what it’s like to film on an aircraft carrier while underway.
Here’s one of the lessons that Leif has learned: Film is a collaborative medium. Find people that give you energy instead of take energy from you. If you can have a crew of people like that, you can go through a lot of adversity and still come out the other side liking each other and feeling good about what you did.
Listen to Leif’s episode on Picture’s Up!: https://player.fm/series/pictures-up-2475596/leif-ramsey-production-entrepreneur
Picture's Up! was started by our friend David George. He's interviewed Sound Mixers, Camera Assistants, Composers, Animators, Gaffers, Actors. We’ve learned a lot about our own industry from his guests.
Cantu Beauty Ads: Make Winter Summer Again
The production was for the global "My Curl. My Cantu." campaign, award-winning haircare for textured hair. Our scope included 57 video deliverables in three languages. Side-by-side with the video production, photographer Donald Page shot stills.
"Hey there. Can we build a garden in a studio?"
January kicked off with a bang. When everyone else was cozied up enjoying the warmth of the Christmas holidays we were gearing up for a production with Cantu Beauty and Sasha Group.
The project totaled 57 videos in three languages
The production was for the global "My Curl. My Cantu." campaign, award-winning haircare for textured hair. Our scope included 57 video deliverables in three languages. Side-by-side with the video production, photographer Donald Page shot stills.
Creative called for a color-pop studio environment for the instructional content, and a lush outdoor garden to film lifestyle sequences.
THE HITCH: It's the dead of winter in Atlanta. If you're looking for grey, rain, and wind-whipped brown twigs - we've got that in spades. Lush gardens? Not so much....
Enter Studio Midtown and Cinema Greens. We got two side-by-side studio spaces and built out a 24'x16' garden set complete with pergola and five different lighting looks.
Where did you guys find the garden?
Later that month in the edit suite: "Where did you guys find the garden?" Even our editor thought we had filmed outside.
Which proves that together we can: MAKE. WINTER. SUMMER. AGAIN!
