BOTTLE ROCKET MEDIA
ABOUT BOTTLE
ROCKET
MEDIA
At Bottle Rocket Media, we are storytellers. We love to ideate how to use our best creative skill sets to create content that cuts through the clutter to connect viewers. Whether it's employing live-action, design, editorial, or animation, we have a talented and experienced team of creators.
We were born out of the NYC advertising scene; we came of age in Hollywood, wrote and directed our feature films, ran design agencies, and worked alongside Oprah Winfrey, building her broadcast empire. Our combined histories set Bottle Rocket Media apart from the rest.
Over the last nine years, Bottle Rocket Media has grown into a mighty team of people who focus on bringing our clients’ stories to life, authentically and with a purpose, in the most efficient manner. Be it agencies, organizations, or individuals, we tell their stories, sell their products, and share what’s important to them through content in its many forms.
Our work has been viewed billions of times over. We are a full-service, award-winning production company with a talented roster of directors, editors, and designers passionate about what we do.
COMPANIES THAT TRUST BOTTLE ROCKET MEDIA
OUR WORK
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LIVE-ACTION REEL
MORE OF OUR WORK
CASE STUDIES
A deep dive into projects across a range of styles
Commercial Production, Web & Broadcast
SEARS, KENMORE, & KMART
Ask
Create approachable commercials that are product-oriented, on-brand, and promote sales online and in-store.
Challenge(s)
Use scripted content to communicate value to everyday people on a large scale, at a very modest budget.
Solution
From our initial kickoff to how the composition of each shot, all the way to music choices in post-production, we ensured that our decisions were grounded in reality and affordability.
The casting was under particular scrutiny, as we always had to ensure our “families” looked like they belonged together. We handled this by adding an extra round of submissions early on to ensure we looked at the largest talent pool possible.
In editorial, we always created two versions of the spot - one that was product heavy and another that favored the on-camera talent. This allowed us to find the right balance between telling the story and showing off the merchandise.
The production design was also of utmost importance. Stores needed to look better than in real life, cleaned up but approachable. Kitchens, offices, and other home areas had to feel lived in but tidy. The only way to ensure this is ample prep time and a reasonably sized crew.
Results
Our content consistently raised the bar for the client, and we quickly became a regular vendor for them, collaborating on entire campaigns and driving sales in a positive direction. Watch some of these videos at this Sears Gallery.
Branded Content Series
DYSON AIR PURIFIERS
Ask
Create a series of documentary-style marketing videos that incorporate the product in real-world situations while educating consumers about air pollution.
Challenge(s)
This was a fast-paced project with a very tight timeline. When the client finally pulled the trigger, we had little time to book the families, learn the science, schedule the shoot, and get the videos to market in conjunction with a product launch.
Solution
We worked closely with the client and their subject matter experts on indoor air pollution, its effects on households, and what the Dyson air purifier can do to help. We figured out the most efficient way to demonstrate this, using video.
Simultaneously, our team scouted talent and locations around Chicagoland, real families with allergies who would let us inside their existing homes. Over three days, we filmed at 6 locations and went back for follow-ups for reactions and feedback on the product a few weeks later.
UPDATE: Since this case study was written, we have produced more than twenty video pieces supporting this campaign.
Results
Dyson loved these videos, and they received hundreds of thousands of views and, in turn, helped sell a lot of air purifiers. Watch part of this series here. Dyson Environmental Care
Small Documentary Production
SAREPTA PHARMACEUTICALS
Ask
Create a series of internal-only, human interest videos that face the fight against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) so employees will get a better sense of who they are helping and what they’re fighting for.
Challenge(s)
A limited budget and DMD families located all over the country. We had to schedule families, clients, and crew in different time zones around the country.
Solution
To accommodate the limited budget, we reduced the crew to three people (Director/Producer, Cinematographer, Audio Technician). This eliminated higher-end visuals, such as drones or dollies, but forced us to focus on what matters most, emotions. We were successful because our strong production team provided support from the home base while the crew was on the road.
We also decided to shoot with local crews instead of traveling with our everyday team. Having only the director travel saved a lot of money and allowed us to keep the vision consistent across multiple videos over several months. This was also helpful because these shoots did not happen back-to-back. When scheduling a shoot, we only had to accommodate one person’s schedule from BRM.
Results
The client loves the series so much they are repurposing them to be available for public viewing. See these videos in our Sarepta gallery.
Company Rebranding
BASIS TECHNOLOGIES
Ask
Our long-time client, Centro, made a massive re-branding/name change effort in 2021. They are now called Basis Technologies. As part of the re-branding, they re-designed their whole website and wanted to create all new videos to be featured on the new website.
Challenge(s)
The original brand Centro brand heavily featured their bright, airy offices and the people of Centro. The new Basis Technologies brand’s color palette was a complete 180-degree flip. It was a black-on-black look. Dark backgrounds and white text, kind of vibe. They discovered a new element, the hexagon shape, which was meant to be prominently featured. People would still be the featured component with the various new parts, just living in the black-on-black world.
Basis Technologies requested we design and create ten unique black-on-black office environments for us to shoot photography, interviews, and video b-roll. Captured photos would be used on the site and all-new branding efforts. The video footage captured would be the foundation for eight new videos created by the BRM team.
Solution
Fortunately for us, Basis had an incredible internal team that we partnered with to execute their vision. Working side-by-side with their team, we formulated a plan to take on this massive project.
We took over their Chicago offices and turned their largest room into our production studio. We painted the walls shades of very dark grey and used that space repeatedly to be a range of office environments: Casual seating areas, conference rooms, general office spaces, home offices, and more.
Our production design department rented and shopped for dozens of furniture options (all shades of grey or black) and customized a host of props to be all black; desktop computers, laptops, desktop accessories, plants, moveable walls, screens, phones, and everything in between.
Hexagon furniture, hexagon wall panels, and hexagon felt pads were hung for each of our unique office setups. We even turned a range of unique light fixtures (some hexagon-shaped, of course!) for the different environments.
Results
We produced thousands of photos, hours of 4K and 6K footage of interviews, and slow-motion b-roll. Visit their website and click around to see all of our work in action. You can also watch all of the videos we produced at this link.
We’re incredibly proud of our work on this project, and we’re honored to have earned their trust to take on such a massively important project.
Client Feedback:
“Partnering with BRM was one of the best choices we made for our rebrand — they were our nexus point for the production, photography, animation, and video. Their professionalism and creative precision translated into a successful rebrand launch that showcased our product on a high level and our people.”
Jenn Rachwalski
Sr Design Director
Basis Technologies
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME
We genuinely appreciate this opportunity. If you have any questions, we'd love to continue the conversation. Let's get on a call and talk things out.
Dan & Brett, founders of Bottle Rocket Media
For more information contact
Brett Singer at [email protected] or 773.230.1935.
