All posts by campdig

Snickers Live Super Bowl Commercial

A major milestone event for Camp Digital happened In February 2017. Camp Digital provided multiple mobile production resources for the first ever live television commercial during a Super Bowl for Snickers. Not only were we the live multi-camera infrastructure for the live 30 second commercial featuring Adam Driver and a host of other actors and stunt people, we also provided production for a live 36 hour continuous live webcast on the Snickers website to promote the first ever live Super Bowl commercial.

In an effort to become the most widely known brand on the planet, Snickers assembled a vast crew of over 200 professionals from the motion picture, special effects, television commercial and live multi-camera production industries to achieve this ‘first time ever’ live commercial event. Literally hundreds of hours of preparation went into the commercial and its subsequent follow-up spots which continued to air on various networks for weeks after the Super Bowl debut.

The 36 hour webcast leading up to game day featured celebrities such as Betty White and WWE wrestler “The Mizz” having fun with games and other comedic ‘pokes’ at what would be the theme for the upcoming live television commercial. There was even a contest conducted during the 36 hour event where viewers could vote on the name of the ‘saloon’ that would be part of the actual live commercial during the Super Bowl.

Both Legacy and ThunderboltHD were on set at Red Studios In Hollywood for the week leading up to and through Super Bowl Sunday.

Another Successful Year for Rifftrax

Rifftrax has been a loyal client of Camp Digital’s for 7 years. Last year was another success with four more movies; Time Chasers, the Mystery Science Theater Reunion show, Mothra and Carnival of Souls.

While the usual home for RIfftrax Live is the Belcourt Theatre in Nashville, TN, during their remodel we took RIfftrax Live to Nashville’s Polk Theater at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center for Time Chasers. As part of that show we had most of the original cast of the movie in attendance and Mike, Bill and Kevin treated a group of VIP’s to a meet and greet during rehearsal with the original cast for photos and autographs.

In June we took the show to where it all began in Minneapolis for the Mystery Science Theater 3000 reunion show at the State Theater. 30 years of MST3K was relived with many of the original cast and writers making ‘guest Riffer’ appearances on the show. The final clip of the evening saw all 9 ‘Riffers’ on stage in what was the largest live ‘riff’ in Rifftrax history. It was truly a night to remember.

The final Rifftrax Live of 2016 was the classic Japanese sci-fi film Mothra. Back at the newly remodeled Belcourt Theatre, Mike, Bill and Kevin brought the sell-out crowd to their feet with yet another epic riff of what may be the worst film of its kind ever to make it to the big screen…

Each Rifftrax show brings everyone in the crew laughs and an enjoyable production. We can’t thank them enough for being such great people to work with and look forward to another successful year in 2017.

No. 1 on the Billboard Video Chart in 2016

Camp Digital is happy announced that we went No. 1 on the Billboard Video Chart in 2016. It was a long time coming for our rocker-in-residency and Vice President of Business Development Tom Gregory but it finally happened… with a little help from some friends.

July 2016 was the release of Twisted Sister’s Metal Meltdown. Camp Digital shot all the live performance pieces from the Hard Rock Casino Las Vegas. It was definitely an experience we will never forget and are thankful to add Billboard to a list of our accolades. Shortly thereafter the second act on the bill, Extreme, released their DVD recorded at the same show which went to #2 on the Billboard DVD chart.

July, August, September Happenings

July was a good month with all three trucks in New Orleans at the same time for the McDonalds 365 Black Awards and the Essence Festival. Yes, that said three trucks. HDOne was complete in June and on the road in July for its first show at the Essence Festival. There was Fantasia Unplugged for BET, Shaquille O’Neal’s Comedy All-Stars for Showtime in Las Vegas, Alan Cumming sang us some sappy songs for PBS and we all got in shape for Beach Body on Broadway.

Beach Body brought us in for the second consecutive year to go live at 6 a.m. for super workout with over 30,000 on Broadway in downtown Nashville, Tenn.

August got us in the Christmas spirit with Jordan Smith for PBS and prepped us for the election with Adam Ruins Everything. We also shot boxing at the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles.

We took Camp Digital to Chattanooga, Tenn., in Septmeber for State Farm’s Neighborhood Sessions Series on TNT with Usher that aired in November. We also shot the series finale for Versus and Flow on TVOne. There was also another PBS special with Soledad O’Brien and we took the entire fleet to Vegas for Pandora covering the Life is Beautiful festival.

On the Move with HARMAN

LAS VEGAS, Nevada – Camp Digital is a partnership of Nashville video production professionals who created the full-service mobile video production company four years ago. In early 2012, Camp Digital’s fleet got bigger and better with the company’s new Thunderbolt HD truck, equipped with a HARMAN Soundcraft Vi4 digital mixing console.

Camp Digital specializes in music and entertainment events for television, home video and non-traditional media including the Internet, tablets and wireless devices. The company’s five partners have more than 100 years of combined experience in TV and video production.

“Our concept with the Thunderbolt HD truck, as has been the company’s philosophy all along, is to be able to get in and out of spaces that a tractor trailer can’t, provide the highest HD production quality and still be budget conscious,” said Tom Gregory, vice president of Camp Digital. “This gives us the ability to do jobs that other production trucks can’t touch. Add to that the fact that we’re extremely sensitive to today’s production budgets, we think we’re a great solution for a broad range of clients and productions ”

It’s a philosophy that’s working. Since turning out the Thunderbolt HD truck in January, Camp Digital has produced several “RAM Country” live music events for Yahoo! Music. Thunderbolt was in Indianapolis during the week of Super Bowl XLVI to produce performances by Pitbull and 50 Cent for “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and was recently on location for Ron White’s second annual “Comedy Salute to the Troops,” expected to air April 22 on CMT. This is also Camp Digital’s fourth year working with ABC and the CMA Music Festival, capturing performances by Keith Urban and Kix Brooks.

With a schedule like that, there’s no room for equipment that can’t handle the mileage. Because of his positive experience from using the Vi4 in the JOURNEY HD truck, Camp Digital added the console to Thunderbolt HD’s system. “When we first purchased the Vi4, we needed a console that had a conservative physical footprint but still had the ability to handle well over 48 inputs and did not compromise on quality or flexibility,” Gregory noted. “The Vi4 has all the features we need and then some.”

“The Vi4 has been absolutely bulletproof,” Gregory added. “We’ve had zero issues with it on any level. For the Thunderbolt HD truck, we’re connected with fiber optic cable to the stage box, which gives us more distance to work with, and everything run perfectly.”

Camp Digital’s clients also like the Vi4’s ergonomics. “Jimmy Kimmel’s crew flew out from LA to do the Super Bowl tapings and they had to use our Vi4,” he said.” They were not familiar with the Vi4 in particular, but had worked with Studer consoles in the past. In no time at all they were comfortable with the Vi4 because of its similarity to other Soundcraft and Studer models. They’re all quite logical and straightforward to use.”

“I know Soundcraft specifically designed the Vi4 to deliver flexibility and performance in a compact size,” Gregory stated. “They succeeded. The Vi4 is tailor-made for situations like ours.”

Camp Digital captures and produces music and entertainment events all across North America for a variety of television network and music industry clients. Camp Digital is a full-service production company that also owns/operates Thunderbolt HD, a state of the art 12 camera video production truck with 64 tracks of Pro Tools audio recording capability managed through the Soundcraft Vi4 audio console. For more information on Camp Digital visit www.campdigital.net or contact them directly at 615-826-0122.

HARMAN (www.harman.com) designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets – supported by 15 leading brands, including AKG, Harman Kardon, Infinity, JBL, Lexicon and Mark Levinson. The Company is admired by audiophiles across multiple generations and supports leading professional entertainers and the venues where they perform. More than 25 million automobiles on the road today are equipped with HARMAN audio and infotainment systems. HARMAN has a workforce of about 13,000 people across the Americas, Europe and Asia, and reported net sales of $4.2 billion for twelve months ending December 31, 2011.

Camp Digital Expands Mobile Production Capabilities

Nashville, TN / Los Angeles, CA – Entertainment production company Camp Digital has expanded its mobile production truck resources with the acquisition of two production trucks. The acquisition is part of a new working alliance with LA based Background Images. The two production trucks known as Legacy and HD1 will now be operated by the Nashville based Camp Digital. Camp Digital has provided remote production resources to the music and entertainment industries for the last 7 years.

“The acquisition of Legacy and HD1 gets us a two for one” said Steve Angus, Camp Digital’s President. “First off, it expands our resource inventory, and second, just as important, it gives us a more visible presence on the west coast. Camp Digital has built a client base across the country that we can now service more efficiently with 3 trucks. We are also positioned to better serve Background Images’ clients who are already familiar with Legacy and HD1, but will now have even more capabilities.”

Both Legacy and HD1 will receive significant makeovers including updated monitor walls, cameras, KiPro Racks, EVS, and OLED monitoring for shading and LD positions. The audio capabilities for both trucks will also be significantly upgraded with the latest Soundcraft mixing desks and redundant ProTools multi-track recording capabilities.

“We’ve created a strategic alliance with Background Images that will be great for both of us” commented Tom Gregory, Vice President of Business Development for Camp Digital. “It’s way more than just a transaction; we’ve collectively put a plan together that will allow both parties a greater presence across the country and feed business to one another based on what each company does best.” Through this new strategic alliance, Camp Digital will now have a physical presence in Los Angeles while Background Images will still be able to market not only Legacy and HD1, but also Thunderbolt HD, Camp Digital’s Nashville-based entertainment production truck. Likewise, Camp Digital will have access to Background Images full complement of IMAG and projection resources.

Alan Barber, Vice President of Background Images added, “I cannot express how pleased we are to have been able to meet and interact with Camp Digital. The future is very bright for these trucks and knowing Camp Digital’s dedication to the combined upgrades to the trucks, they will be absolutely first class.”

Camp Digital, based in Nashville, Tennessee, was founded in 2008. They bring top of the line, mission specific, HD production trucks to a variety of clients in television and entertainment. Background Images, based in Los Angeles, CA. Background Images serves the television and movie industries with the latest technology in video projection and LED screens.