Iron Bow Videoconferencing Shoot

Wednesday & Thursday, June 22nd - 23rd, RaffertyWeiss Media set out to produce an informational marketing / testimonial video for Iron Bow, a telecommunications / videoconferencing company based out of Upper Marlboro, MD.

John Lofton IV, Associate Producer at RaffertyWeiss Media, acted as the D.I.T. (Digital Imaging Technician) on set and helped with footage acquisition, transfer, transcoding and audio ripping for transcriber.

This was a very fun shoot to be a part of for many reasons. First of all, given that it is summer, we were indoors! That was a huge plus. Second, we got to mess around with the videoconferencing hardware and talk to people across the country.



In fact, Chris Weiss, partner at RaffertyWeiss Media, conducted an interview with someone in another state using the Iron Bow videoconferencing technology. Iron Bow partners with Cisco.







Finally - we were fortunate enough to work with a fine crew. Tom Inskeep (Director of Photography), Josh Spring & Tomo Sasaki (Grip & Lighting), Art Jaso (AJ Audio). It's always enjoyable when you are able to work with a group of pros who also have great personalities!

The Iron Bow video will most likely be available for viewing on the RaffertyWeiss Media website within the next month or so.

http://raffertyweiss.com/creative-media-solutions.html



JDL4 Out - Videoconference style.

National Disaster Training Exercise

[Edit 1345 EST: VNN Crew Indiana - From left to right; Chris Green, John Lofton IV, Gary Geboy, Teresa Bruce, Matt Markovich, Chris Doud]

During the week of May 16th - 19th, a national disaster training exercise is being conducted across the U.S. midwest.

All levels of state, local and federal governments are involved in the training exercise in an effort to be better prepared for when a real disaster does strike.

Real World Media is covering the faux earthquake disaster, and all levels of government, including the White House, are tuning in to the "Virtual News Network" (VNN) to see the latest updates.

My role in the exercise is small, but crucial, for the spread of information throughout the exercise's own, dedicated news network known as , "VNN" (Virtual News Network).

VNN supplies crews, consisting of camera / reporter / editors, across the affected states to film, edit and broadcast stories to VNN live, which broadcasts a half-hour news update every hour, on the hour, from 9am to 5pm, throughout the course of the entire exercise.



My specific role is that of the 'Mobile Editor'. Using my new MacBook Pro (which is quite amazing, I might add) I must quickly ingest the footage, transcode it to the broadcast spec, edit together a story with appropriate broadcast slates and information, and then upload it to the VNN network FTP, followed by confirmation e-mails between the VNN producer and myself.





The coolest part of my role, in my opinion, is seeing the stories that we have put together broadcast over the VNN network with proper titling and graphics added. I never thought I would be a part of a NEWS broadcast environment, but now that I have been given the chance I must say there is a certain thrill in having 20 minute deadlines, the clock ticking faster than usual and expectations at a new high. It's much different than my current role as an Associate Producer at RaffertyWeiss Media, where I may have weeks or months to meet a video deadline. However, in all fairness, I do juggle multiple projects at once at RaffertyWeiss, as opposed to focusing on one story, so each job has it's own difficulties and challenges. I still remain confident in my resolve that I do, in fact, work better under pressure.



All that being said, it's been a wonderful experience working as the Mobile Editor for VNN these past few days. The exhilaration of the fast paced news environment is a refreshing challenge and I must say the crew I'm working with are a dedicated and talented group. Once the exercise is completed I will share more details as well as a photo of my VNN News Co-Workers.

West Mob Entertainment - Music Video #1

February 5th, 2011, LoftonFilms' own John D. Lofton IV embarked to NE Washington D.C. to direct West Mob Entertainment's latest artist performance / music video titled, "DaCapo Fro Beat 2011".



The shoot took place at Twelve Restaurant & Lounge located at 1123 H St NE, Washington D.C., DC 20002.



It was a long day and everyone in the crew worked very hard! John called , "That's a wrap!" at exactly 2:35am!



Two months and several edit sessions later the video is completed. Below is an HD YouTube link where you can watch the brand-new video on West Mob Entertainment's YouTube channel:

Click Here To Watch On YouTube

Artist: DaCapo
Song: Fro Beat
Album: Where I'm From
Director: John D. Lofton IV
Label: West Mob Entertainment www.westmob.com

- - - Special Thanks to the Cast & Crew - - -

Director -- John D. Lofton IV
D.P. -- Michelle Farrell
1st AD -- Lisa Clark
1st AC -- Rachel Dunn
Gaffer -- Nate Spivey
Key Grip -- Jason M. Koch
Grip -- Andrew Mangum
Grip -- John Jack Dorsey


Photography courtesy of Tony Mobley, TMO Photography. All rights reserved.

Information regarding air-times for major networks to come in the following posts. Stay tuned!

Tearing up the trails... in HD!

This past month LoftonFilms worked with in the edit room on Boo Bicycles latest video campaign.

Tom Inskeep produced the videos and shot all the footage with an HVX 200 and GoPro HD cameras.



Below is a link to one of the main videos for Boo Bicycles , "29er", their premiere mountain bike.

Boo Bicycles - 29er

Washington D.C. Winner!

LoftonFilms' entry, "The OCD Burglar" is the winner for Washington D.C.!



Click Here To View The Official Award Page

----

Team LoftonFilms took 'Best in Show' as well as 'Best Editing' for the 2010 Washington D.C. Film Race Challenge.

Congratulations and many thanks to everyone who was on the team including;

Erik D. Miller (The OCD Burglar / Co-Writer)

Jessica Nero (The Woman)

Rajiv Deonauth (The Man)

John D. Lofton III (Set Audio / PA)

John D. Lofton IV (Director)

The results can be seen at the following link:

2010 Washinton D.C. Film Race Winners

To view the short film, "The OCD Burglar" CLICK HERE

We anxiously await the National results!

-JDL4