Intro
Under normal circumstances, Merrychef® would have launched their new product Merrychef Connex® 12 and 16-inch high-speed ovens at various trade shows throughout 2021. Not to miss the commercial opportunity as a result of the global impact of the pandemic, a strategic decision was made by their team to plan for a virtual product launch. Welbilt is a global brand whose new generation of high-speed ovens, Merrychef Connex® are compact, quick and efficient at delivering high-quality hot food on demand, appealing to a wide range of operators.
Objective
To create the following content: 40-minute video for the Merrychef Connex® virtual product launch, telling the story through ‘passing the baton’ about its features and in multiple languages. In addition, it appeared as though it was a live broadcast as the virtual product launch was to occur on a specific date.
The Process
We started by receiving the brief, which followed with a site visit to the Merrychef location, in Guildford. This was a useful visit as it helped us to visualise the project and understand the objectives. It allowed us to assess the filming environment and what equipment was needed in terms of lighting and sound for filming the interviews and demonstrating the features of the oven. In addition the planning out of the green screen in order that we could be creative at the editing stage and create a contemporary style. We also planned out how we were to film the oven itself and the control panels. A key element of the filming was to involve chef demonstrating how the oven worked by preparing a range of dishes that were then cooked using the ovens. Our experience of chef masterclasses enabled this to be achieved with ease. A visit to the factory in Sheffield was arranged to capture footage of the production and more interviews. We used an autocue to facilitate the filming with scripts provided in advance in order that they could be uploaded to the system.
We used a crew of 3 and used the following equipment:
Equipment used
X 2 Canon C300 MKII
X 4 Panel lights
Audio equipment, mics etc
Autocue with iPad
Software – Adobe Premiere Pro, After Effects etc.
The Edit
To create a ‘live broadcast’ feel we used a countdown graphic to set the scene. The footage was ordered in a way to tell the story about Welbilt and Merrychef Connex®. This included an introduction through to various key people introducing the product and eventually the demonstration of how the oven worked. Following this was service elements, integrating supplied technical graphics and a corporate video into the video. Creating a Q&A session using the graphics gave the impression that this was a live event in relation to the Merrychef Connex® virtual product launch. Editing involved creating and utilising the following elements.
- Creation of lower thirds using logos
- Addition of creative graphics
- The addition of 5 language subtitles using provided translations – English, Russian, German, Spanish & Italian
- Using supplied technical graphics
- Using a supplied video and integrating
Outcome
The video was used successfully used for the Merrychef Connex® virtual product launch.