GR Press: Honey, Don't Cough

The Grand Rapids Press wrote an article about Honey Don't Cough, 100 percent buckwheat honey that's used to help soothe children's cough. It's a new company founded in Grand Rapids by a family doctor and elementary school teacher with two young kids of their own.

The article mentions that we've been hired by the company to create an educational video on the dangers of over-the-counter children's cough medicines, and the benefits of using Honey Don't Cough.

We started shooting today and plan to release the videos in late February.

BONUS: Click for the WZZM 13 story on Honey Don't Cough.

Rapid Growth Article: Celebrate Heartside

Rapid Growth wrote an article about "Celebrate Heartside," the short film we produced with photographer Brian Kelly. It also talks about the premier party next weekend, and the great work Locus Development is doing downtown.

Read it here or below.

February 5, 2009

Creative groundbreaking for “38” to debut locally-produced short film celebrating Heartside

By: Deborah Johnson Wood

On February 12, Locus Development will host the public at a creative “Heartside Pre-Glow” party that serves as the groundbreaking for Thirty-Eight (38 Commerce), a fundraiser for the Heartside Business Association, and the debut of Celebrate Heartside, a four-minute film written, directed and produced by Creo Productions and Brian Kelly, owner of Brian Kelly Photography and managing photographer of Rapid Growth.

The event venue, the former EQ3 building at 130 Ionia SW, provides the perfect space to debut the film: above the building on the outer west wall of the Cherry/Commerce parking ramp.

The film, shot entirely in Heartside, celebrates the revitalization of the area as a one-of-a-kind entertainment and entrepreneurial community. Brian Vander Ark, of The Verve Pipe, wrote and performed the film’s score.

“Locus Development commissioned the film to show the vitality and uniqueness of Heartside in a fresh way,” says Kelly. “Heartside is becoming the place to be if you want to live downtown in proximity to hip artist lofts and galleries, innovative entrepreneurs, some of the most unique retail anywhere and fantastic nightlife.”

Click here to view a sneak preview of the film.

As to why Locus Development’s John Green and Andy Winkel chose such an unusual groundbreaking event, they wanted to do something that benefits Heartside as a whole.

“We’d much rather allocate the money typically spent on a groundbreaking event and apply that to a worthy cause like the Heartside Business Association,” Winkel says.

Before forming Locus Development early last year, Green and Winkel worked together on two Heartside developments: Hopson Flats and Founders’ Brewing. Green also worked with CWD Real Estate Investment’s Sam Cummings on The Fitzgerald.

Winkel and Green’s newest Heartside endeavor, the $26 million Thirty-Eight, is a creative interweaving of public and private properties into a city parking ramp camouflaged by privately owned “liner buildings.”

The February 12 event kicks off at 5 p.m.; Celebrate Heartside shows at 6 p.m. Brian Kelly and Mayor George Heartwell will be on hand for a few remarks, DJ Shannon Williams will provide music, and guests can sample Founders’ beer and Republic’s menu specialties.

Please RSVP to Jessica Geerling at jessical@locusdevelopment.com. The party is free; however donations to the Heartside Business Association are welcomed.

Small Firms, Big Creative

USA Today reported on the guys* who made the Doritos Super Bowl ad for under $2,000. It's a perfect example of the power of small firms (in this case, two friends) leveraging great creative.

*The "guys" are not us. But...it could be...

Celebrate Heartside

Here's the trailer to the short-film project we've been working on with photographer Brian Kelly and Locus Development. Chris Knape of the Grand Rapids Press wrote a blog post about the short film today and the launch party on February 12.



Here's the details for Locus Development's Heartside Pre-Glow, where the full film will debut:

Thursday, February 12 at 5 p.m.
130 Ionia, Grand Rapids, MI, 49503 (Old EQ3 Building)

Visit Creo: Creative Crawl on February 24

In case you missed our open house, we're opening up Creo for the Ad Club's Creative Crawl:

Tuesday, February 24 from 4:30 to 9 p.m.

40 S. Division Ave, Grand Rapids, MI 49503

For more information about Ad Fair '09, visit www.adclubwmi.org.

The Audio Address

We've officially launched our audio studio.

Click to listen to our audio portfolio.

We recently recorded Glen Phillips (of Toad the Wet Sprocket fame) and Jonathan Kingham at The Photography Room's final concert, as well as a special song by Brian Vander Ark of The Verve Pipe. (More on that later).

There's also a track from the Zim Worship Project, where 100 percent of proceeds go toward humanitarian aid in Zimbabwe.

If you're a musician, or hang with friends/relatives/others who are, could you let them know about us? Our vision is to combine our audio and video skills to help musicians thrive.

In business?

Our audio studio's fully equipped for voiceovers and podcasts.

Creo's LifeStraw Video on Vimeo

Thanks for Touring Creo

Thanks to everyone who came out to Tour//Creo on Friday night.

We had a great turnout and a lot of fun celebrating the new space.

If you missed it, contact us to set up a time for your own tour.

Film, Music and Brian Kelly Photography

We've been collaborating with photographer Brian Kelly on a couple of very cool projects lately.

Visit Brian's blog to see photos from yesterday's short film shoot, then scroll down to see his shots from the Glen Phillips and Jonathan Kingham show at The Photography Room on December 4. We recorded audio for Glen and Jonathan--they are both amazing artists.

Media: Business Review on Creo Studio Launch

The Business Review wrote this story (also below) on our studio launch. Remember to check out our launch party on Friday, December 12 from 6-10 p.m. at 40 S. Division.

Creo Productions expands studio

by Sarah Navis | Business Review Western Michigan

Tuesday December 02, 2008, 11:39 AM

Creo Productions in Grand Rapids may be small in size, but the three-man film studio has big visions.

And it's growing, despite Michigan's economy.

Aaron Carriere and Andrew Tingley, both Ferris State University graduates, founded Creo in August 2006. Carriere said they wanted to start the company because they have an "entrepreneurial spirit" and both enjoy video production. He also stressed that there is "a lot of power in storytelling."

Creo launched at the infancy of a new news media, Carriere said -- and there is a lot of potential in new media. With video, social networking and mobile communication a growing part of American culture, Creo Production believes it is ahead of the curve in the role of video and new media.

Creo uses its talents to provide clients with strong video footage and projects that tell people what is going on worldwide and in Grand Rapids.

"I really love telling stories through moving cameras, beautiful cinematography and translating what I see in my mind to the screen," Tingley said.

The Grand Rapids location has helped Creo's growth and success.

"The people here are great," Carriere said. "People are willing to connect and meet with you, and we're collaborating with others who have similar visions. There's also great energy having a studio downtown in Heartside, and we're excited to see downtown continue to grow and evolve and be a part of that."

When considering a starting location, Carriere said, "We wrestled between Grand Rapids and Nashville. We decided to stay in Grand Rapids, because we had existing connections and a base to build our business."

With Michigan's film incentives creating buzz across the state, Tingley said it doesn't have a direct impact on Creo Productions, because it doesn't include commercial work, but they love the publicity for Michigan and possible independent opportunities for their company down the road.

"While economic times are difficult, we're in an industry that's growing and evolving," Carriere said, crediting much of Creo's growth to the convictions of its founders. "Without passion, it would be hard to make it."

In 2008, Creo's sales "are well over double what they were in 2007," and projections are positive for 2009 and beyond, Carriere said. That growth has allowed expansion options. Creo is opening an audio division, Carriere said, and its space is perfect for additional growth.

"We're still determining our ideal size, but we like being lean and flexible to adapt to change, and there's a lot of opportunity for collaboration with skilled people we're connecting with," Tingley said.

Being a small business allows Creo to invest in its clients and offer a high level of service. At larger companies, a client may never meet the group working on their project.

"With our company, you'll know everyone involved, and that's a big advantage and makes it more fun to work with us," Tingley said.

Being a small company gives Creo "the ability to adapt quickly to change," Carriere said.

In the next five years, "we'd like to have a balance of creative, cutting-edge projects in the business world, as well as the ability to explore our own independent ideas, whether that's film or documentaries or a combination of both. There's a lot of potential in new media in the coming years, and everything is changing so quickly," Carriere said.