We want the world to know

In response to the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that literally shook the Port-au-Prince region of Haiti to its foundations, Premier Studios deployed a film production team to acquire imagery demonstrating the nation's devastation. The team spent 6 days alongside many not-for-profit organizations capturing footage, images, interviews and stories as these agencies provided relief to the Haitian people.

Matt Johnson, Creative Director at Premier Studios, said, “Words really cannot describe the ruins left in the wake of a natural disaster like this. Truly communicating the realities requires showing people what they are unable to see for themselves. Our mission in Haiti was to gather material that could be used to support the brands we represent as they work tirelessly to better the situation in Haiti. We are privileged in that we have staff members, like Steven Tader (Director of Photography for our Haiti film crew), who can mobilize in situations like this.”

The team spent most of the time in the Port-au-Prince area, the region hit hardest by the earthquake. Their days were filled with visiting tent cities, temporary health care clinics, missions and churches. When not behind a camera, the crew pitched in where they could, providing aid and relief to the people.

Gerald Smith, Founder and President of Premier Studios, also made the trek to Haiti. “Early on we made a commitment to be available, especially in times of great need. That’s why we've helped document and capture the stories of 9/11, the Tsunami, Hurricane Katrina and now the earthquake in Haiti. We believe it’s important to donate our time and services to key relief organizations, like Heart to Heart International, who positively impact humanity,” added Smith.

In addition to supporting Heart to Heart International, the media we acquired will be used in a feature story of two teenage girls for the April issue of SUSIE Magazine. We have also made our footage and pictures available to local news outlets as they continue to update the public on the happenings in Haiti.

For anyone looking to contribute to the Haiti relief efforts, please visit www.hearttoheart.org or call (913) 764-5200.

Premier Studios took home three Certificates of Merit from this years Business Marketing Associations’ Fountain Awards.  The recognized work included a digital storefront branding initiative for Robbie Manufacturing, a corporate awareness production piece for the U.S. Army and a self-promotional Christmas card for Premier Studios.

For the U.S Army production piece and the Premier Studios Christmas card, this is the second round of honors this year as they have previously won a Telly Award and an Addy Award respectively.

“We are always excited to be recognized for our efforts,” said Matt Johnson, Premier Studios Creative Director.  “And to be recognized by multiple organizations like the Telly’s, Addy’s and now the BMA is particularly rewarding because it shows a collective appreciation for our creative work.”

The Business Marketing Association is the leading professional resource for business-to-business marketers and communicators, and is a primary repository of the best in B2B marketing information and resources, attracting the best practitioners and promoting the best practices in the industry. 

Each Year the BMA hosts the Fountain Awards which are created to celebrate the premier B2B marketing and communication efforts developed by Kansas City marketers.

Mark Cork, Premier Studios Director of Operations and Account Service, added.  “Our primary objective will always be to deliver the best marketing strategy and creative on behalf of our clients, and ultimately that’s where we grade ourselves.  But to have marketing peers notice and value the work we do is certainly gratifying.”

Premier Studios Partners with Big Picture Productions for the Sean Hannity Freedom Concert Tour. Lenexa, KS, August 28, 2009

When Evan French of Big Picture Productions was asked to produce and direct the Sean Hannity Freedom Concert Tour, he knew he needed to make a big impact with live motion graphics for the tour.  He decided to tap into the creative experts at PremierPost, who he has partnered with on several live-event productions in the past.

“I had full confidence in the team’s creativity and ideas.  They are professionals and I knew they would help make a statement worthy of a national brand such as Sean Hannity,” said French.

The PremierPost team took design cues from existing marketing material for the event, and created several motion-graphic intros for performers, as well as a two-minute, high-energy conceptual piece, celebrating our U.S. Armed forces.  “This event honors the great Americans who have fought and died for our freedom, and their families,” French said. “The team put their best effort forward to send a powerful message to the attendees of the event, and the families who were honored.”

“It was an honor to work on this important project,” said Steven Tader, Interactive Editor, PremierPost.  “Nothing creates energy and emotion like a live event, and we set out to deliver a package that supported the important message the tour was conveying.”

The Freedom Concert was a charity event that raised funds for Freedom Alliance Scholarship Fund, which provides scholarships to the children of military personnel killed in action or those who have been incapacitated in the line of duty.  The line-up for the live concert tour included Billy Ray Cyrus, The Charlie Daniels Band, Michael W. Smith and Lee Greenwood, as well as a guest appearance by Ollie North.  The tour hit 8 cities in the month of August.

“This tour was a huge success, and PremierPost helped deliver the message in a big way,” said French.  “I look forward to working with the team on our next project!”

 

Premier Studios goes 8 for 8 at the 2009 Telly Awards Lenexa, KS, July 29, 2009

Premier Studios recently won eight Telly awards for its excellence in creative, winning in every category for which it submitted client work. Among the awards were four Silver Tellys, considered the highest honor in each category, and four Bronze Tellys.

The Telly awards is a national organization that recognizes the very best local, regional and cable television commercials and programs, film productions, and work created for the web.

“We’ve rarely swept the awards like we did this year,” said Matt Johnson, PremierPost’s creative director. “It’s a thrill for us to win Silver, but to win four — and then to find out we won in every category we submitted for overall — is a big honor.”

Among the projects winning a Silver Telly was the Martin Luther King memorial video, which was highlighted earlier this year. “This was a special award for us, because our primary goal wasn’t to receive recognition with this piece. We simply wanted to recognize a great cause and a great man,” Johnson said. “I think that made winning a silver pretty humbling for everyone involved with the project.”

Other work honored with a Silver Telly included a national campaign video for the U.S. Army; a corporate image piece for Cobalt boats; and a product video for John Deere & Company.

The Bronze winners included two product launch videos for Cobalt Boats; a national campaign opener for John Deere Days; and a corporate awareness video for the U.S. Army.

“We’re always proud to receive industry acknowledgement for our work,” Johnson said. “It’s representative of our wonderful clients and our highly creative and professional team.”

Premier Studios has participated in the Telly Awards for the past 14 years, with more than 40 awards to its name.

Check out some of our award winning videos below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more than 20 years, Premier Studios has been producing General Assembly, a global event for our long-time client, the International Church of the Nazarene. The Church’s most recent event, held June 24-July 3 in Orlando’s Orange County Convention Center, attracted more than 22,000 attendees from around the world.

Putting together an event of this size required technology, creative strategy—and an agency with the ability to bring the two together, delivering an impactful message to the live audience that extends long after the event conclusion.

The Church’s leadership team realized other companies could supply equipment and provide the technology for an event of this scope — but they also recognized few companies could couple the expertise to craft a message and create content in support of that message. Which is why they turned to Premier Studios.

“We not only have the kind of relationship with this client that affords us the privilege of crafting the message,” said Mark Cork, Premier Studios’ Director of Operations, “we also have the ability to integrate all of the pieces so they work together seamlessly.”

The 2009 event, which featured a variety of activities such as exhibits, workshops, banquets, worship services, business sessions, social gatherings and a host of other related events, took over the entire convention center, including nearly one million square feet of exhibit hall space.

In addition to all onsite production, Premier Studios also provided the technology to stream the event online, allowing thousands of people around the world to watch live. Over the course of the 10-day event, 122,000 visitors from 115 different countries accessed the stream, with many of these visitors representing large groups of people watching the event together.

“The planning for this 2009 event began more than two years ago, when we began working with the client to define goals, craft message and determine the best delivery methods for venue, audience and message,” Cork said. “The only way to pull off an event of this magnitude is through extensive planning and the strategic application of our expertise.”

David Felter, General Editor for the Nazarene Global Ministry Center and in-house Producer for the event added,  "Every client offers an array of challenges that are drawn from unique needs, variables, and constraints. When combined they create the ethos of an organization or company. We have discovered that Premier Studios quickly comprehends the connections of these elements and serves us from the posture of partnership, not just another vendor. Premier Studios has set the bar high and for that we are grateful."

A strong client relationship, combined with well-defined processes, contributed to the overwhelming success of this event. Cork noted that overall attendance was higher than anticipated, both onsite and online, and audience reaction to onsite efforts was overwhelmingly positive.

As message and presentation were melded together, everyone involved witnessed the strong and winning combination of strategy, technology and creativity.

“The Church of the Nazarene is just one of our brands that people love,” Cork said. “I think the 2009 General Assembly simply galvanized that in many people’s minds.”

Bill Gates
Microsoft Corporation Headquarters
1 Microsoft Way
Redmond, WA 98052-6399
 

Dear Mr. Gates:

Congratulations on the recent launch of the Microsoft search engine, Bing. I find it superior to the original MSN search engine, as the simplified layout and eye-catching graphics provide a more enjoyable and intuitive user experience. Most notably, the built-in “decision engine” capabilities offer users significant benefit by providing supplemental search information, allowing users to navigate using the search engine until they locate the information needed.

However, please know I offer these congratulations cautiously. As Bing allows users to navigate within a website, it takes away from the onsite traffic of the brand being searched. Being a brand marketer myself, this presents a significant concern, because it eliminates my ability to research and analyze how users navigate any given website. And, as pages within the site are bypassed via Bing, my ability to inform users of related and helpful information is minimized.

Certainly I am in support of enhancing user experiences online, but not at the expense of the brands that I service. As an integrated marketer, I am driven by creating the connection between brands and their constituents. And in the online world, that can only be done through user interaction with the brand, not with the search engine.

Sincerely,

Gerald Smith, President and CEO, Premier Studios

When the Church of the Nazarene came to us at Premier Studios with the challenge of connecting their global constituency, we immediately began asking questions and dreaming big dreams with them. Of course, we talked about their market and how they’d connected with their people in the past. However, we also began encouraging them to consider moving from connecting with their people to actually connecting their people with one another. And the seeds of engagemagazine.com began to germinate.

Since one of the church’s primary goals is to share success stories related to their global mission, it seemed best to have people around the world tell stories in their own words. Once that piece was accurately defined, the next step was to determine the absolute best way to make that happen.

With our extensive experience in social media we felt the best approach would be to create an online, blog-like environment that would ultimately result in a user-generated digital magazine. By connecting people with one another and allowing them to tell their own stories and share their comments, we felt users would become much more engaged in the church’s mission than if they were only reading the words and viewpoints of more traditional, professional writers.

When people visit engagemagazine.com they can read a wide variety of submitted material, comment on articles, contribute stories of their own, view topics in a video format, listen to stories in more of a podcast setting, or subscribe to an ongoing email newsletter. Engage is a new generation of communication that helps people around the globe truly engage with the mission of the Church of the Nazarene.

Robbie Flexibles, formerly Robbie Manufacturing, recently embarked on a brand redesign initiative. The brand redesign is expected to touch all things Robbie, including packaging, ad or corporate communications and a full building remodel project. In conjunction with the brick and mortar remodel, Robbie Flexibles asked Premier Studios to support the remodel of their digital storefront.

The real challenge was bringing the new brand to life in the digital arena. The new brand personality is described with words like innovative, fun, creative, passionate, confident, and open-minded. Premier Studios focused the creative and functional design on four main areas: navigation, content organization, user experience and forward thinking technology.

Through the use of multiple navigation tactics, including accordion-style primary navigation, callout-style secondary navigation and global access to a breadcrumb navigation trail, the design allows users to access multiple areas of the site at all times. Penny Sweeney, Communications Manager at Robbie Flexibles, noted, “It is critical for us to share our expertise in all our markets and product lines because more often than not, our customers are buying multiple products for multiple markets. Premier Studios has helped us keep our breadth of service engaging and in front of our website visitors.”

“Our goal was to optimize the existing website content and functionality for the purpose of engaging the user as if they were visiting Robbie’s offices,” added Paul St. Cin, Account Supervisor at Premier Studios. Everything, from bringing the Robbie Flexibles’ icon Stretch to life, to user login for a more streamlined art upload process, to user engagement applications, will provide site visitors with an industry leading website experience.

By integrating a CMS software package with custom development, the new website will provide Robbie with the flexibility required for future web communication initiatives, including blogs, archive systems, customer specific content and CRM integration. This solution also allows Robbie Flexibles’ the ability to maintain and update its own content. “Premier Studios' training program gave me the tools and confidence to keep content on my company’s site fresh”, said Penny Sweeney.

Irv Robinson, CEO of Robbie Flexibles, added, “My team and I trusted Premier Studios with the keys to our new brand and I am very pleased with the outcome, in particular the versatility of the site to maintain and update our brand presence for a number of years to come.”

Don’t take our word for it, meet the new Robbie today.

www.robbieflexibles.com

Premier Studios was recently selected by Goldline Research as one of the leading web designers of the central United States for 2009. Premier Studios was the only web design company from Kansas or Missouri chosen to be among the 10 companies to appear on the list, which was published in the May 25th issue of Forbes Magazine.

“Even in the early days of our company, we recognized the emerging digital technologies and identified these as key for communications efforts,” said Premier Studios’ President and CEO, Gerald Smith. “Online technologies and infrastructure have continued to develop, establishing the web as a central connection point for brands to engage their audience. We have maintained a commitment to marketing in the online arena, so to be recognized for these efforts is an incredible validation for our digital efforts.”

Goldline Research recently completed its annual evaluation of web designers in the central United States. The research study was conducted from early March through mid-April 2009, with more than 1,300 web firms identified throughout the evaluated region.

“Those selected provide extensive client service that exceeds the industry standard,” said Analyst James King of Goldline Research. “We believe that they are setting the benchmarks for the industry as a whole.”

Goldline Research is an independent market research firm that specializes in evaluating professional services providers to help consumers identify and select leading services firms. Goldline Research’s proprietary research process includes market analysis, individual company interviews and, in many industries, interviews with consumers of those services to gain feedback on market conditions and provider service levels.

Goldline Research’s lists have been published in leading publications, including local, regional and national magazines.

Premier Studios announces the launch of its first publishing brand, Susie. The Susie brand will be geared toward teenage girls, and will include a monthly print magazine, a web community, events and other spin-off products of interest to teen girls.

The brainchild of Susie Shellenberger — bestselling teen author and former editor of Focus On the Family’s Brio Magazine — inked a publishing deal with Premier Studios in April to collaboratively develop the brand. Shellenberger will oversee all content development and culturally relevant focus of the brand, while Premier Studios will handle the design, operations, web development, marketing and publicity.

As a brand in the spiritual teen girl market, Susie Shellenberger’s name is unparalleled. With more than 20 years’ experience publishing Brio magazine, and more than 1.5 million books sold in this market, Susie is a recognized expert in ministering to this particular market segment.

Susie Magazine and its associated web community will be published under Premier Studios Publishing, a spin-off subsidiary of Premier Studios. Jeff Edmondson, Brand Manager at Premier Studios, said the print magazine is simply one component of a larger brand.

“The print magazine is the jumping-off point to a bigger picture that includes a web community, media development and much more,” he said. “And although the general print market is downsizing, in this particular market segment print is still huge. And with a recognized name as Susie’s is in this market , it really creates the perfect partnership.”

And Susie considers this partnership one of the greatest opportunities to reach teenage girls. “I’ve had the incredible opportunity to help motivate and shape an entire generation of girls, and I’m now even more excited about ministering to girls on a new level through Susie,” she said.

The first printed issue of Susie magazine will be released May 1, along with a web presence. The online brand will build toward an August launch of Susie’s new web community. Other products associated with the brand are in development now, to be rolled out at a later date.

This month, Premier Post rolls out its High Definition multi-camera broadcast production studio package. With the addition of four Sony High Definition broadcast cameras and switcher system, this package provides a complete XDCam HD environment for studio shooting and live event production, a first of its kind in the area.

“The system’s flexible workflow in fulfilling HD studio needs will provide an incredible benefit to our clients, because it allows for multi-camera production and live web delivery,” Premier Post’s Creative Director Matt Johnson said.

This HD system was designed to give the Premier Post team the ability to go straight to the edit suite during a live production, providing a seamless transition from studio acquisition to HD video editing. Additionally, the production package can be configured to include an editing system for on-location shoots, gaining efficiencies by eliminating tape recording and the digitizing process. The HD package is capable of delivering all formats of HD production, including 24p, and features tapeless recording, direct to optical drive.

Simultaneous live web delivery can also be integrated, in conjunction with Premier Studios’ in-house data center. Johnson added, “When combined with our existing fully equipped sound stage, the ability to serve up any format needed for online or broadcast distribution worldwide will provide a significant benefit of live multi-camera HD production to our clients.”

“It’s all about workflow efficiency and understanding the new model of content delivery, whether it is HD discs or multiple formats via the web,” said Johnson. “This system truly gives our clients the quality and flexibility in live production that we’ve grown accustomed to at Premier Studios.”

Premier Post recently added to its digital acquisition gear a RED ONE Digital Cinema Camera. The RED provides 4k production, nearly five times the resolution of 1080p HD, and gives the Post team a much broader use for production. The RED also operates in a fully digital capacity, allowing a tapeless workflow. This new workflow gives the team ultimate flexibility in production format, efficiency and final delivery.

“The RED opens both creative and technical doors, giving us the opportunity to push the envelope in all of our productions,” said Steven Tader, Post’s director of photography. “By incorporating the RED into our inventory, we can generate images traditionally not seen outside of a 35mm film shoot.”

The advanced processing in the camera handles frame rates from 1-120 frames per second, allowing time lapse and slow motion acquisition. The RED accepts cinema lenses, and Premier Post has one of the best — the RED 18-85mm lens, built to meet the specific demands of high-resolution digital production.

“We’re really looking forward to the quality the RED will provide,” Steven said. “With this camera, we’re going to take our clients to a whole new level.” Stay tuned for more updates — and examples of work we’re planning to shoot with the RED — in the very near future.

Premier Studios took home two awards at the annual Kansas City ADDYs event, held February 28 at Bartle Hall’s Grand Ballroom. Our Christmas card earned silver in the “Advertising Industry Self Promotion” category, while our “MyTachi.com” campaign for Tachikara brought back bronze honors in the “Mixed-Media, National Consumer” category.

Each year the Kansas City Ad Club hosts the ADDY competition to celebrate the industry’s best creative work. “This was the first time we’ve participated in the competition, so winning these two awards in our freshman year is particularly sweet,” said Gerald Smith, Premier Studios’ President and CEO. “We’re very pleased to have our creative work recognized.”

This year, regional ad agencies submitted more than 1,100 professional entries for awards consideration. “Kansas City’s ADDY competition honors the most effective advertising and creative efforts from the community as judged by a panel of professionals from outside the market,” said Rachel Hack, the Ad Club’s Executive Director. “In fact, Kansas City has hosted the largest local ADDY competition in the nation for three years, and each year brings new judges and fresh ideas.”

The American Advertising Federation, a not-for-profit industry association, conducts the ADDY® Awards through its 200-member advertising clubs. It’s the only creative awards program administered by the advertising industry for the industry.

Click the link below to check out our winning Christmas card and test your vintage toy knowledge.

And watch our commercials at MyTachi.com.

The possibility of expanding Premier Studios beyond the Kansas City area has been a long time reality since the company was founded in 1988. “In essence, we’ve just been waiting for the right opportunity,” says Mark Cork, Director of Operations and Account Services. “Because of two new client acquisitions (to be announced in April) who are headquartered in Nashville, TN, it just made sense for Nashville to be our first expansion city; even during a recession.”

To establish our Nashville office, two new employees have been hired and will begin work April 1. Heading up the office will be Account Supervisor, Joel Smith. An industry veteran, Joel brings 20+ years of experience in client services, producing, and studio management; making him the ideal choice for this role. Serving in the role of Account Coordinator will be Katie Hill. Katie is a 2006 graduate of the University of Tennessee with a degree in Broadcasting Communications. Katie brings a great mix of production training and experience that will serve Premier Studios and our clients very well.

The Nashville office is centrally located with convenient client access. One factor in deciding location was the need for necessary bandwidth; enough available to provide a high-speed “digital hallway” necessary to link the Nashville office with the Lenexa headquarters. This “digital hallway” will allow for High Definition video conferencing as well as fast and efficient file transfer speeds; providing the ability for the two locations to function as one. According to Cork, “The way we operate most efficiently at Premier Studios is by walking down the hallway to have collaborative conversations with team members. Because of this long-standing culture of communication we want to have the same ‘walk down the hallway’ capability with our teammates in Nashville that we have in Lenexa. This ‘digital hallway’ will extend that culture to our new Nashville office.”

The official opening of the Nashville expansion is April 1, with the actual office space opening to the public within 60 days.

When Lillenas Publishing’s Creative Director George Baldwin began looking at options for a recent recording project, he knew he wanted a high-quality professional studio without the associated costs of recording in L.A. or Nashville.

And he discovered an ideal solution practically in his backyard.

Over the past several years the Kansas City-based publisher has nearly always taken recording projects to Nashville, where studio options and great talent are plentiful. But after discovering the amazing potential of The Punch, the idea of staying in town increasingly made more sense.

“While Nashville is a natural place to consider when recording music, it was much more affordable to work at The Punch,” Baldwin said. “The hourly rate in Nashville is significantly more than what I paid here, making it very cost-effective, and the staff made us feel right at home. I’d do it again very quickly.”

When asked about his experience of recording at The Punch, George was quick to give major kudos to Lead Audio Engineer Ryan Cork and the Studios’ staff. “The ambiance of The Punch provided a great backdrop for our vocalists to record in.”

And recording is something they did a lot of. The group of 12 local vocalists recorded a total of 64 songs, spread out over multiple sessions as part of a larger Lillenas project that also includes printed products.

The Punch is currently recording several other music projects for various bands as well as a wide array of commercial sessions. For more information, visit thepunchrecording.com.

When MidAmerica Nazarene University created the Martin Luther King Living Legacy Award this month, they knew they needed to make a strong impact with its inaugural unveiling. Their decision was to tap the creative experts at Premier Post, who have delivered several award winning films for the university in the past.

“We had full confidence in the team’s creativity and ideas, and knew they would help us make a statement worthy of the name it represents,” said Dr. Anthony Moore, Assistant to the President for Diversity and Cultural Competency.

The Premier Post team determined the direction would be a short documentary focusing on the story behind the award bust, and the artist who created it. The approach would serve the dual purpose of demonstrating the university’s meaning for the award itself, as well as the artist’s creative journey of portraying the life of Dr. King.

“It was such an honor to be part of something so meaningful,” said Stephenie Halterman, Sr. Resourcing Manager, Premier Studios. “We love working with MNU, and take great pride in supporting its efforts to remember such a great man.”

The award was presented to a recipient who models the principles and beliefs of Dr. King. The presentation was the centerpiece of the university’s annual breakfast gathering, where members of the Kansas City business community came together to celebrate the life and legacy of Dr. King.

“This event is gaining momentum in our community, and we are so fortunate to have worked with Premier Post to help us deliver the award in a powerful way,” said Dr. Moore. “The team certainly helped us capture our story in a manner worthy of honoring Dr. King and his legacy. Everyone had such a great spirit, and our event wouldn’t have been the same without their creative efforts.”

Watch the video.

Jeff Edmondson recently joined Premier Studios as brand manager. His primary responsibility will be overseeing the development of products and resources resulting from Premier Studios’ partnerships.

“I’m really excited to be able to bring my expertise in development, marketing and product line expansion to new opportunities here at Premier Studios,” Jeff said. “It’s interesting that throughout my career, I’ve held diverse positions that are really all connected in some way. I’ve learned valuable skills from each job that I continue to build upon.”

Jeff has more than a decade of freelance and product development experience. Before joining Premier Studios, Jeff worked at Nazarene Publishing House, where he launched Barefoot Ministries, NPH’s proprietary publishing brand specifically aimed at youth culture. In his four years as publishing manager, Jeff developed direct-to-market channels for books, music and video projects and commerce-driven websites, and increased annual sales from $100,000 to more than $1 million.

Prior to working at NPH, Jeff advised numerous universities and non-profit organizations as an expert in young adult pop culture.

Jeff started his career as an officer in the Air Force, serving in NORAD’s Space Surveillance Center near Colorado Springs, CO. (At one time he was responsible for maintaining a catalog of all manmade objects orbiting the earth).

While he initially started as a deputy crew commander, Jeff’s final position at NORAD was as the lead orbital analyst, working with NASA, Jet Propulsion Lab, European Space Agency and a host of other organizations.

“People ask me all the time what being an orbital analyst has in common with communications,” Jeff said. “I tell them that the analyst job taught me how to take in and process lots of information at once to solve problems, and then explain the answers to other people.”

Jeff holds a bachelor of science degree in applied mathematics from Valdosta State University, and a master’s degree in orbital mechanics and space technology from the Air Force Institute of Technology.

This year Cobalt unveils the 37, its first yacht ever to be produced in its Kansas factory. Cobalt wanted to capitalize on the excitement already swirling around this new model, so the company came to PremierPost’s creative team, who suggested a new approach to its 2009 model year DVD.

“This is a big year for our brand, because the 37 allows us to fill a niche and expand our product line,” said Tom Wilson, Cobalt’s creative services manager. “With all the buzz surrounding the 37, we knew we needed to make a big statement. We knew PremierPost would help us convey the perfect message, and they did some fabulous work.”

PremierPost’s creative team used a new lens package, different shooting styles and a 32-foot camera crane, giving viewers the sensation they were stepping aboard — and inside of — a new level of luxury yacht.

Cobalt unveiled the 37 in November at its dealer meeting in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, where it got an enthusiastic response. It makes its consumer debut this February at the Miami International Boat Show, where Wilson expects consumers to react with the same level of excitement.

“Everyone at Cobalt is extremely proud of the craftsmanship and innovation that went into the 37,” Wilson said. “I think PremierPost created a compelling look and feel for the DVD that really captures the unique essence of this boat.”

Watch the video of the Cobalt 37 below:

When contemporary Christian music artist Michael W. Smith brought his “It’s a Wonderful Christmas-Symphony Tour” to Kansas City on Dec. 5, several Premier Studios employees attended the sold-out show — but not as audience members. Premier Post was brought in to provide event consultation and visual support for the concert.

The concert, held at the College Church of the Nazarene in Olathe, featured Smith, the Kansas City Symphony and recent “American Idol” contestants Melinda Doolittle and George Huff. Smith sang and played piano on selections from his most recent holiday CD, “It’s a Wonderful Christmas” in front of more than 3,700 fans.

Premier Post’s Creative Director, Matt Johnson, worked closely with the Kansas City Symphony, the College Church of the Nazarene staff and the Michael W. Smith team to provide video production for the concert, which included a five-camera HD package.

“We’ve worked with Michael and the symphony before, but this was the first time we worked with them together,” Johnson said. “It was exciting to bring our talent and expertise to such a great event, and to an incredible venue.”

Smith’s holiday tour will visit more than 15 cities this month, appearing with local symphonies at each stop.

Premier Studios is proud to announce the addition of Julie Major as its new Creative Director. Part of Julie’s responsibilities include strategic thinking and creative execution for Premier’s Affinity Brands.

Julie comes to Premier from GlynnDevins Advertising & Marketing in Overland Park, where she developed successful campaigns in a variety of media for multi-million dollar resort retirement communities around the country. Her work has earned nine National Mature Media gold and silver awards, silver and bronze AAF Addy awards and a top National Housing Association award.

Before returning to Kansas City in 2005, she helped create the Division of Enrollment Management’s Marketing and Communications Department at the University of Miami. While serving as the department’s assistant director, she earned her master’s degree in advertising from the School of Communications. Prior to that, she worked with clients as diverse as McDonald’s, Ace Hardware, the Professional Golfers’ Association, GNC Health & Nutrition and the National Athletic Trainers Association.

Premier Studios recently completed the 2009 John Deere Day program for authorized equipment dealerships. The project utilizes a DVD delivery system to reach approximately 450,000 agricultural customers across North America, for in-dealership presentation. Premier Studios produced and compiled 45 videos, highlighting current Deere & Company products and services.

John Deere Day is an annual open house, family event that takes place at each of the 1,760 John Deere Dealerships across North America. The purpose of the event is two-fold: to introduce new products and technology, and to foster strong dealer/customer relationship. Jim Lind, Senior Producer for Deere & Company Agricultural Marketing Division stated, “This is the primary vehicle for the dealership to connect with their customers on a large scale.”

Serving as the backdrop of the event, the John Deere Day DVD features all of the latest products for the current model year, as well as entertaining and informative “non-product” videos ranging from agricultural safety to cowboy poetry.

“We always look forward to producing this campaign,” stated Matt Johnson, Creative Director for PremierPost. “It’s a time for us to come together with John Deere and develop fresh ideas for highlighting the new products, and it also allows us to pull out all of the tools to get the job done.”

The Premier Studios team utilized the sound stage for studio shooting, HD video editing, and audio studio for voice and music, as well as DVD production in order to deliver the final DVD. It will be featured across the John Deere Dealership Network for the next several months, and will also be used in vocational-agricultural schools, technical colleges and high schools across North America.