Tickle the Ivories
The Brief
Liverpool ONE approached us as they needed to promote their annual Tickle the Ivories Campaign and wanted us to pitch an idea for the video.
Tickle the Ivories is a campaign developed by Liverpool ONE whereby pianos are placed around the area to encourage the public to play them.
Our idea for this film was to have numerous pianists playing their own version of Scott Joplin's 'The Entertainer'. We wanted to create seamless cuts throughout the video to the different pianists to give the impression of one continuous track. We also proposed the idea of a continuous 360 degree shot of every pianist which Liverpool ONE loved.
Delivery
The timeframe for this particular project (after the last shoot date) was around two weeks which gave us plenty of time to play with the footage in post and get all aspects perfect within the video. The online video had to be completed before the campaign started. This production was an exciting one to be involved in.
Liverpool ONE found great success with the film, particularly throughout their social media channels.
The Challenge
This project was full of challenges but the toughest one being the 360 degree shot we wanted to execute at the different locations. As the pianists were all in different locations we had to mark out an identical circular path around each piano location for the cameraman to follow. This was something we had never done before so it was a learning curve for everyone throughout the project. It was critical we got this technique correct for post production purposes. Using the same radius measurements for each circular path helped us execute this technique.
Another major challenge in this project was getting the pianists to play their version of the song at the same speed. It was important to get this correct so that the post production process went smoothly. A metronome played into the ears of the pianists ensured they were all playing at the correct speed.
Sound design in particular for this project was extraordinary. The two and a half minute short film features twenty eight sound effects from the actual locations enabling us to create an authentic soundscape for each location. It also showcases eight different piano tracks, all recorded live separately and mixed together in post production to create one fluent track.