New F11 Rentals Las Vegas Studio Cyclorama - Open for Business
The studio cyc game in Vegas isn’t the easiest to navigate, especially for out of town productions that don’t know the offerings. Sure, there are some decent places but most are too small for many productions, don’t deliver on amenities or are out of the way and not convenient for talent or crew. That’s all changed with the opening of F11 Rentals Studio Cyc. This newly built stage offers a 3 sided cyclorama, 26’x35’x36′ with 18′ tall clearance. The stage offers free wifi, a secured yard with 12×14 rollup door and ample parking. The conditioned stage is open for business at this time and will continue to upgrade it’s offering with new makeup/wardrobe space, green room, lofted production overlook and state of the art lighting grid, all of which are coming soon.
The space is large enough to accommodate vehicles, multiple talent productions, photo shoots, music videos and various types of large rehearsals for the entertainment industry. The F11 network speed runs on fiber and offers plenty of upload and download speed for live streams productions. The studio is situated next to the airport and is conveniently located not far from the strip. To make things even more convenient F11 Rentals is one of the largest production rental houses in Las Vegas which makes it easy to add gear to any shoot in the studio before or during the shoot itself. They also offer crew to fill out any production needs.
This studio, now open, will soon be the premiere cyclorama stage in Las Vegas and it’s exciting to finally have a space of this quality in the city. Contact F11 to arrange a visit if you’re interested or to go their site to book it in 2020 or beyond. This studio has the FiveSix stamp approval.
Shooting in a Green Room - No, Not that type of Green Room!
Corporate video production can have it's challenges. One of these challenges is locations as we don't often get to choose where we shoot. If we're lucky, we get a scout day or pictures of the location we're supposed to shoot in or we've been there before and already know what we're walking into. In these cases, we are prepared with the correct lighting and grip set up to make everything look great. But sometimes we go into a location blind as to what we'll be working with. At these times it's best to bring a versatile lighting set up because sometimes a green room is exactly that.
Recently in Las Vegas, we walked into a room where the windows had such a strange tint on them that all the light coming into the room was an eerie green in color. These were large floor to ceiling windows and there was no time or enough crew to gel them accordingly. Luckily we had brought four Litepanel Gemini 1 x 1 LED panels. With these lights we were able to dial in the amount of green to match the light coming in from the windows and then after that, it was simply white balancing the Canon C300 Mark II cameras accordingly. The room, despite looking eerily haunted, looked perfect on camera and the subjects, instead of looking sickly, appeared vibrant. It's a simple technique but would have been much more difficult to pull off without the right tools. It's one of the things FiveSix is known for, everything turned out great in a less than ideal situation. Effective video production is about being prepared, even if you're tossed into a glowing green room.
Render This - New Mac Pro Arrives at FiveSix
Sometimes you just need a little extra power to spice things up in the office. Here at FiveSix Productions, we've been running a few different workstations for some time now, a couple mac trashcans from awhile back and a couple newer imac pro machines. But with the new Mac Pro out, we decided our Edit 1 Bay could use an extra boost. So far so good. We run the Adobe Creative Cloud suite working primarily with Premiere Pro and After Effects but also DaVinci Resolve for some color correction. This machine takes on video editing, real time 2D and 3D graphics creation and powers through the renders at a much better click than its predecessor, but I should hope so for the price tag. We didn't load it up with all the extras and purchased most of the additions from outside of Apple, though we did opt for the afterburner card to help with quick encoding. We're only a few weeks in but our editors can surely tell the difference.
There isn't much else to say. We've cut a commercial, half a dozen corporate videos and a short film so far and haven't had any issues. We'll update soon once we've really put it to the test and have some hard data of our own to report. Until then, happy cutting!
Political Campaign Commercials: BTS
Behind the Scenes on local election commercials.
Every time an election season nears, our calendars fill up with plenty of campaign commercials. Sometimes it's someone campaigning for a local, "entry level" position, other times, someone is trying to move into the big-time in D.C. T.V. commercials are one of the most effective ways to get their message to voters. We turn a blind eye to our own political ideals, and do our best to create a commercial that will stand out.
Some commercials are simple, with just the candidate delivering a message to the camera. Other commercials may be much more elaborate with multiple locations, talent, and a huge crew. A great commercial requires all aspects to work together to tell the message. The right location, lighting, music, and pacing, are just as important as the script. Where it might seem like too much, we love bringing sliders, jibs, extra lighting, and cinema lenses. This can really help to create an amazing t.v. commercial, and wow the client.
If your Southern California or Las Vegas campaign needs a great commercial, look no further! We're a one-stop-shop for all your video production needs.
Gigantic, fire-breathing Praying Mantis!
Las Vegas, if you've ever heard of it, is a pretty neat place; there's nice weather, plenty of great out-door activities, lots of entertainment, and a really good cinnamon roll place on the west side of town called "Cinnaholic". There's also this wonderful and ... eclectic... little place called Fremont Street East, it's a magic place filled with a tapestry of things that hipsters like. I'm no hipster, but I say, to each their own; it's good those folks have something special. Anyhoo, FiveSix Productions recently got to do an early morning shoot on Fremont Street where "old Las Vegas" mixes with the new. There's iconic hotels such as the 75+ year old El Cortez, and a gigantic, fire-breathing Praying Mantis near the relatively young, Container Park. The old architecture, glowing neon, and local art that adorns the buildings, all mix together to create a great environment to capture some really beautiful images. For your next Las Vegas video production, consider getting away from the hustle and bustle of Las Vegas Blvd., and head on down to downtown and Fremont Street; and, hey, if you need a helping hand, give FiveSix Productions a call, we'll be happy to join you.
Commercial Video Production
Our take on Commercial Video Production...
We've all been there, relaxing in our homes, watching the latest episode of Dancing With The... watching the latest episode of Trading Spaces... Chopped... Keeping Up With.... Damn. Okay. We've all been there, relaxing in our homes, watching football and feeding our pet bald eagle, George Washington Roosevelt Elway, and an advertisement comes on, and the blood begins to boil. How can some commercials look great, and some look like train wrecks!? I don't know about you, but one of my favorite activities when I'm in another town, is to watch local commercials, and totally rag on citizens of that town or city for how crappy their Chevy dealership spots are. You may think to yourself "Dang Jim, he's right; why does that crazy old guy from the car dealership/dentist/pawn shop keep making these horrible, commercials?" I'd rather spend 30-45 seconds having a snapping turtle go to town on my hamstring, than experience one more awful jingle being played over poorly lit, shot, and edited commercial about how "We're extending our Halloween Super Sale, and our prices on new and used Ford Pintos won't be beaten! Also, you can get a free root canal with every purchase, now through President's Day!"
There is a solution to this madness. Hire a video production company that knows what they're doing. A company with accredited, experienced, award-winning crew members who can take your precious advertising budget, and deliver the best possible product. We here at FiveSix Productions know just how important it is to make sure that you have an effective, visually appealing commercial. One that represents the product you work so very hard to produce. From the inception of concept through the final edit, our team will work tirelessly to deliver way above your expectations, on time and on budget, whether you're a startup making a local spot, or a Fortune 500 needing a national commercial. Whether in Las Vegas, Long Beach, or a far away land, FiveSix Productions wants to be your commercial video production company.
Orange County video production
In an effort to reduce confusion, we're changing our official description from Los Angeles Video Production Company of Orange County to simply Orange County Video Production Company of Orange County.
Southern California, if you haven't noticed, is a big place, and there's never a shortage of video production work to be done. It's not just big budget films in Hollywood with explosions, lasers, beautiful movie stars, and all that- there is production everywhere. From Irvine to Thousand Oaks to San Bernardino, and all points between, there's a bountiful bouquet of commercials, corporate work, web videos, short films, documentaries, etc.
While we dream of Hollywood stardom like the next guy and gal, we here at FiveSix Productions love what we do, and where we do it. Producing industry-leading content, while striving to become the best Orange County video production company is what we're all about.
Our team and network of professionals have decades of experience in every aspect of the production process. From nurturing and developing your initial idea, throughout the final edit, we work relentlessly to deliver beyond your expectations. From our office in Long Beach, we're centrally located in the Los Angeles/Orange County metroplex, and we're excited to work with you on your next project!
Live Event Video Production
While FiveSix Productions is known for our exceptional commercial and web videos, one sometimes overlooked area is our ability to aid in live event video production. Our experienced crews craft up industry-leading content to be played at your event, but we also have talented, experienced crew to aid during your event. Whether you need man on the street interviews of event goers, recordings of break out sessions, general sessions, happy face videos, or just gear to accomplish these tasks, we here at FiveSix Productions have what you need. We pride ourselves on being the best video production company in Long Beach, Orange County, Southern California and Las Vegas, and we are focused on make sure that you, our clients get more than you expected.
Along with our staff members, we have accumulated a long and distinguished list of freelance cinematographers, camera operators, audio technicians, grips, PA's, and on-site editors that will make sure that every aspect of your live event video production is perfect. Give us a call today, and let us know what you have planned for your next trip to the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center, the Las Vegas Convention Center, the Anaheim Convention Center, or one of the many, many convention and meeting centers in the Las Vegas metro area.
Filming at Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas
One of our most frequented Las Vegas video production venues is Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, Delano, hotel Four Seasons hotel, and the 2 Million square foot Mandalay Bay Convention Center.
This property is gigantic! In Mandalay Bay, there are 3,309 rooms, a huge casino floor, about two dozen restaurants, a House of Blues venue, a theater or two, and an events center that is a little smaller than MGM Grand Garden. Then, there is the Delano, which has an additional 1,117 rooms, all of which are a minimum of 750 square feet- so we end up doing a lot of in-room/suite shooting there. Delano has a couple of restaurants, one of which is at the very top of the hotel, and includes amazing views of the strip, mountains, city, etc. The Four Seasons is hidden, but a gem once you find it; it's really beautiful, occupying four of the floors of Mandalay Bay near the top, and then there are some meeting rooms, restaurants, and a nice looking lobby on the ground level. The best way to get to the Four Seasons is to simply valet there, but, if you want to push in from M.B., you need to head towards the pool/M.B. valet pickup.
Mandalay Bay is located at 3950 S Las Vegas Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89119.
Parking is easily accessed from Las Vegas BlVd and Mandalay Bay Rd., but we prefer Frank Sinatra Dr. Mandalay Bay is an MGM property, so everyone pays to park, including the new convention center parking garage. Pushing gear in easy, but you definitely get your steps in if you're parking at Mandalay Bay garage and going to the convention center.
The convention/meeting space is located on the south and southeast end of the property, and our friends at Encore handle in-house audio/lighting services. There’s not always communication between the client and the house, so make sure to bring enough power and audio cabling, just in case it isn’t always set. We’ve also gotten into the habit of bringing a lavalier kit, XLR turnarounds, XLR to 1/4 inch, and various other cables for when we run into various and differing audio boards, we’ll be set. This is one of the largest convention venues in the city, and an expansion was just completed. Biggest tip: parking is usually easy, but beware, when big conventions come in, the convention garage fills up really fast.
If you're in an oversized vehicle, there's an auxiliary lot across Vegas Blvd, just take Four Seasons Drive and go behind the Shell Station- kind of a pain in the butt, but hey, buy a smaller truck.
The most important item, however, is that there are two Starbucks. They are both really far from the convention center- the closer one, of course, has the longest line. The other is located near House of Blues... so, it's good to stop on your way.
It's a Great Time to be Outside!
As you may or may not know, Las Vegas can get a little warm in the summer- if you consider over 100°F for weeks-on-end warm, that is. Well, we're not quite there yet, and the spring-time weather is wonderful! That's why we absolutely love to get outside for production work whenever we can! Recently, we had the opportunity to film at the Linq and High Roller, down on Las Vegas Boulevard, and we loved every moment. We of course don't shy away from the comforts of modern heating and air conditioning, but, any chance to breath deep that fresh-ish air of Vegas, we're all about it. See you soon on our next Las Vegas video production!
