Southwest Colorado-based filmmaker Michael Bud and his team at Box Canyon Film recently won a Gold Telly Award for a commercial they filmed in Montezuma County.
“We are blessed to live in one of the most scenic parts of the country, so taking advantage of our backyard was non-negotiable,” Bud said. “Everything was filmed around Cortez and Dolores.”
The 30-second video advertises a Ford F250 for Keesee Motor Co. in Cortez. A local actor posed as a rancher to keep the storyline “relatable.”
“We wanted to break that mold of local dealership commercials,” Bud said. “No Ford’s stock footage, no cheesy dealership floor shots.”
And the key to doing that, he explained, was exceptional planning.
It starts with “understanding who’s your audience and what is the core idea you’re trying to convey,” he said. “Every decision, every cut, every frame has a meaning and serves its purpose because you need to tell a story in 30 seconds.”
Before they filmed, then, they had “a detailed plan with storyboards” so they knew what shots they needed and where and what time of day to shoot them.
“If you’ve done your preparation right, filming is easy,” he said. “You just go down the list.”
Though, “be ready to pivot,” because “unexpected challenges is a part of the job description in film production.”
Bud remembered how, right before the photo shoot, a rainstorm “washed out some roads and made the first location of the day inaccessible.”
“For the rest of the day, we were chasing light,” he said. “Eric Fulcher, my gaffer, was able to mitigate that.”
He said he “frequently works with the same crew,” and gave a special shoutout to Andrew Jeske – “a seasoned copywriter from the East Coast” – for “exquisite scripts.”
Bud also recognized LA-based Shaley Brooks for “his expertise in color grading” that “helped us dial in the look.”
Since 1979, the Telly Awards have recognized “excellence in video and television across all screens.” It was “founded … to honor local, regional and cable television commercials, with non-broadcast video and television programming added soon after,” according to its website.
More than 13,000 filmmakers and creatives enter from six continents around the world and a “diverse judging body of over 250 executives” review submissions, the website reads.
“It’s an honor to get a nod from the jury at Telly Awards,” Bud said. “We have very talented film crews here … (and) it brings more attention to Southwest Colorado.”
There are 13 categories, and Box Canyon Film won in the Local TV category.
“Advertising is not about just selling, it’s about connecting the right product to the right people. Otherwise, it’s a wasted effort,” he said. “Your goal is to understand who the product is for, why they care, and how to present it in a way that speaks to their values.”
He added how “It’s especially important in local advertising – too often people forget why we choose local business over ordering online.”
