Taking Control of Captions and Subtitles

Recently we took another look at the way we have been doing captions and subtitles and decided to try a new approach. What we’ve found is a better way that not only saves money but allows us to have more control over the process and get better results.

Our client Lions Clubs International always wants captions for web files and frequently translates their videos into their 10 official languages. In the past, we would send our video with 10 translated scripts to a vendor that had to employ 10 additional translators to get the job done. The Lions translators couldn’t see the work until it was done and communication was old-fashioned and frustrating using notes in Excel docs.

Now we use 3Play Media to create our captions and Amara Integration to create subtitles from the English captions. The Lions translators are able to work in an online video editor to add subtitles and even preview how they will look. There is no awkward communication with another translator, and they can see their work as they go. Everyone has embraced this new approach. We think the translators might even look forward to doing the next translation. And the client is thrilled because we have cut their cost by nearly 75 percent! We want to thank @3playmedia and @AmaraSubs for helping us make this transition.

Here is a sample of the work we've done using this new platform. Knights of the Blind is one in a series of videos Lions Clubs International is producing for their upcoming centennial celebration. You can access both the captions and all 10 subtitled languages in the cog wheel. Happy viewing!

http://bit.ly/1X3mRHe

How to Help Fairdale, Illinois, Tornado Victims

Crews are on the ground working to provide relief to victims of at least one deadly tornado that swept through the midwest Thursday night. The hardest hit by the massive tornado was the town of Fairdale, Illinois.

At CBH Video Production, we're sending our thoughts and prayers to those in Fairdale. We're also encouraging our followers to donate to the Kirkland Lions Club here and/or donate to the American Red Cross.

Those first moments after disaster strikes are the most critical. It's important to know that the money you donate will go directly to the people who need it. 

Sadly, we've covered our fair share of disasters for clients over the years. We know first hand how hard organizations like Lions Clubs International Foundation (LCIF) and the Red Cross work to ensure your money gets to the people who need it the most.

People.com Features CBH Video in Article

People.com featured our video "Lisa Sees Her Family for the First Time," in an article focusing on inspiring stories.

The article titled "7 Inspiring Stories of People Experiencing Senses for the First Time," highlights several video stories of disabled people experiencing senses that we often take for granted - like sight.

We produced this video for our client Lions Clubs International, who are world renown for being Knights of the Blind. The story of Lions helping Lisa Johnson regain her vision is just one of their many projects around the globe where they help people in need. 

CBH Documentary Tells Story Behind Award Winning Rose Parade Float

Congratulations to our client Lions Club International for a rosey start to 2014! They participated in the 125th Annual Tournament of Roses Parade and their float "Matteo's Dream" took home the Tournament Special Trophy (Our interpretation of this trophy is that it qualified for multiple awards but the judges wanted to fair to the other floats, but you can read the official meaning of the trophy here).

While Lions enter a float in the Rose Parade every year, this year's entry was particularly special for CBH Video. The float design was inspired by an all-inclusive playground in Concord, Calif., built in 2007 for a little boy who had cerebral palsy named Matteo. The playground made headlines in the Bay area for being one of the first inclusive parks in the region and also because the community built it in eight days. Sadly, Matteo passed away in 2011. CBH Video was there when the park opened to capture the celebration.

Our team was heavily involved in promoting Matteo's Dream by collaborating with our client on a social media campaign and filming the float decorating process. It was quite the experience with the aroma and bold colors of various flowers and plants filling your senses. Most of the "live decorations" (Rose Parade lingo for florals) go on the day before, so it's a mad rush to decorate everything. You can see the pictures from the shoot in the gallery below.

Overall we are very proud to be a part of projects like this Matteo's Dream. It's not often we get to revisit projects like these which have a lasting impact on our hearts. But we're very thankful for the times we do get to go back.

H Foundation Shoot with Former Mayor Daley

No, we didn't photoshop former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley into the photo...though our editors are skilled enough to pull something like that off. This was taken during a shoot for the H Foundation's annual fundraiser - Goombay Bash. 

The H Foundation raises money that goes towards research to find a cure for cancer. Nearly every dollar they raise goes towards the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. They also have a great founding story - It was over cocktails, specifically the Goombay Smash. So it was only natural that the their annual fundraiser be named Goombay Bash.

Daley, whose late wife Maggie lost her battle with cancer, agreed to make a short video message encouraging people to donate and applaud their continued support which would show during the event. Since the former mayor is a big local celebrity in the Windy City, H Foundation wanted to make the video a surprise for the Goombay Bash and we welcomed the opportunity to work with them again.

Working with Daley was truly a delight and a lot of fun. He spoke from the heart during his message and nailed it quickly. Daley even agreed to let us ask him a couple questions about his relationship with the H Foundation and how cancer was personal to him (If you know anything about throwing an impromptu interview at a politician, you can appreciate how rare it was). Afterwards he stuck around to talk with us along with take a few pictures and then was on his way.

The biggest challenge of this shoot was making sure to keep it secret and not posting any of the photos until after the event.

Now without further delay -- here's Daley's surprise message for H Foundation's Goombay Bash, which took place over the weekend.

A Jam-Packed & Productive January

CBH Video really hit the ground running in 2013. By the end of January our company produced three videos, launched a Facebook page and began planning for a couple of major projects.

Two of the three videos premiered at the United Nations in New York City on Friday, February 1. One of the videos celebrated Lions Clubs International 25th year of their Peace Poster Contest. You can read more about this year's winner here. Traditionally, the winner is always revealed during the Lions' gathering at the U.N. You can watch the video produced by Noeleen McGrath and edited by Tom Tomchak below:

The second video to premier celebrated LCI's commitment to the U.N. Millennium Development Goals.  Lions pledged to work with the U.N. to achieve there goals addressing global issues in 2008. Our team worked to produce a video that showed what Lions are doing around the world to help the U.N. meet their goals by the 2015 deadline. You can read more the MDG's here. Watch the video produced by Ally Clark and edited by Tom Tomchak and Scott Roberts below:

The third video will premier this summer in Hamberg, Germany for the Lions Clubs International Convention. We can't tell you much, except that we went down under to produce it.

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CBH Video had close to 80 "Likes" after the first day the page was made public

CBH Video also launched their own Facebook page. Our team was especially excited about this because we gained over 80 "Likes" in the first week. We're really enjoying the interactions on the page while keeping everyone in the loop about our upcoming projects and sharing behind the scenes photos from our shoots. If you haven't checked it out, you can do so here.

January has been a very productive month for our team and we're excited, because it's only the beginning. We're brainstorming on ideas for a number projects, which we're looking forward to sharing with you.

CBH Video Wins 4 Telly's in 2012

Movies have the Oscars. TV has the Emmy's. We have the Telly's…literally.

“The Telly Awards has a mission to honor the very best in film and video,” said Executive Director of the Telly Awards Linda Day.  “CBH Video's accomplishment illustrates their creativity, skill, and dedication to their craft and serves as a testament to great film and video production.”

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From left to right​, back row: Dan Morris and Scott Roberts; Middle row: Brenda Thomchak, John Timmerman and Ally Clark ; Front row: Anne Northrup and Carole Burke Hallberg

This year CBH Video set a company record when we were honored with four Telly awards, including one Silver and three Bronze Telly Awards, in the 33rd Annual Telly Awards.

“We believe video is a powerful way to inspire and motivate audiences," said CBH Video President and Owner Carole Burke Hallberg. "It’s a great honor for our team to receive this type of recognition from our peers. We have a very talented team of professionals who take great pride in their work and it shows." 

The Telly Awards is the premier award recognizing outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs, as well as the finest video and film productions, and web commercials, videos and films. With nearly 11,000 entries from all 50 states and numerous countries, these awards are truly an honor.

A judging panel of over 500 accomplished industry professionals judged the competition and evaluated entries to recognize distinction in creative work – entries do not compete against each other – rather entries are judged against a high standard of merit.  The judges rate each entry on a 10 point scale. A score of 9 or higher merits a Silver Telly, while a score of 7.0 -8.9 receives a Bronze Telly.

Nearly 10-percent of entries are chosen as Winners of the Silver Telly, the highest honor. Our entry, a recruitment video titled "Become Involved, Become a Lion," is the first video produced by our team to win a Silver Telly.

Approximately 25-percent of entries are chosen as Winners of the Bronze Telly and CBH Video is especially proud to be the recipient of three Bronze Telly awards this year for our entries: "Joplin Disaster Relief," "In Times of Disaster…Lions are There," and "LQ, January 2012."

CBH Video has won numerous Telly Awards since 2002, but this year marks the highest number of Telly Awards in our company's history. We are very proud of each member on our team who devotes a great deal of time and creativity to ensure the videos we produce are highly effective and unique; This year's success is the icing on the cake and preview of great things to come for 2013.

"We have a successful history of producing outstanding videos for Lions Clubs International," Burke Hallberg said. "We are grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with Lions to create powerful and meaningful videos that showcase their global leadership in humanitarian service. A big creative bar was set  for us and our goal is to reach even higher in 2013."