WASHINGTON, DC - Paul London, president and Quantel eQ artist at K Street Post (www.kstreetpost.com), recently completed work on six high definition public service announcements for the USO, the nonprofit, private organization that provides morale, welfare and recreation-type services to U.S. men and women in uniform around the world. The project marks the first campaign that the USO has shot and finished in HD. The ads will run throughout 2006.
The USO project was produced by creative director Rich Park for agency Williams Whittle Associates in Alexandria, VA. More than half of the campaign’s footage was shot in HD using Panasonic’s VariCam camera. Addition elements given to London included news footage from hurricane Katrina, supplied by the Coast Guard, as well as stock footage, supplied by the US Army and USO tour photographers.
“The eQ was the right tool for this type of job, where you have this mixed resolution coming in,” says London. “I conformed everything in the eQ and it went like a breeze. Everything came in as it should and then I did a color correction pass with the built-in color corrector.
“I had to do extensive color correction on a couple of shots that had a sepia tone to them. I couldn’t get the original clips and I was working off of a sub-master,” he recalls. “The eQ was great for going back in and restoring color in selected areas. I had to restore blue sky, flesh tones and a helicopter, and then match the shots to the rest of the footage.”
Ian Kach, who shares space with London, provided voice-over recording services and audio sweetening for the spots. The PSA package is comprised of six English and six Spanish versions cut in :90, :60, :30, :15, and :10 lengths. The spots follow the theme: “In times of war, in times of disaster, in times of peace, in times of danger, in times of joy and in times of pain the USO is always there.”