The making of Envoy’s Vision film
The Olivine team proudly partnered with Envoy to produce Envoy’s Vision for the Future of Work. From early creative ideation through post-production—I’m taking you behind the scenes to show you what it takes to bring a film to life.
Watch Envoy’s Vision film
At Olivine, we’ve been honored to work with Envoy, the leading workplace experience platform, for the past two years on product marketing strategy, customer stories, and product films. Our biggest and proudest project to-date just released: Envoy’s Vision for the Future of Work.
Envoy started with visitor management and is now moving beyond the front desk and into the entire workplace. On February 11, 2020, they not only shared their vision for the future of work, but they also announced their new meeting room management product, overhauled their mobile app, opened their API, and updated their website with a brand refresh. Envoy asked Olivine to produce a film to share their vision of the future workplace to support this massive launch. The film needed to capture the heartbeat of Envoy’s mission to Challenge The Status Quo™️ and continue to be relevant years after the launch.
The Olivine Creative Team
The Olivine team is unique from other film production companies because we combine cinematic filmmaking with product marketing strategies. What that means is our marketing videos showcase products in an accurate, compelling way while being grounded in great storytelling that feels authentic and looks cinematic.
Todd Wilson, Executive Producer and Director of Photography
Gary Lundgren, Director, and Editor
Raechel Lambert, Producer and Product Marketer
Ashley Wilson, Producer, and Brand Strategist
Phase 1: Creative Development
We start every film project by meeting stakeholders and identifying the goal of the film. Then we begin digesting the brand positioning and messaging and attend product demos to make sure we’re up to date with the latest features and capabilities. We then interviewed our key film stakeholders to understand what they uniquely care about and how it fits Envoy’s mission. Finally, we outlined the creative approach, crafted the story beats, and developed the script.
We worked closely with the Envoy team throughout the entire process and they were incredible partners. To name a few: Christy Hecht (Director of Product Marketing), Micha Hershman (VP of Marketing), and Larry Gadea (CEO). We also had great help from Amy Devereux and Jon Rundle, Envoy designers, for the film's product elements.
Identify goals
What is the north star for this film? How should viewers feel when they watch this film? What action are we leading them to take afterward? Getting clarity on the film's goal from the very beginning is key to producing a successful film.
Outline the creative approach
We determined that the creative approach for The Vision Story would be told through Envoy’s leadership team's unscripted voices speaking directly to the camera to create an authentic, compelling story. We set out to make the film feel timeless and visual, without excessive explanation to be effective for years to come. The heart of the film was to be centered around people’s lives being transformed in the workplace using Envoy’s technology.
Craft story beats
Once the story beats are finalized, we moved to scripting. While the film is more of a documentary style and not scripted per se since no one recites memorized lines, there are agreed-upon messages that need to come across to tell the story. Based on the script, Gary asks open-ended questions in a conversational style to the interviewer. The interviewees answer Gary directly, which we later edit to tell an authentic story that feels natural and conversational.
Phase 2: Pre-Production
A whole bunch of stuff has to happen before the film shoot. Key film shoot tasks include booking the film crew, renting the right gear, casting main voices and extras, scouting the film site, developing the shot list, sending the call sheet, and buying the backdrop (then asking strangers to help you carry insanely heavy backdrop). There’s also a whole slew of non-film stuff that has to happen, including pre-ordering meals for the crew, reserving parking, and getting building access.
Make the shot list
A shot list is a full log of all the shots that will be in the film; essentially it is a checklist filled with minute details that will give the film a sense of direction and efficiency. It includes what lens will be used and how the camera will be operated. “Sticks” is for steady shots on a tripod. A “dolly” is for smooth movement panning shots and “easy rig” is a backpack frame that hangs the camera right in front of the chest for more flexible maneuverability.
Compile the call sheet
The call sheet is a film crew’s roadmap—it tells everyone exactly where they need to be and when. It also has critical contact information and the address of the nearest hospital. There is a call sheet for each day of filming and it’s meticulously compiled and distributed by the assistant director using the director’s shot list.
Get the product ready
When we’re working with products, we have to prepare in the same way we would with an actor. We need to map out exactly what parts of the product will be on screen, what functionality will be displayed, and how it fits in the wider story. Often times we’re filming product that doesn’t exist yet, so we use a combination of product mockups and post-production graphics to showcase the product convincingly.
Phase 3: Film Shoot
The Envoy Vision Film was shot over two days with a 10 person crew.
The Envoy Vision film crew
Film Director, Gary Lundgren
Controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the script while guiding the technical crew and cast in the fulfilment of that vision.
Assistant Director, Mariana Finelli
Arranges logistics, keeps us on schedule and makes sure everyone is where they’re supposed to be at the right time. Also oversees health and safety on set.
Dir of Photography, Todd Wilson
Assists the film director by establishing the visual look of the movie. Tell the story through artistic and technical decisions such as lighting, film stock, shot selection, and camera operation.
Assistant Camera, Jonathan Salazar
Responsible for installing lenses and keeping the camera in focus as it is shooting, as well as building the camera at the beginning of the day and taking it apart at the end.
Producer, Ashley Wilson
Works behind-the-scenes on the pre-and post-production creative, as well as project planning and invoicing to keep all trains on track.
Gaffer, Mike Van Dine
Head of the electrical department, responsible for the design and execution of the lighting plan.
Key Grip, Luke Savoy
The key grip works with the director of photography to help set up the set and to achieve correct lighting and blocking.
Production Sound, Michael Clifford
Captures the sound for each shot, selects which microphones will be used for each setup, mix audio from all of the microphones in real-time into a "mix track" that will be used while viewing playbacks and during the edit.
Eyeline Prompter, Rebecca Barron Sets up and oversee the eyeline prompter, equipment that makes it so interviewees feel like they are talking directly to Gary, not looking into a camera lens.
Set Dresser, Jules Kobelin
Art directs and sets up interview backdrop to make sure it has the right color, texture, depth and arrangement.
On the first day of filming, we captured interviews with our main voices from the Envoy leadership team. Each had a one-hour conversation with our Director Gary while looking straight into the camera via the eyeline prompter. We also captured some company-wide b-roll including the weekly Show and Tell meeting, an engineering standup, and lobby of iPads. Envoy’s Vision Film voices:
Larry Gadea (CEO)
Lynee Luque (VP of People)
Matt Harris (Head of Workplace Technology)
Mike Chan (VP of Engineering)
Film shoot day 2
On day 2 of filming, we worked with the Envoy cast to capture product b-roll sequences. This was a fast-moving day with almost no room for error. Many strategies go into making sure you get through all of the sequences quickly without wasting time missing shots and then having to repeat a shot setup. The Envoy cast included:
Teila Evans (Alliance Manager)
Sinohe Terrero (CFO)
Blair Mullally (Field Marketing Manager)
David Arnet (SMB Account Executive)
Christy Hecht (Director of Product Marketing)
Holly Xiao (Product Marketing Manager)
Alice Huang (Software Engineer)
Phase 4: Post-Production
Content editing
Editing is where the magic really happens—it takes about five full days of editing to get to the first content cut. Then, the Olivine team puts their heads together to make sure the story structure, brand messages, and emotion are hitting the right notes. We then shared it with our Envoy partners to keep iterating and tightening the story. All in all, there were only three rounds of revisions because we had all aligned on a shared vision and purpose for the film.
Original score
With a total run time of 3:41, that’s too long to listen to the same beep-bop-boop on repeat. To help give the story an emotional arc, we commissioned John Askew to compose an original score. Original music has the added benefit of being timed precisely to the picture transitions for ultimate impact.
Product graphics + animations
In addition to the live product and product mockups we filmed, we also add product graphic overlays in post-production. Our animator Jayson Wynkoop's effects help communicate what’s going on with the product without being distracting from the humans in the story. Getting these animations super tight and consistent makes the product pop and helps move the story along.
Sound mixing
Sound mixing makes sure that everything you hear is smooth and balanced. This is especially important when you’re filming in multiple locations and atmospheres. Bringing in subtle ambient sounds adds life and authenticity to your story.
Color correction
In total, 27 people were directly involved in the making of Envoy’s Vision Film. There’s a ton of creativity, technical skill, teamwork, and coordination that goes into producing a marketing film with heart. Thanks again to our incredible partners at Envoy
