Two years ago we reintroduced a 100-year-old cheer back into popularity among the TCU faithful and the Fort Worth community alike.
This cheer has soaked into the collective TCU community and is now a highlight of the TCU fan experience. It’s a part of student orientation, a staple across social media and tailgate talk, and has spread wildly thoughout merchandise. With this strong endorsement building year after year, it is humbling to see the “fire” we started in partnership with TCU Athletics in 2014.
When TCU looked to us to bring a 3rd rendition of the in-game video to life, we looked no further than the fans themselves. This year we filmed the very fabric of this spirited, TCU fan base. 120 people to be exact. We weaved together 3 unique edits of the cheer and told a collective story for each and every home TCU football game.
We brought in TCU and Fort Worth heroes and kept the anticipation of the surprise ending in each game.
This year the video has been finished out by the likes of TCU Alumni Trevone Boykin, Bram Kolhausen, Aaron Green, Olympians and Bob Lilly. Each one delivering the final line, “Give ‘em Hell, TCU!”
With a few games left in this season, we know there is a whole lot of fight left in the Frogs. And after you watch this video, you’ll see the fans aren’t done yet either! Save
If you live in DFW, you’re most likely familiar with the Fort Worth Zoo and may be familiar with their largest annual fundraiser, Zoo Ball. Every year Zoo Ball attracts some of the biggest names in the area to support the Zoo’s local and international wildlife conservation and education efforts. The invitation for the event has always been closely tied to the theme; i.e. last year’s Zoo Ball at the Flamingo or the previous year’s Festival of the Elephants. The theme and focus of this year’s event was to celebrate the 15th anniversary of Texas Wild!, a portion of the Zoo that exhibits our great state’s different regional landscapes and wildlife.
Instead of the black tie formal-wear of years past—in the words of Alan Jackson–“We’re goin’ country!” And with a performance from Clint Black, Zoo Ball was set to be a cowboy cocktail-themed success. Our minds immediately went to the honky-tonk wood floors of Gruene Hall and Nashville-inspired Hatch Show Prints. So with the direction of “Big Hair, Boots, and Beers,” our team went on its westward way.
Process
Our hearts were set on creating a distinctly Zoo deliverable with the romance and heritage of wood block letterpress. Letterpress, simply explained, is pressing ink onto paper via wood, metal or hand carved letters and images. This process dominated commercial printing from the 1400’s to the mid-twentieth century. In today’s digital era, this process is celebrated for it’s unmatched nuance of color and texture.
To produce our limited edition set of prints, we sought out Minnesota-based premium letterpress studio, Studio On Fire. After following (and admiring) their work from afar, we were excited to partner with them for the project. With their help, our vision for the western-inspired prints came to life, complete with a blind emboss of the Fort Worth Zoo logo and hand-numbering of each print.
We created three custom illustrations that combined cowboy regalia with exotic wildlife found in the Fort Worth Zoo, bringing together the key elements of the event. These illustrations were paired with wood block-styled type, set to mimic posters of old. We created three “sayings” for the print set:
Deep in the Heart of Texas Wild! Long Necks Ain’t Nothin’
Without Rednecks Big Hair, Boots & Beer
Results
The final invitation is truly a complete package. An oversized envelope features a rustic Texas flag and warns ‘Don’t Bend or Fold or Mess with Texas’. Custom postage features animal illustrations and the Zoo logo. A hand-crafted pattern featuring Texas sayings, Clint Black lyrics, Fort Worth nods and custom animal illustrations floods the insert upon opening. And finally the prints are secured by a custom bellyband with event details and slip-sheeted for safety.
The event sold out of tickets and was both appropriately rowdy and respected. Even with fears of rain, the Zoo reassured its patrons: a little weather can’t stop our boot-scootin’ and tequila-shootin’.
Remember when we developed a unique brand and identity for the Hurst Conference Center’s bridal market, Lumiere Ballroom? We’ve continued to promote this unique positioning to the local bridal market through both traditional and non-traditional means. The goal of our most recent campaign was simple: book more tours. We knew that by viewing the venue, with it’s simple elegance and central location, wedding and reception bookings would increase. Through a digital campaign, we geo-targeted brides with the message ‘Cheers to You!’ in celebration of their engagement and the excitement to come on the big day. By booking a tour with the Hurst Conference Center, couples would receive a complimentary champagne flute set.
Developing the custom packaging came with it’s own set of challenges. Functionally, it needed to be collapsible, easy to assemble and structurally sound. There may (or may not) have been a few flute casualties in the development phase, but through trial, error and a little paper engineering, we created a carrier that met all requirements.
The flute packaging was constructed with Neenah folding board and stamped with holographic foil. The silver-based, rainbow hue mimics the iconic fiber optic star-field chandelier, making it a perfect solution to bring the abstracted Lumiere Ballroom logo to life. Since holographic foil happened to be on our design bucket list, we killed two birds with one, err, rainbow. Upon receiving the first press sheets, giddy excitement and dancing in the sunlight ensued.
Since you may not be able to see it in person, check out the foil in action above.
On the heels of our spring campaign launch, that introduced Gus, the baby gorilla to the world, we are proud to showcase our new TV spot for the Fort Worth Zoo. This spot is a 30 second summary highlighting the fun, educational and majestic moments that happen everyday at the zoo. With over 400 different species of animals, 15 different exhibits and attractions, it’s an experience that changes with every visit.
Over two days, we filmed all-new footage throughout the zoo and captured special moments from over 15 different exhibits and attractions including everyone’s favorite, baby Gus.
Projects like this one allow us to immerse ourselves in our client’s world as well as the experience of their customers. We learn as we explore and we look for unique ways to tell a story that people can relate to. Its a challenge that we embrace and let’s be honest, we have a lot of fun with it too.
Explore these interactive 360 videos/photos by clicking on the image and dragging around. Its a unique perspective of what its like on set.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of Beastro, the Fort Worth Zoo’s annual music and tasting event that supports local and international wildlife conservation and education efforts. Within a few weeks of this year’s campaign going live, Fort Worth’s wild side responded with record breaking ticket sales and a fastest ever, sold out VIP offering.
The event features the finest area restaurants stationed throughout the Zoo, serving sample appetizers, entrees and desserts. In addition to the delectable cuisine, the event features open bars throughout the park and live music entertainment. Several animal exhibits remain open until sunset. This year’s entertainment features the local talents of: Emerald City, The Project and Live 80.
The event sold out, for the first time ever, and we had to stop the ad campaign early. The night was a success from ticket sales, but our team also successfully enjoyed the feast with the beasts.
Everyone loves babies. I mean, everyone with a soul loves babies. And that’s why when there is a new baby at the Fort Worth Zoo, we all get a little excited. So when the Fort Worth Zoo told us, months in advance, that they were expecting the birth of a western lowland gorilla, we began developing a launch plan to make the announcement. In our initial phases of planning, we identified key challenges that the campaign would need to overcome in order to be effective. The first was that baby gorillas basically mirror a human child in terms of growth and development. This means that for the first few months, the zoo’s newest star, Gus, was going to spend most of his time sleeping and never be more than a few inches from the arms of his mother, Gracie. And, like most moms, Gracie is a wee bit protective. In spite of the infant gorilla not being mobile or very active at all for that matter, we had to find a way to get people excited about coming to see Gus.
Which leads to the second challenge – how do you photograph a tiny black fur ball held closely in the clutches of his mom? Add in the fact that parents, Gracie and Elmo and new baby Gus, live in a secure designed area, plus wanting to minimize any disruptions to their normal activities, you don’t exactly have an Olan Mills photo studio in which to capture that “perfect” baby picture.
But usually, it’s the challenges that lead you to your solution. And this was no different. Think about it, what does every new parent do? Your Facebook feed is proof, that every new parent posts every single progress update. “Here’s junior sleeping in is blue onesie. Now, here’s junior sleeping in his yellow one that Aunt Marge from Des Moines bought him. Oh, wait, now his eyes are open, oh wait, never mind.” You get the idea. So we decided to build the campaign around the experiences that every parent wants to show their child doing. Eating. Playing. Sleeping. Riding.
Using the zoo’s photography documenting Gus and Gracie’s relationship, we created an “interactive” campaign that gives Zoo goers a reason to come back frequently over the coming months. Visit The Fort Worth Zoo today because as we all know, they only stay babies for just a little while.
Last year, we changed the Addys with a new venue and format. How’d we top that this year? Rock & Roll.
We launched our “Battle of the B®ands” concept and invited agencies to submit their work to compete on the big stage where the winners advance and the losers stay home.
Gig posters announced this year’s competition, submissions were collected, the historic Ridglea Theater was booked and the rest was advertising rock & roll history. Fans received pre-show invites packed with tickets & stickers and event lanyards were given at the door. Trust Printshop printed merch on-site and The Swags played us through the night, backed by technicolor elephants and eyeballs.
The brands battled, awards were given and everyone left with a CD-sized reminder of what actually happened. For those who couldn’t make it or for those who want to re-live it, here’s the night’s house playlist. Until next year, keep on rockin’ in the free world.
Sometimes you get to work with clients that have a little extra special meaning. And for Charlie Howlett, TCU Baseball is one of those. Back in 2003, he was a fresh-faced frosh on the Horned Frog baseball team under Coach Lance Brown. Don’t be mistaken; Charlie is way tougher than he looks. As a catcher, he spent plenty of time sweltering behind the plate. Given his love of baseball and his passion for the Horned Frog baseball program the chance to work on the team video was a perfect fit.
For the past three years, Coach Schlossnagle has asked the Schaefer team to create a video that captures his coaching theme for that year. This year, the focus is on choices we make that separate people into two categories: Common and Uncommon. Based on the principles of Selfless – Energy – Excellence, it’s the small choices made every day that begin to turn common boys into uncommon men.
Every swing, every pitch, every catch – the TCU baseball program focuses on developing the complete student athlete – giving players every advantage possible to realize their full potential. In this year’s video, we step into the minds of the 2016 Horned Frogs at that moment right before game time. They are replaying the culmination of big and small choices, mixed with coaching and individual preparation that will ultimately lead this team into the new season.
See some behind the scenes photos on our Facebook page.
It only seems natural that when tasked with solving the summer heat, the Fort Worth Zoo would look to their animal’s strategy: The watering hole.
One of the coolest mysteries of the year, was the 14,000-square-foot, zero-depth splash called Safari Splash. We created member invites, an email campaign and an identity system to introduce this all-new attraction. The new addition featured climbing structures, 3 slides, 26 water play features, a dump tower and water cannons to cool off at the Zoo no matter what the temperature.
While we waited on the site production to finish, one of our kids might have spilled the beans to their pre-K class that they were spending their summer at the Zoo’s water park. Don’t they say that’s the best form of advertising?
On the heels of the Sundance Film Festival we thought we’d pay a little cinematic love to another festival we’ve had the chance to work with from our hometown of Fort Worth, The Lone Star Film Festival.
In 2011, we were asked by the board of the Lone Star Film Society to develop a new logo for both the organization and their festival. Their current logo screamed “cheesy western.” For some reason, people in Texas often make the mistake of throwing a pair of longhorns or a wagon wheel into a design to make it seem like it’s part of Texas’ heritage. We took the opportunity to create a new identity package that significantly upgraded the feel of the festival.
As with many festivals, marketing budgets are often tight, relying on barter agreements and creative developed by someone, that knows someone that has a nephew with a computer. Good creative is the best way to maximize limited marketing resources. So our agency went to work. We guided the organization through a process to position the festival in a way that made a lasting impact on the culture of Cowtown. Over the next three years, the Schaefer team created several award winning campaigns that not only dramatically elevated awareness of the festival but also drove attendance numbers to record levels.
