Andy Phelps hard at work in his editing suite
Following the success of his last documentary short “It Ain’t Over”, our director Caleb Slain returned home to Grand Rapids, Michigan to help bring the story of a former teacher to the screen.
The doc recounts the experience of his mentor, Michigan native Andy Phelps and the tragedy that changed his life forever. Phelps amassed an impressive set of skills in his youth: he was a juggler, unicycler, carpenter, hockey player, and firebreather. But on a tragic autumn day in 1998, Andy broke his neck in a massive car accident, leaving him without the use of his hands and legs. Caleb’s doc is about Andy’s journey after his accident, and he how he kept his creative fire alive despite some steep emotional and physical obstacles.
This project was very near and dear to Caleb’s heart and we’re proud to share it with you.
Caleb Slain on location in Evart, Michigan
Pete Cashmore of Mashable delivering the keynote speech
Workhouse Creative was honored at the American Advertising Awards in Phoenix, Arizona for our work on the Surface Reveal Spot directed by Caleb Slain. The event put on by the American Advertising Federation, aims to recognize technical achievements in commercial advertising and production. During the ceremony, we were honored with a Golden ADDY for Best Sound Design! It was a great pay off for the hard work that so many talented people put in to make the project a reality.
We wanted to extend our utmost gratitude to our composer Daniel Kamas and well as our sound engineer Jakael Tristram and pianist Caleb Buse.
We’re a musical bunch here at Workhouse Creative. After a great collaboration with Alex Clare on our Internet Explorer 9 TV campaign, our creative director Keith Rivers was thrilled to work with him again. Check out the behind the scenes coverage of Keith’s video for Alex Clare’s hit single Too Close.
When Workhouse’s own Keith Rivers came across a craigslist ad declaring the sale of over 2,000 pairs of salt and pepper shakers at a family garage sale, he became very intrigued. After a little investigation, he discovered that the collection was the result of a generations long family tradition of collecting the shakers during family vacations. After a few interviews, the Ruth family provided Keith with troves of old 16mm home videos and slowly the concept for Salt & Pepper was born.
The short doc seamlessly integrates the Ruth’s home movies with intimate family interviews. The result is a genuine exploration into the years of memories that led to the assembly of this impressive collection. Keith wanted to thank the Ruth family for the opportunity to tell their story, and their willingness to open up to himself and his crew. The Ruth’s authenticity certainly lent to the charm of the piece and undoubtedly led to the doc’s recognition as a Staff Pick on Vimeo.
Workhouse Creative had the pleasure of working with Blake Lewis for Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 10 Spot. His single “Your Touch” was the perfect companion to highlighting IE 10’s touch enabled features.
