JTWO Wins 10 Addy Awards
2019 Philadelphia ADDY Awards
After opening the show with our sequel to last year’s “This is Lou” short film and taking home four awards at last month’s One Club Philadelphia Louix Awards, we capped off the award show season with ten wins at the Philadelphia ADDY Awards. Winning three Golds – two in Cinematography and one in Best of Show and seven Silvers, including wins in Video Editing, Internet Commercial, Social Media Campaign, Cinematography Campaign, Internet Campaign Non-Broadcast Audio/ Visual, and Cinematography. Our former intern even took home, Best in Show for Student Films for her JTWO [INC]ubator Project. Check out the winning projects below.
WINNER
GOLD ADDY | Cinematography
SILVER ADDY | Video Editing
This is Lou
This is Lou, a short film produced as the show open for the 2018 Louix Awards, follows the story of a piece of shit from Philadelphia named Lou who finds himself in a precarious situation with some of the most ruthless cutthroat killers in the City of Brotherly Love.
WINNER
SILVER ADDY | Internet Commercial
SILVER ADDY | Social Media Campaign
SILVER ADDY | Cinematography Campaign
SILVER ADDY | Internet Campaign
Victus Baseball
Victus is one of the leading wooden bat manufacturers in the world and used by Pro players in the US and Japan. They tasked us with expanding their product offerings and redefining their brand, entirely. After establishing a new brand direction, our team got to work designing t-shirts, hoodies, hats, knob stickers and batting gloves. We designed everything down to the tags and packaging. [Some of which we can’t even show you….yet].
WINNER
SILVER ADDY | Non-Broadcast Audio/ Visual
Lost Boyz Chicago
Our team partnered with New York City-based non-profit organization Laureus USA to produce a mini-documentary about Chicago’s Lost Boyz Inc., a non-profit organization committed to decreasing violence and improving the social and emotional conditions of the youth in Chicago’s South Shore community through baseball and softball.
WINNER
GOLD ADDY | Best of Show
GOLD ADDY | Cinematography
JTWO [INC]ubator Project - Barre None
“Barre None” created under the JTWO [INC]ubator Project is a short documentary that tells the captivating and beautiful story of a young ballerina who is able to push through the harsh realities and overbearing pressures of the dancing world, with her unconditional love for the art.
JTWO's [INC]ubator Project Brings you "Safe Sex Now"
Safe Sex Now
by Omar Alqahtani
I went through a lot of ideas when deciphering what to pitch to Jtwo for my first film made under the Incubator Project. My first idea got put down because it involved smashing Justin mug. Also it might be because the idea was not very well thought through. But, sometimes it’s more fun to live in denial. After the failed pitch I became a lot harsher on myself when coming up with ideas. I shut down some fun ones like, involving intense, slow-motion, homoerotic baseball, or a dramatic mockumentary about razor scooters. I eventually settled on a comedy about chlamydia. I was a little iffy on the concept at first, but the pitch went through without many questions asked, so I decided to run with it.
I spent 1 day writing the script, and three days fixing up the typos. I was able to cast it pretty quickly, but got a little nervous because I didn’t really have time to rehearse. The short required the actors to react to each other in real time while in different locations, but also needed to feel lightweight. Getting that kind of timing and tone correctly seemed like it was going to be a daunting task, but I was lucky enough to surround myself with lighthearted people, that picked up on the tone pretty quickly, and were nice enough to listen to me agonize over minor line delivery.
We were able to have a light and fun shoot. It felt more like I was hanging out with friends than it was an actual shoot. In the end, I was able to capture all the footage that I wanted, but I still had this little nagging feeling that it wouldn’t work. The shoot went too well, I’m still not sure whether the scenes were timed 100% correctly or not, and it was kind of a weird concept with a weirdly planned execution. I kept thinking about every single way the edit could come out wrong.
Turns out, none of the things I was worried about became true. The problems that unraveled were ones I didn’t really think about. My first cut came out a little dull. Even with all the funky editing tricks I tried to use it still felt a little dead. When I showed my first cut to Justin, he suggested I find a way to get rid of all the negative space, maybe use some colors here and there. “Use some color” was the advice I carried when re-editing the movie. Other than the colors in the background, I tried to add little bits of life in every part of the video. Scene too quiet? Put in some music. Joke isn’t landing? Maybe if I cut between two background colors. Hospital scene a little dull? How about I add a frame of a literal pool of blood and some horror synth. I still wanted the short to feel breezy and deadpan, but adding little bits of life here and there, if done cleverly, can enhance the tone of a film rather than detract from it.
I understand that “less is more”, but sometimes, “more is more”, and other times “more makes less feel more like less”, and sometimes but rarely “less is less than more but more is less so less becomes more than what you wanted”. Art isn’t a science, add some color and see what happens.
This project was created as part of the JTWO [INC]ubator Project. A semester long internship program built from the ground up to give young filmmakers, content creators, and all around hungry for a challenge individuals a place to stretch their creative minds while preparing them for the road ahead.
JTWO Welcomes Omar Alqahtani
The Good Kind of Stress
by Omar Alqahtani
I was filming my first narrative short outside of a 7/11. One of the characters was smoking a cigarette. We were stopped by a couple of strangers asking saying that they did not have cash for cigarettes but they had a personal bottle of Grey Goose that they didn’t want. I was 19 at the time so I was pretty excited.
While working on a different movie, I called a casket supplier to ask for permission to film at his store. There was a scene where a grandma has to pick out a casket and I wanted it to be as visually compelling as possible; caskets hanging up on the wall felt like they would get the job done. The owner of the store was actually really cool about the whole thing. He gave me a tour around his little factory. He showed me his patented casket technology for people who only want to rent caskets, he explained to me how different types of caskets work, he even showed me how bodies get cremated. He has this giant machine that just sets bodies on fire for several hours. He showed me a can of ashes with leftover body modifications, such as braces, metal teeth, metal bones. It was all wonderfully morbid, but by far the weirdest part of that whole interaction is that he did not seem to mind my pretentious man bun.
For one short summer I worked with online media content company, so they send me on all kinds of weird prop runs. One time was especially different. They sent me out to carry a $10,000 chair through the busy streets of Manhattan. They half-assed the wrapping of the chair and made it my responsibility to return it without any scratches. I’m a pretty clumsy guy, and I did not want them to know that, which led to the most stressful 10-minute walk of my life. It was only 4 blocks, but it felt like 27.
All of those experiences lead to recorded moments on video. I would plug all those experiences onto a computer, and I would have to reappropriate all those memories to create a compelling narrative. To me, this is the beauty of filmmaking. The fact that the making of a narrative is a story within itself. Yes, for the audience, the narrative o the screen is completely divorced from the experiences that formed it, and for the sake of the art, it should be that way. However, the making of a movie leaves me with a lot of stories that I get to carry with me, and be able to tell my friends, family, maybe even grandchildren. I can’t think of many other professions that leaves you with so many stories to tell. That’s why I chose this profession. That’s why I took the internship at JTwo.
This project was created as part of the JTWO [INC]ubator Project. A semester long internship program built from the ground up to give young filmmakers, content creators, and all around hungry for a challenge individuals a place to stretch their creative minds while preparing them for the road ahead.
JTWO Welcomes Brynn Antaran
Old Paths, New Footsteps
by Brynn Antaran
I’ve shelved most of my high school experiences, but there are a couple lucid moments that come back to me regularly.
The first day of playwriting class, sitting in the second row as our disheveled teacher paced back and forth in front of the white board, nodding and stuttering wildly: “ Real writers, y’know, the ones who are born to write, they never stop writing. Never. They’re seeing all these things around them and writing in their head, y’know, constantly .”
And then one of my summers at a musical theatre intensive, stretching on a stage amongst twenty other teens in jazz shoes, baking alive in an old church without air conditioning in the middle of June as the artistic director told us to think very seriously before pursuing a career in theatre or art because it would be an extremely difficult way to live. “I hate to break it to you kids,” she said in her lilted British meter, “but that’s the way it is.” We should only take this path only if we absolutely had to, only if we could truly do nothing else in this world but create.
I was still a young, doubtful creative–I didn’t understand how anything could feel so sure and natural. In college, though, I fell into filmmaking and everything clicked. Directing and writing makes everything else pale in comparison, I can never get enough of it. I have this quiet certainty in it; it is the only thing I want to do.
I’m very excited to see how interning here at JTwo will help me along my career path. Besides directing/writing, I also produce and assistant direct–I look forward to flexing those muscles in commercial settings with coworkers who I can also call friends.
This project was created as part of the JTWO [INC]ubator Project. A semester long internship program built from the ground up to give young filmmakers, content creators, and all around hungry for a challenge individuals a place to stretch their creative minds while preparing them for the road ahead.
JTWO Welcomes Derrick Kim
An Unlikely Path to Film
by Derrick Kim
If someone told me three years ago that one day I would be interning for a film production company, I would’ve laughed at them. Growing up in the Los Angeles area, I always had a passion for sports as a kid. I played one year of AYSO soccer and then absolutely fell in love with baseball through Little League. In fact, in first grade, my dream was to become a professional baseball player for the Dodgers. My love for baseball continued to grow until it hit me. Literally. I got hit in the face with a baseball and fractured my nose. It really sucked and I stopped playing.
However, in middle school I discovered that I was really good at volleyball where in 8th grade, I lead my team to its first ever league championship. I was hungry for volleyball and moved up to the varsity team by the end of my freshman year. That summer I worked incredibly hard, training and practicing to become a better outside hitter. I even went to open gyms before the season to get extra reps in. Hard work pays off right? Yes it does! But…I got hurt again. This time, I fractured my left ankle. I was never back to my normal self but, I embraced my passion throughout the next 3 years of varsity volleyball.
I did well academically, but felt like I never gave myself the chance to explore my creativity through classes. But, I did indirectly. During high school, my friends and I loved to go out and explore LA, Whether it was finding the best taco truck or nighttime view, we lived for adventure. We started going to spots like Griffith Observatory and Joan’s on Third to take pictures and try new foods. It was really the first time I was documenting my adventures through a visual medium and enjoyed it. So for my senior trip to South Korea and Taiwan, I bought a Canon Rebel T6i DSLR. This was my first camera and surely, I discovered a new passion for content creation and storytelling.
I packed this passion in my backpack and brought it all the way to the east coast to attend Haverford College in Philadelphia. To many’s surprise, I am majoring in economics and minoring in visual studies. Now that my playing days are over, I help out as a student assistant coach for the women’s volleyball team. Last summer, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to make creative content for places such as Hatch Yakitori, The Pie Hole, Alfred Tea Room, and more. It was my first time getting real world experience and I loved every bit of it. The best part was all the complementary food I received. It really reminded me of my high school adventures.
Fast forward a couple months, and here I am with this incredible opportunity to intern for JTWO Films. Although I’ve definitely gotten better over the years, I have so much more to learn and am at no better place. Hopefully, I won’t get hit by any camera equipment and fracture anything because this time, I think I discovered my real passion.
This project was created as part of the JTWO [INC]ubator Project. A semester long internship program built from the ground up to give young filmmakers, content creators, and all around hungry for a challenge individuals a place to stretch their creative minds while preparing them for the road ahead.
JTWO Teams up with the Cleveland Cavaliers
We worked with our longtime partner Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility to complete the latest video in their Responsibility Starts with Me campaign. This video focuses on the importance of responsible decision making in the lives of both staff and patrons of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Credits
Producer – Travis Capacete
Cinematographer – Sebastian Nieves
Cinematographer – Jason Miller
Location Sound – Jelani Thomas
This project was made possible through our Projects That Matter Initiative. The Projects That Matter Initiative is a Philadelphia based video production program with the mission of providing professional digital media services to Non-Profits at a discounted rate. To learn more about how your organization can join the initiative and qualify for creative content production discounts click below.
JTWO Teams Up with LF Driscoll
We worked with the leading full-service construction provider in the Philadelphia metropolitan region, LF Driscoll, to share the story of Safety 360, a program that provides annual safety coaching to assure that all LF Driscoll staff members return home safely after a days work. Having worked with the company on a project back in May of 2018 at the Penn Medicine patient tower job site, our team was excited to get the ball rolling on another spot together.
The Project
Filming took place over the course of two days at two separate locations, the Villanova Performing Arts job site and the Philadelphia Museum of Art job site, where our crew worked high on 60-story rooftops and low in dimly lit, narrow tunnels in order to capture their contractors in live action.
A Banner Year in 2018
A Year in Review
To describe 2018 as a big year for us would be an understatement. Coming up on our ten year anniversary, we capped off a whirlwind 2018 campaign by launching a bevy of new projects, expanding to Chicago with a new studio, forming additional partnerships and growing our team with new staff members.
In the past year alone, we have produced national commercials, short documentaries, brand films and directed projects in Philadelphia, Chicago, New York, Houston, Orlando, LA and Washington, D.C., with clients ranging from the Cleveland Cavaliers, Jack Daniels, Bacardi, Johnson & Johnson, Major League Soccer, Independence Blue Cross and DC Comics– along with the Philadelphia Eagles, the Philadelphia Flyers, the Philadelphia Union, Victus Sports, UPenn, Comcast NBCUniversal and Visit Philadelphia.
This is Lou
Early this year, our team was tasked with the concept and creation of the show open for the 2018 LOUIX Awards, an advertising award show that celebrates the outstanding work of Philadelphia’s most creative visual artists, producers, directors, and abstract thinkers. We had seen other show opens before, and being the overachievers that we are, wanted to make sure we created something mind-bendingly different, with a hint of crazy and hailing from somewhere left of left-field.
Janssen Immunology
We continued to work side by side with Janssen Immunology and their agency Evoke by creating another entry for the Janssen Storyteller Series. For this project, we told the story of Shawn and Marisa, two different people with two different stories who are united in their mission to transform the lives of people living with Lupus, together.
Victus Grit Series
We worked with Victus in redefining their brand and launching their first-ever product category, The Victus Grit Series. Our team took home a plethora of awards for this, including four LOUIX Awards for Branding, Product Design, Fashion Design, and Brochure Design, two Addy awards, a Gold Addy for Sales Presentation catalog and a Silver for Publication Design & Magazine Design, and the 2018 MarCom Gold Award in Print Media & Publication.
The Philadelphia Flyers
We worked together with the Philadelphia Flyers marketing team to produce an emotional, hard-hitting spot that told the story of the Flyers tumultuous season through specific moments throughout the year, which ultimately culminated in a trip to the postseason. The video screened on TV and across all Flyers social media outlets garnering over 200k views in less than 48 hours.
Projects That Matter Initiative
Our Projects That Matter Initiative, which focuses on collaborating with social impact organizations, also continued to expand with new projects and national campaigns for Responsibility.org, Fred’s Footsteps, Laureus USA, Bringing Hope Home, Holiday Heroes, and the Lost Boyz Inc.
Lost Boyz
We partnered with Laureus USA to produce a mini-documentary about Chicago’s Lost Boyz Inc., a non-profit organization committed to decreasing violence and improving the social and emotional conditions of the youth in Chicago’s South Shore community through baseball and softball. Our short film debuted at Laureus USA’s Sport for Good Fashion Show fundraiser during New York Fashion Week, where star athletes helped raise $350,000 for disadvantaged youth across the U.S.
JTWO | Chicago
Our Chicago studio, dubbed JTWO | Chicago, has also hit the ground running with both commercial and documentary work as well as agency collaborations set to launch early next year.
Conor Hare, Executive Producer
Launching JTWO Chicago has been an incredible journey. After 10 years in Philadelphia, it feels surreal to finally be expanding our services to the Midwest and seeing the partnerships we’ve formed in these short 6 months already taking off. From collaborating with both national and Chicago based non-profits to partnering up with local agencies, I couldn’t have asked for a better end to the year. In 2019 we look to only grow larger, stronger, and better.
JTWO Launches The Ultimate JTWO Christmas Experience
The Ultimate JTWO Christmas Experience
2018 was a HUGE year for our family here at JTWO so we wanted to show our appreciation to all of our clients and collaborative partners for making it all possible. That’s why this year for the holidays we decided to create the ULTIMATE JTWO CHRISTMAS EXPERIENCE!!!
This was our way of giving back and making sure our clients and collaborative partners have the best holiday they’ve ever had. Also, we are hoping this makes up for last year’s little holiday mishap…..we know ADWeek thought it did 😉
Thank you to all of our 2018 Creative Collaborators
Giving Back Through Projects That Matter
Happy Giving Tuesday
When the concept of the Projects That Matter Initiative (PTM) sprouted in 2009, we knew it could create positive change. Unbeknownst to us, the coming years would bring unprecedented inspiration fueled by the energy and passion from the incredible people we meet. Their infectious kindness, optimism, and warmth is powerful. This kind of altruism is integral for the betterment of our world. We deeply admire the individuals, families, nonprofits, and organizations we have been fortunate enough to work with. As we continue this journey, we strive to give all that we can.
The PTM Initiative provides professional digital media services to Non-Profits at a discounted rate. We feel giving back is essential in cultivating stable and productive communities. PTM is our driving force to live out that mission. Through visual storytelling, we capture the stories of our clients so others can vicariously step into the shoes of another. As Mr. Rogers once said, “There isn’t anyone you couldn’t learn to love once you’ve heard their story.” The people we have worked with make compelling impacts within their communities. Telling their story through PTM is our way to give back.
Recently, PTM has had the opportunity to collaborate with both new and old clients, who’s companies have each had a tremendous impact on their communities. Here are their stories.
Laureus + Lost Boyz
After serving a short term in prison, Lavonte Stewart decided to use baseball and softball as an approach to support the youth of Chicago’s South Shore community. The implemented programs within Lost Boyz has encouraged youth to engage in the community instead of turning to detrimental patterns. Serving 144 youth in 2018, Lost Boyz gives back by improving the lives of not only the youth, but their families and communities. We wanted to tell their story because of the dedication and kindness that Stewart and the Lost Boyz community exudes. The impressive effort put forth to help the youth community epitomizes the PTM mission.
FAAR
The Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility (FAAR) aims to eliminate impaired driving by starting a conversation. Through avenues like celebrity campaigns, countrywide statistics, and online resolutions, FAAR informs and encourages individuals to exemplify responsibility. Responsibility.org offers ample information, including comprehensive solutions and resources, to facilitate a healthy and safe community. Through PTM, we show how much FAAR cares about fulfilling their mission. They are committed in what they believe and are unwavering in helping others make better choices. With passion, they give back by fighting back against impaired driving and consequently saving lives.
Mission First Housing Group
Mission First Housing Groups’ mission is to develop and manage affordable, safe, and sustainable homes for people in need with a focus on the vulnerable. They ensure our residents have access to resources to help them live independently. Every year we collaborate with Mission First Housing Group to document and share the story of one of the amazing individuals they offer aid to throughout the year. PTM collaborated with this organization so others could discover the benevolence of Mission First. Not only is this organization combating homelessness, they are unifying people. The work that this organization does effectively improves the lives of so many and we are grateful to be a part of their mission.
Fred’s Footsteps
Fred’s Footsteps is a Philadelphia based non-profit organization that provides direct financial assistance to otherwise financially stable families facing a child’s hospitalization. They provide a funding bridge to working families for a period of one year to help them adjust to their child’s changing needs.We have worked with Fred’s Footsteps through PTM for three years now, but their dedication and commitment to relieving the worries of others never ceases to amaze us.
We are awe-inspired by the people within these organizations that are dedicated to positive change. The impact caused by these individuals is invaluable to the health and growth of the people and places we care about. At the Projects That Matter Initiative, we are whole-hearted in bringing inspiring stories to others. This to us, is giving back.
If you would like to learn more about our Projects That Matter Initiative and how we can help your organization tell their story, please contact us today or click on the “Learn More” button below.
This project was made possible through our Projects That Matter Initiative. The Projects That Matter Initiative is a Philadelphia based video production program with the mission of providing professional digital media services to Non-Profits at a discounted rate. To learn more about how your organization can join the initiative and qualify for creative content production discounts click below.