PROJECTS
ID Labs & Taylor Gang
As someone who grew up right outside of Pittsburgh, the big three of our hometown music industry were Taylor Gang Ent., Rostrum Records, and ID Labs. For anyone trying to get through the door in the city, it was likely that you’d have to work with at least one of these gatekeepers, if not all of them. With that being said, I am honored to have the opportunity to work with ID Labs AND Taylor Gang on our three most recent visualizers. This trilogy set is composed of three songs from E Dan’s new solo instrumental album, “Play How You Feel”. With “Woozy” being the first song, we wanted to create a visual that matched the vast, climatic sound of the track. The second song on our list was “Idekbro”, a mystic, oriental inspired song, which may have been my personal favorite on the Album. For this visual, we wanted to relay a hypnotic, crisp, sunrise vibe, so naturally we landed on floating praying mantis silhouettes… (lol) Last but not least was “Siti”, a more hype, traditional hip-hop beat. This beat really gave me a showdown feel, so we had the idea of following two subjects as they collide in space and crash to earth.
It was awesome to get to work with such legendary entities, that have been pivotal players in the careers of some of my favorite artists. I really liked how these three projects turned out and I can’t wait to work on more projects with them in the future! If you haven’t seen this latest trilogy yet, be sure to go check them out at the link below! https://linktr.ee/304cinemas
CHOO JACKSON X 304 CINEMAS
After years of being a fan, I finally got the opportunity to work with the very talented Choo Jackson, on a series of projects. Choo is best known for his numerous collaborations with the late, great Mac Miller, including my personal favorite, “HD” from his Broken Hearts Make Money album. During that same time period, Miller signed Choo to his own label, REMember Music. In addition to REMember Music, Choo is a member of Foreverkool Records, his own independent label.
For our first project together, I animated a visualizer for “Gold Chains”, from his Ghetto Beautiful Misery album, which dropped in the fall of 2020. About a month later, Choo contacted me with an idea for a second visualizer, for his song “Lost Kids”. The concept for this visualizer depicts a stick figure running in an endless loop, making no forward progress. I like this concept, because it is easy to let life make you feel stuck in the mud, or running on a tread mill, despite any hard work you may be putting in. In times like these it is easy to lose sight of your true potential, and the goals you set for yourself, hence the title, “Lost Kids”.
For the “Blackbird” music video, I wanted to transport viewers to a stormy night in Pittsburgh, to match the overall black sheep vibe of the song. As a Pittsburgh resident and lifelong hip hop enthusiast, I wanted to set the video in downtown Pittsburgh, in an effort to help restimulate the city’s hip hop scene, and let the rest of the country know, Pittsburgh is still here. The city took its biggest hit a few years ago when we lost Jimmy Wopo and Mac Miller in the same year. Since then, its been relatively stagnant, excluding the Burgh’s pioneering entity, Taylor Gang Ent.. Choo has also been busy lately, releasing a spree of projects and single’s over the last year. Ghetto Beautiful Misery and Excuse My Language with DJ Spillz, being the most recent, and BHMM2 coming later this year.
With that being said, we put a lot of hours into this project, so I hope you like it! BLACKBIRD BY CHOO JACKSON DROPPING THIS FALL! To watch more of our projects in the meantime, be sure to subscribe to our Youtube channel at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUsvfqiYTAkhfoqaz_gatSQ, and follow us on Instagram at @304cinemas, for daily updates. Let us know what you think in the comments!
Out Here by Global Menace
The second single from Global Menaces' forthcoming E.P. is "Out Here", which is exclusively available through our website, along with the visualizer we designed for the song. We decided to make this secondary piece exclusively available to our most supportive followers, to say thanks for helping our work be seen.
To get access to this song and visualizer, simply repost our "Thin Ice" video on your Instagram story, and tag us at @304cinemas, so we know you shared it! At the end of the day, we will send you the password for the "Out Here" video, so you can have early access to the unreleased song and visualizer. For more updates about Global Menace's upcoming E.P., follow us on Instagram for daily updates!
Thin Ice by Global Menace
The latest and greatest collaboration from underground Trip Hop wizards, Global Menace and ourselves here at 304 Cinemas, is on the "Thin Ice" music video. Thin Ice is the first single from the group's upcoming E.P.. We wanted to do this release bigger than any of our prior three projects together, on both sides of the screen. On the video production side of the equation, we decided to make this our first 3D animation and real 4k footage hybrid video. The decision was pretty easy, as I have been slowly learning the ropes of 3D animation throughout the spring of 2020, and have been waiting for the perfect project to showcase it on. On the other side of the screen, we wanted to make this marketing campaign the most expansive yet. After brainstorming for a short while, a framework began to emerge from the mist. I needed to incentivize our audience to give us access to their following, but what incentives did we have to offer? It needed to be something easily distributable, and cheap to produce. With those two constraints applied, I landed on “Something Digital”. After pondering on the subject awhile longer, I came up with two unique options: Thin Ice themed 304 live wallpapers for iPhones & a privately accessible bonus track for the album. By trading reposts for our digital incentives, we would exponentially increase our viewership. In addition to the unorthodox methods, we would also be utilizing the more typical promotional methods like sponsoring the video on Youtube and Insta, but that goes with out saying. Lastly, I wanted to tap out as many partners as possible to maximize affiliate marketing. I planned to do this on two fronts; general and specific. The general portion referring to the partnership with other entities that shared a common or overlapping audience demographic. The specific portion referring to direct marketing to key players that we identified in the music industry. Our list was made up of established professionals in the field, who we would like to cultivate future endeavors with.
So with that being said, make sure you go check it out on our Vimeo or YouTube channels, and let us know what you think in the comment section below! As struggling artists, your support is always appreciated, and the best way to do so is by helping to share our message. Make sure to follow us on Instagram for the most current updates on our ongoing projects, and don't be afraid to reach out!
3D Animation
As we move forward into 2020, we have continuously been adding skills to our repertoire. Since the last time we checked in, we've made some major changes. First and foremost, we packed everything into the Volkswagen and drove it across the country to Sacramento, CA. Secondly, we've temporarily shifted focus to 3D animations, in order to master our new software faster. With that being said, we look forward to accepting public video projects again beginning this summer!
INVASION
After making it to the west coast, one of our first collaborations was with Sacramento renaissance man, Captain Coop! Cooper had an idea for a Halloween horror short film about a home invasion, which is a genre that I've wanted to try my hand at for awhile now. The full video is up on both, our website and youtube channel, so be sure to go check it out! For more of Captain Coop's projects, check him out on insta or youtube!
DaBaby
On May 15th, DaBaby stopped in Morgantown, WV on his "Baby on Baby" Tour. The artist's most notable song, "Suge" recently earned him a number one spot on iTunes Charts, and number 3 spot on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. We had a great time taking care of the event coverage for this show, and as expected, he delivered an absolutely electric performance. Be sure to check out our recap video and the full story which can be found on our website.
S.N.O.W. Cup
We recently hosted the first annual SNOW Cup Tournament at Seven Springs Mountain Resort, in Pennsylvania. We selected 8 of Seven Spring's top riders to face off in a series of one on one match ups through out the 18/19 season. The winner, Dave Taylor, took home a $250 cash prize and of course mad bragging rights. The full recap story is located in the news section of our website. You can find the videos on our website, YouTube, or Newschoolers.
2019 Python Riding Hoodie
This year we released our first apparel option, the Python Riding Hoodie. Our hoodies will be available for purchase through our website in the near future.
Music Videos
Throughout the past year we've been able to dip our toes into the underground Hip Hop scene, and hope to go a lot further in 2019. In 2018 we had the opportunity to push our creativity with the production of our first three music videos for the rap duo Global Menace. We had a blast make each one, honing our skills, and making each one better than the previous. Moving forward in 2020, we hope to work with the Global Menace family again, as well as some other local talent throughout the Pittsburgh area. Both, the full article and the videos can be found on our website.
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Event Coverage
Planning an event? We've got you covered. From weddings to concerts, our process turns raw footage into a story.
The Horizon
We have big plans this year, so be sure to follow our projects on Instagram, YouTube and Newschoolers. To collaborate with us, please direct message us on Instagram.