Orioles Productions honored for "Best Overall Video Display in Baseball" -- including my animation!!

Every time I'm able to head back to Baltimore and there's a baseball game in town, I try and catch it. (Recently, I was back for a four-day weekend, and hit games on both Saturday & Sunday, July 14th & 15th.) Every home game I've been too since 2010, they've shown some of my animation on the DiamondVision and every time I get that same giddy feeling that I've contributed something to O's history.

Overall, it seems like the Orioles have a really creative video production team, relying far less on advertisements and movie clips than most baseball stadiums. Glad to see Orioles Productions recognized for it!

Here's the press release from the Orioles:

Orioles Productions Department honored for "Best Overall Video Display in Baseball"

The Baltimore Orioles Productions department has been recognized by their peers in Major League Baseball as the “Best Overall Video Display In Baseball” at the annual Information Display Entertainment Association (IDEA) Conference held in Minneapolis, Minnesota earlier this week. This marks the second time since the award was created in 2001 that the Orioles Productions staff has received the honor (2002).

Video content of all aspects of the in-game show were submitted and five finalists were voted on by the 20 other MLB teams in attendance. The Orioles’ five-minute submission included the Oriole Park welcome, music videos, moving headshots, crowd prompts, the Fact or Fiction, Andino at the Movies, Adam Jones Gives a Fan a Haircut and This or That segments and other graphic elements. The Andino at the Movies segment was also a finalist for “Best In-Game Feature,” competing against all professional and college sports teams in attendance.

“In addition to success on the field, the Orioles are committed to providing a first-class experience for fans from the moment they enter the gates of Oriole Park,” said Orioles Executive Vice President of Business Operations DOUG DUENNES. “We are proud that the talent and creativity of our productions team has been recognized as the industry leader for the quality of the entertainment they provide for fans of all ages.”

The IDEA Conference is a yearly event attended by all professional sports leagues, colleges and minor league teams to recognize excellence in video board presentation.

The Orioles productions team includes Director of Productions MIKE STASHIK; Manager of In-Game Entertainment BRYAN KRANDLE; Producer BEN EPSTEIN; Video Graphics Coordinator JOE KANE; Production Specialist JOHN TILLMANN; Coordinator of Game Entertainment HEATHER BRESSLER and Assistant Coordinator of Game Entertainment KAREN RIDDLE. A game staff of 30 is also instrumental in the gameday entertainment production.

La Muff: Gold Lamé

It's not lame, it's lamé!

Amongst the fun animated projects I've gotten to be a part of lately, I directed this live action music video for my friend Monica Howe, a.k.a. LaMuff. It was a lot of fun to get back into directing live action again and stretch those muscles!

The all-star crew of this video helped create an ornate world for LaMuff through golden art direction/wardrobe/makeup, rad choreography, fun performances, not to mention her catchy tune that inspired it all.
Check out LaMuff's other songs, too. They're all really clever and will make you want to rock out in front of your computer.

Here's the video:

Credits
Director: Pete Levin
Producer: Andrew Ahn
Director of Photography: Aaron Meister
Art Director: Julianna "JP" Parr
Choreographer: Gregory Barnett
Editor: Ishai Setton

Cast: Monica Howe, Alex Barbatsis, Les Borsay, Sheila Carrasco, Alex Kenefick, Michael Loomis, Daniel Safarik, Jean Spinosa, Roger K. Stewart, J. Ryan Stradal

Flygirls: Natalya Oliver & Allison Karman
Dancers: Cricket Amy Russell, Rosalind Helfand, Erin Parks
B-boys: HiB, K-SK, Kyle, Miggz

Wardrobe: Charon Nogues
Face Painter: Justine Serebrin
Art Department: Shannon Dedman, Veronica LeBron, and Alex Kenefick
Hair Stylist: Hazel Hartman
Make-Up/Hair Stylist: Kourtney Kuroki

1st AD: Andrew Ahn
2nd AD: Marta da Costa
Key Grip: Armin Balg
GlideCam: Mac Fisken
Swing Grip: Alex Ojeda
Swing Grip: John J. Miller

Lead Post Production FX: Robbie Harrison
Additional Post Production FX: Nick Woythaler
Additional Post Production FX: Pete Levin
Titles: Patrick McGinley

Production Assistants: Kelly Martin, Kerri Fernsworth, Alex Kenefick, Meredith Curek

Music Produced by: Joshua Fielstra

Caterers: Fiesta Catering
Filmed on location at the 1642 Wine Bar and The Akbar in Los Angeles, CA.