Bolton & Menk offers an array of services – we have the experience of multiple specialty firms, but we’re all under one roof… metaphorically. Bolton & Menk Studios is not only a branch off our family tree, but it also has an array of services all on its own.
Digital animation is a crucial element in public involvement. With this service, we can take a “before image” of a corridor or park and transform it to the project’s end vision. This enables citizens and/or businesses to be able to look years into the future and see the project as it’s going to be long before a shovel enters the ground. For the City of St. James, this service allowed citizens to navigate the then-under-construction roundabouts and give instructions on how to do back-in angle parking, which is something Minnesotans hadn’t seen before. Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TS7ci6Vhn4&feature=youtu.be
Video and audio services can be used for a variety of different projects. These services provide public information tools, project photography, stakeholder interviews, and motion graphics. The opportunities are limitless with the help of a 15-foot by 10-foot green screen, audio recording booth, video editing/podcast recording/production suite, mobile recording studio, and top-of-the-line recording and editing equipment. The City of Le Center asked to assemble a video to highlight everything their city has to offer. Both ground and aerial footage was used as well as interviews from community members and local government personnel to draw the audience in with a desire to relocate to the city. On-location audio recording and in-house studio voiceover recording put the finishing touches on the video. Shortly after the video was posted on social media, other cities were requesting videos be made for theirs, too. Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIvKHP4PnWc&t=2s
Bolton & Menk Studios has three certified aerial visualization specialists. While drones can be used for cinematic purposes, they can also be used to highlight project areas in a way that ground photography lacks. The Stieger Lake Lane Construction and Downtown Parking project in Victoria, MN used drones to show a before fly-through and a composited 3D animation of corridor improvements combined with the drone footage to show a bird’s eye view of before and proposed after changes to the corridor. The side-by-side comparison of the corridor allowed the city’s residents and businesses to see just what was going to change through the project at a higher angle, capturing more of the project area with each shot. Watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKheJhyqye0
At the core of visual communication is graphic design. Graphic designers work on a variety of projects including issues maps, proposal graphics, displays for public engagement meetings, maps for cities, website development, social media graphics, and they also have a hand in the other projects throughout the department. Creating an easy-to-follow image that conveys a message to be understood by everyone involved requires them to not only be graphics specialists, but communication specialists as well. The City of Two Harbors and Castle Danger Brewery needed a brochure created to inform legislator of the Two Harbors Wastewater Treatment Plant’s need to receive funding for upgrades. With the ever-growing brewery, the plant needed to be updated to accommodate the waste the brewery will provide. We put together a brochure explaining the increase of the number of visitors and how that impacts the wastewater treatment plant.
We strive to offer an array of services to better serve our clients and the communities they represent. Making sure your story is told in a way that is engaging, informative, and accessible to everyone that needs to hear it is our top priority. Our passion lies in the craft of film making, the eye of the photographer, the skills of the animator, and the creativity of the graphic designer – let us tell your story.
