saam gabbay

We can now have custom sms tones for iPhones if you’re using iOS 5.   Rejoice.  Made for you, right here then, are a few little sounds to differentiate you from your friends!

Download, add to iTunes (they will show up under ringtones) and sync.  They will show up under Sounds in settings > general and can be assigned to mail, voicemail, sms, alarms and so on.  Feel free to share and enjoy!  http://saam.co/smlsongs

I’ve been working on displaying our projects and progress through a visual timeline for a few years now.  This newest update is iPad-friendly and can view it here.

Thank you, Steve.

My friend Verenne Ferrari sent me a photograph of her visit to the Grand Palais back in the summer. A few minutes later I cashed in my miles and booked a trip to Paris.  To see this.

Anish Kapoor’s Leviathan was one of the most remarkable installations I have ever experienced. You can read the writeup and see detailed photos as published on Fathom.

Working with Michael Shaun Conaway of Storyworks usually means “fasten your seat belts.” He has the uncanny ability to recontextualize what is possible for his team.  What was remarkable about the Coke project was how fast we went from award and concept to shoot.  Three days.  And to final animation, eight days.

Alessandra Pasquino saved the day by putting the production team together (it helped that she’s scaled Everest and had a few extra boots in her closet).

You can view the final spot in podcasts.

“This film is OUTSTANDING!” says Argon 18.  “It’s very emotional, it builds anticipation, it tells a story, it’s a powerful testimonial from an experienced rider, it holds my attention and it looks beautiful!”  These are the words of happy clients.  Argon 18 is a unique and passionately managed bicycle crafter in Montreal and we happen to love them.  They make exceptional, stand-out machinery.

At the helm is Architect Terence Young, Design Director for the Aviation and Transportation Studio at Gensler (he builds airports).  He’s also an 18 year veteran of multisport including 2 Ironmans.  What kind of thought process does a triathlete obsessed with form and function go through when selecting a new bike?  Terence shares his thinking.

Watch the Argon 18 video in podcasts.  Credits:  Terence Young, rider. Comedian Dan Ahdoot, driver.  Marco Rodriguez, assistant editor.  Arash Ayrom, post supervisor.  Saam Gabbay, director, cinematographer, composer, editor.

Mitratech started as a company providing legal software for small companies.  Led by its CEO, Afshin Behnia, Mitratech has grown to become a class-leading enterprise software company serving Fortune 1000 companies and government agencies.  They do business in a high-stakes, data-heavy sector with clients like Pfizer, GEICO, Amazon and Viacom, and even clients they aren’t allowed to name.Mr. Behnia shared, “Mitratech’s company brand and identity have largely been unchanged since our founding 23 years ago, and the logo and brand were showing their age.  Saam successfully developed a new brand that evokes trust, maturity, and innovation while providing continuity with the company history.”

We helped Mitratech with a website that’s emotionally engaging and a top-down brand package that included… well, almost every form of communication in their office. You can read Mitratech’s thoughts on the project in their testimonial.

This was going to be a relaxing Sunday night but somehowt became an LCD Soundsystem music video.  A few friends came over for dinner and somehow found my box of costumes.  I think we were listening to a band called Shit Robot, and I just started shooting.  One lens, one body. The music was too loud for my guests to hear the shutter- I had shot 2400 photographs.When I was animating the stills I was listening to LCD Soundsystem and the song just fit which was kind of thrilling to see considering the situation was completely unscripted (except for maybe the bottle of wine we decided to share just prior).  You can watch it in podcasts in HD.

I have had the remarkable fortune of directing 3 amazing artists for UrbanDaddy and Canon.  Saturday Night Life DP Alex Buono, fashion photographer Warwick Saint, documentary photographer Brian Finke joined UrbanDaddy in New York City to talk about how Canon’s cameras give them magical superpowers.

Warwick Saint and his Canon 5D Mark II

I thought I had gotten used to CEO Lance Broumand’s surprises but he never fails to impress.  This time, NYC’s Erica Simone stopped by the set to stage one of her famous Nue York photos using UrbanDaddy’s staff as extras for a game of pool.  Beyond The Still.

DP was Jordan Levy, editor was Bradley J. Ross, Josh Shurtleff was interviewer and post producer.

For a couple of thrilling weeks this summer, I was asked to help on a campaign for the Apple iPad at Media Arts Lab in Playa del Rey.It was nice to be with some friends where all the magic happens.  And that’s about all I’m allowed to say.

Renowned architect Steven Ehrlich is often engaged to speak about his work and his practice.  He wanted to create a promotional piece that communicated the legacy, expertise, and heart of his practice for his many presentations.  The film was to be projected during talks, featured on the company website and shared on iPhones.  Says Steven, “Saam has captured the spirit of our working culture and environment. He did this with charm, humor and talent.” 

The film was shot with two Canon 5D Mark II’s and 1 Canon 1D Mark III.  After reviewing the footage, we interviewed Steven about his practice.  Emily Calderone helped with editing.  Mathew Chaney, AIA, says “I have watched the film several times already.  It is incredibly insightful and captures the culture of our office beautifully.  This is a piece that I (and likely everyone else who works here) will look back upon as they go through life as having encapsulated a really very special moment in time.  Even I have seen the office anew, with all its beautiful textures, smiles and warmth.  Ehrlich Architects it is a special place to work. You have created a truly deserving piece that captures our essence.  Thank you.”  You can watch it in podcasts.

We wanted to raise the bar in our continued collaborations with Lance Broumand and UrbanDaddy and match UD’s elevated aesthetic for three films that highlight how celebrities entertain.

This time for Patrón Tequila. Lance says “I come to Saam when I need leadership, creative vision and absolute reliability in process and execution—and he’s never failed to over deliver on all three. In our most recent project together, UD was looking for a personality and talent to match the amazing personalities that we were interviewing—and we got just that on every level.  We must have watched the final product over 100 times—the result was unique, visually stunning and most importantly, a business success for all involved.”

James Spader for UrbanDaddy

Thank you Lance, and thank you UrbanDaddy for your unique filter on high quality entertaining. (have you seen their iPhone app?  “I want Lunch, with my Ex, in SoHo…” and results come up.)

I was grateful to be part of an incredibly talented team compiled by Gensler‘s Russell Banks (now with Applied Storytelling) to help with a remarkable project:  Rebranding the city of Calgary in Alberta, Canada.  Most exciting was that I was able to help with the pitch itself and see the project through.

Gensler’s efforts began in Phase III or the project and I was asked to help tell the narrative of Calgary’s diverse citizens through portraits and photofilms Calgarians.

In the process, I grew to appreciate Calgary’s dynamism and infectious “unstoppable” spirit.  A few photographs are here, and photofilms are featured on the HUMUNCULUS project page.

Shooting cowboys around majestic Lake Louise in the mountains of Alberta for an ambitious civic branding project with Gensler.

Building on our experience creating end tags for Acura, Playstation, Apple, XM Satellite Radio and more,  JWT/Team Detroit approached us to create an end tag for Shell’s new national campaign.  Energy is on everyone’s mind especially now that the world has become aware of fossil fuels as finite resources.  Team Detroit wanted to focus on the preciousness of a drop of fuel.  We went through a vigorous prototyping phase together, considering very different concepts.  The end result is the most recognized energy end tag on air.  view quicktime

I co-directed a music video for Jem with Jem.  The track is called “It’s Amazing” and was featured in the film “Sex In The City.”  Details are here, or watch it in podcasts.

I’m very excited to be part of Adriene Jenik (Chair of UCSD Art) and inter-media artist Charley Ten’s “Open_Borders” performance on Friday 11/21/08.  As part of the Actions of Transfer conference at UCLA, open_boarders allows for improvisation across networks, distance, and time zones.  Globally-situated live performances are mixed and projected in real-time into the EDA Room at UCLA’s Broad Center.  DJ Wiseacre (Eric Tucker) and I will be performing and interacting in the space along with other artists.  Technology + improv + movement + performance + sound + global network.  Event flyer.

Director Michael Shaun Conaway is an expert at taking difficult thought concepts, distilling then explaining them through film.  We helped by creating 10+ minutes of 3D animation to support his storytelling style for Gap International’s Breakthrough Thinking course.  The subject of the film by itself made it a fantastically fulfilling project.

“We brought Saam and his team a somewhat exotic project that required both deep conceptual understanding and unique creativity.  From the outset we were able to start a dialogue that produced outstanding creative solutions.”  Michael Shaun Conaway – director/storyworks

For Humunculus, I was creative director and the absolutely amazing Robin Roepstorff was on Maya.  For Storyworks, Alex Melnyk was producer.

A new photofilm is posted in podcasts.  Made with 650 photographs.  Music is Tabula Rasa by Arvo Pärt.

a very sad day

I directed and photographed 25 personalities (including Eric Trump, LA Mayor Riordian, etc) in four cities for the most recent version of the Belvedere / UrbanDaddy microsite.  We shot in LA/NY/MIAMI/VEGAS, with not nearly enough time spent in Miami.  Alessandra ran production from Los Angeles.  I also scored the music along with Bix, and managed post.  Full project details here.

Mark Baker of Mansion, New York

Helped Nonfiction Unlimited and JWT / Detroit with graphics and animation for their multi-city Ford campaign.  Arash Ayrom was post producer.  For JWT, Michael Priebe, Mike Johnson, Bob Rashid and Tiffany Moy-Miller.

I was asked to speak to the Sierra Club of Los Angeles about photography. I’ve always been curious about the experience of holding different cameras and how each “begs” for a particular type of photo to be taken.
I talked about the relationship of the photographer to his gear and how the feedback from different cameras affects the entire experience of shooting. I showed work shot with a cell phone camera up to a medium format panoramic film camera as a way to discuss the physicality and feedback of various apparati.

On Tuesday I presented some of our work and methodology along with work from Logan, Troika, National Television, Laundry, Blind, and Propelo to Milka Broukhim’s “Type In Motion” course at UCLA. Also got a chance to look at and crit the work of some VERY talented students.

Los Angeles personalities Kerry Simon, Josh Richman, Eric Greenspan, Charissa Saverio (DJ RAP), Jason Bentley, Johnny Zander, and Jenn Laskey join on set in Los Angeles for the Belvedere Vodka shoot. LA producer was Alessandra Pasquino with Bill Megalos and me on camera.

A shoot for Elizabeth Paige Smith’s Kittypod creations, featuring her cat Kat, taken at the studio in Venice.