ABC13 KTRK-TV
Severe Weather Promo
Client
ABC13 KTRK-TV
Product
30 second Promo
Role
Keying, Video Editing, 3D Environments
Time
June 2024
As Hurricane season approached the Gulf of Mexico once again, ABC13 wanted to remind the audience about the accessible resources and updates on weather through broadcasts, website articles, and the mobile app.
ABC13 proudly hosts a team of six meteorologists, which is very uncommon in the local market. Given the highly varying schedules, it is very rare for all six to be in-house at the same time. This leads us to use the greenscreen studio for every shot, with each meteorologist following the videographer’s cue to make the final product cohesive.
Given the quick turnaround time, this promo was completed in under two weeks.
OVERVIEW
Week 1:
Plan and conceptualize the shot list for 30 second promo
Write script for voiceover
Collect footage assets of weather events pertinent to Houston area
Shot talent footage in greenscreen studio
Select best takes for editing
Week 2:
“Scratchtrack” selected footage to approximate timing for further editing
Key out talent and mask markers along background
Create 3D environments
Make integration realistic with color grading, shadows, and reflections
When the call to make a new severe weather promo commercial, we began brainstorming about how we could showcase our six meteorologists in 30 seconds. We put our heads together and brought concepts that we wanted to highlight, ultimately landing on:
Our increasing coverage of weather radar towers
ABC13 mobile app, accessible to all 24/7
Weather updates around the clock, from 4am to 10pm
We settled on creating seven core scenes, showcasing each meteorologist in individual and group shots. Because of conflicting schedules, each talent had to be shot individually to maintain visual integrity across the promo. With individual shoots, we had to plan out the shots strategically making sure we always shot at a consistent angle and had markers for the walking portion of the timelapse scene.
Scene breakdowns:
3D Weather Panels
Studio shot, where newscasts take place for linear and streaming newscasts
ABC13 Weather Alert Day
Houston’s largest meteorologist team of 6 members as of June 2024
Weather Radar Tower expansions to Texas A&M College Station and one future location
Use weather footage from or that directly ties to Houston: hurricanes, tornadoes, flooding, etc.
ABC13 Mobile App
Group hero shot with every meteorologist
“Always on, For you.”
Challenges → Solutions
✦ How will filming stay consistent over 6 sessions? → Plan the best you can!
We were concerned about keeping the filming consistent across the board throughout the week, especially as it was placed in a high-traffic spot in the greenscreen studio. So to best plan around this, we locked the tripod in place with tape marking its location for two cameras - one at eye level and one close to the ground for the hero shot.
✦ Tight deadline for collaborative project → More efficient communication and baton-passing across the team
✦ Tight deadline for collaborative project → More efficient communication and baton-passing
RESULTS & TAKEAWAYS
Being a part of the promo project was very rewarding! It was my second time contributing graphics for a promo, and certainly not my last. It taught me that it’s okay to make mistakes, but it’s up to you to quickly adapt to what content and resources you DO have available to you.
The finished piece got a lot of positive and constructive feedback about how integration could be better in future iterations.
Tools Used:
✦ Adobe After Effects
✦ Adobe Illustrator
✦ Cinema 4D
