Canopy Jackson Square
Canopy is a company that has really nice co-working spaces in San Francisco. They started in a single location in Pacific Heights and expanded to the Financial District, Jackson Square, and beyond.
Before they officially expanded to Jackson Square, they commissioned a short video to promote the opening and to raise awareness for potential clients.
Co-founder, Amir Mortazavi reached out with a loose creative brief and a visual reference, and let us take it from there. We filmed over the course of a single day with a skeleton crew. The result is a bit abstract, yet stylish–just the way I like. I hope you enjoy.
Team
Mackenzie Mathis – Creative direction, cinematography, video editing
Dan Juenemann – Location lighting
Serena Wong – Production assistant
Dan Juenemann – Location lighting
Serena Wong – Production assistant
Soba Ichi
During the pandemic, one of my favorite restaurants in Oakland, Soba Ichi, had to close its doors. They wanted to stay open for take-away orders though, and needed a way to get the word out.
I really wanted to make an abstract documentary about the process they use to make their handmade soba noodles, and when pitching the idea, I sweetened the pot by offering to make a short web commercial from the footage in order to spread the word that they'd remain open for take-away orders.
That version did its job. The Soba Ichi team put it up on social and thankfully they survived the pandemic. In fact, they're thriving.
A couple years later, they received Michellin's coveted Bib Gourmand award. In order to make this commercial evergreen, I removed the messaging about the pandemic and added the Bib Gourmand logo. Now it's something the Soba Ichi team can point to as a representation of their quality and attention to detail for years to come. Please enjoy.
Team
Mackenzie Mathis – Creative direction, cinematography, video editing
Miya Saito – Production assistant
Marcia Ong – Production assistant
Miya Saito – Production assistant
Marcia Ong – Production assistant
Potaito Boards Decades
This short commercial was done for Potaito Boards. They had a super fun idea that involved skate videos throughout the decades.
I loved it because it gave me a good excuse to dust off some old cameras and play around with an aesthetic I don't often get to indulge in anymore. These days everyone wants things to look ultra-clean and pristine in terms of footage. This project required the opposite.
The brief called for four distinct eras–the 70's, 80's, 90's, and today. It was a blast recreating images we remembered from back in the day, and the final product came out just like the folks at Potaito Boards had hoped.
I got my nostalgia fix by being able to use a 16mm Bolex, a VHS camera, the seminal skate video camcorder from the 90's Sony's VX-1000, and a modern Panasonic mirrorless camera. It was a great time, and I hope you enjoy watching as much as we did making.
Team
Mackenzie Mathis – Cinematography, video editing
Margot Czeropski – Creative direction
Tait Detro – Creative direction, 2nd camera
Dainen – Talent
Margot Czeropski – Creative direction
Tait Detro – Creative direction, 2nd camera
Dainen – Talent