We kept going relentlessly.
We looked like two goofy Beatles just enjoying life.
Times that will never come back.
As the process flowed, the amount of information forced us to keep buying more external hard drives. More storage space. We were a true content-producing machine. “Chouriços”, as I usually call them. But smoked, refined, cured, sophisticated, special “chouriços”. Quality “chouriços”. The kind that are basically Andalusian acorn-fed ham.
It is important to mention that, during this year, we had the support of Vânia Romeira Martins. João knew her. They were friends. And Vânia liked our vibe. She started by helping on this and that project and, before I realised it, she was collaborating with us continuously. Vânia is lovely. Cheerful. Curious. We spent quality time together. As the amount of work increased, so did her responsibilities. In the blink of an eye, she became responsible for the making-of of several projects, event photography, one of two productions happening simultaneously, the Lego voices in the MAR Shopping “Dominguinhos” activities — she was already part of the team. Without anyone formally deciding anything. Without anyone even noticing. It just happened. And back then, if Vânia didn’t show up for some reason or arrived a little later, I remember João Costa asking several times: “Where’s Vanila, mate?”. It was an affectionate nickname we used for Vânia, with genuine fondness. I will never forget the support she gave us. And we have many records proving the value she added. A lot. The next chapter will certainly prove it. But even in this one, there are several pieces entirely under her responsibility.
Here follows yet another extensive list of “chouriços” from our factory:
VIDEO
Video Production for the ONE Project (Online Exercise)
ONE was a different kind of project for us. It was a way of rethinking the business model of personal trainers at the time. COVID had not yet happened, and businesses of this kind were already beginning to emerge in the market. For us, it was something new. And this was the positioning its representative aimed for. He had very concrete references and ideas. B16 worked towards presenting exactly what the client requested. The production process was incredibly enjoyable, and the praise we received for the final result was enough for us.
Video Production for HELP 21 Gym
The same happened with HELP 21 Gym, a company within the Timing Group, with whom we already had an ongoing retainer agreement. They had absolutely no video content to position the gym and, within the logistical possibilities available, this was the outcome:
Event Video Production for Dengun
Vânia had the opportunity to film and edit this Dengun event entirely on her own. A light-hearted but serious event; humorous, yet strategically driven; about people, for people.
Video Productions for Grupo Timing
And requests from Grupo Timing kept coming:
Video Productions for Designer Outlet Algarve
Designer Outlet Algarve invited us to document and interview national personalities and influencers. We had an incredible amount of fun during those production days. We genuinely enjoyed doing this kind of work. A lot. It was also here that I met Nuno Relógio, during productions that required a second camera operator. I will speak about him in due time.
Institutional Video Production for Infralobo
Designed to inform and bring together political intentions and collective opinions, the following video was an intermediate project we developed for Infralobo. It was here that we began simplifying the narrative around the services provided by the company. A demanding project, with many filming days, many people involved, and endless hours of footage that we condensed in our own way. This was a very specific piece of content aimed at a very specific audience. It was not intended to go online. It was designed to be projected inside a closed auditorium. For managers and their demanding clients. At Infralobo, it is important to communicate clearly how services are delivered. This was the result. And the path we built alongside Infralobo, as I have already mentioned, is one that fills us with pride. The following year we produced a piece that is still used today to communicate what they do. But for now, this is where it all began.
Video Production for Mercado Municipal de Loulé
It was Carlos Manso who introduced me to David Pimentel. David was the director of Loulé Concelho Global, the entity managing several municipal infrastructures. I remember being pleasantly surprised when we exchanged our first impressions regarding the celebration of the 110th anniversary of Mercado Municipal de Loulé. But nobody could have told me how much admiration I would later develop for him after working closely with such a singular person.
Video Production for MAR Shopping Algarve
At MAR Shopping Algarve, we averaged around eight pieces of content per month, from January to December 2018. Campaigns, events, brand activations, festive seasons, architectural details of the building, services provided by the shopping centre, internal communication content, conceptual productions – a constant stream of video production. Dozens of videos. Today, thousands. Year after year. But it was here, during this time, in this year, that we truly began to feel the space, the people, the hidden corners, the secrets and the opportunities. I confess I have a very special affection for this Shopping Centre, for the people who manage it, for the memories already tattooed onto my mind and heart. It is not always easy, because it is ultimately a commercial space, but the Meeting Place concept is real. And it is a place I now visit with my own family.
Documentary Production for Associação Nascer Prematuro
Chapter 10 explained in detail how abrupt and violent the experience of our first daughter’s birth was. For me and for my Wife. But it also explains how grateful and indebted we became towards those professionals, towards the cause of prematurity, towards that experience which only parents of premature babies truly understand. A debt for life. The “creditors” will never demand repayment; they acted from the heart, with a true sense of mission. And for that exact reason, we, the “debtors”, feel compelled to give Love back. We try to accommodate it within our minds through small occasional contributions. My Wife became President of Associação Nascer Prematuro. For several years now, she has represented the institution. Alongside other wonderful people, she actively contributes towards fundraising, support initiatives, creating conditions for parents, organising awareness and information moments, and communicating the work done for the cause, for the parents, for the children and for the services. I, in my humble and insignificant place beside these giant human beings who do so much for humanity, tried to contribute with a small gesture: producing a documentary for the Association’s Annual Gala and capturing the event in a short social media video. It was the minimum I could offer. But it came from the heart. The following content is heavy. Serious. Real. The second piece is a kind of “this happened” on the 17th of November 2018 at Teatro Lethes, in Faro.
Reperage for Letra 7 Video Production
Meanwhile, because apparently there was not enough work happening already – pure irony – I took João and Vânia to visit the facilities of Letra 7, a printing company I had worked with for many years and with whom I maintain excellent relationships with its managing partners. The idea was to produce an advertising campaign for social media using several different techniques. The reperage was done, but the production itself never happened. One of those “loose ends” I hope to revisit and properly complete one day. This too will eventually be a pro bono project.
Video production is an entire world in itself. There is pre-production, production and post-production. In between, countless additional tasks and responsibilities emerge. It is a world because the ability of the professionals involved, the quality of the equipment and the perception of the final product exist within a lake of variables, details and characteristics judged by countless people. If a videographer is good at capturing footage, it does not mean they are good at editing; if the camera is excellent, it does not mean the operator knows how to extract its full potential; if the edit is strong, it does not mean the export settings are correct; if the music fits the theme, it does not necessarily mean the final result will be impactful… just a few factors within a complex universe where experience teaches that “done is better than perfect”, or that “perfect is the enemy of good”, or simply that one should not waste time on emptiness. Throughout all these years of video production – working with dozens of videographers, with our own equipment, rented gear or equipment included in services, with outsourcing companies, with the involvement of B16 collaborators, especially in areas outside video production that nevertheless added value – everything has always been volatile and ephemeral. Perfect productions do not exist. I have been part of projects where the pre-production and expectations were a solid ten out of ten and the final result fell short. I have also been part of projects with absolutely no expectations that ended up surpassing every ambition. I have worked on projects where the solution that changed everything came from the most unexpected person imaginable. Video is a world. And from the moment we started until today, it has changed dramatically. Artificial intelligence, especially, has given it a utopian boost. It is separating the wheat from the chaff. And if the chaff was already expensive back then, today it has become outrageously overvalued. Video is not photography. And for those who ask us: “while you’re filming, can you also take a few photos?”, I genuinely do not even know where to begin. The more video we produce, the more I learn. The more video we deliver, the more I understand. I have worked with unbelievably talented videographers. And I have worked with camera operators who will never get there. Our role is to know how to solve, adapt and adjust; or how to explore, diversify and maximise potential. It depends on what is delivered and on who delivers it.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Photography Production for HELP 21 Gym
The gym needed photographs for its Facebook cover image. We had the opportunity to produce 360º photographs that demonstrated that, despite being small, HELP 21 offered countless possibilities for physical activity:
Photography Production for Associação CASA
At the request of Ricardo Mariano, we photographed Associação CASA:
Photography Production for Infralobo
And Infralobo invited us to create an institutional photography production. Ricardo Flôxo and Tiago Cruz produced this:
DESIGN
Proposal for Photography Production and Advertising Campaign for Jardíssimo
In the day-to-day operations of any business, it is common practice to receive proposal requests from existing clients or opportunities from new ones. Sometimes they ask us for things we cannot develop internally. We need help from freelancers or other companies. That is exactly what happened with this project. Dengun asked for our help in preparing a photography production and we committed ourselves body and soul to it. It had always been our dream to work with a landscaping and exterior design company. They presented us with truly interesting challenges. But in practical terms, our level of involvement still lacked the necessary experience to align the budget with the financial reality of the challenge. We went all in when they only wanted one or two cards on the table. Some jobs stay with us precisely because we never got to do them. Jardíssimo was one of those. The desire remains for the future.
Tiágoras Construções Branding
Together with André Aleixo, we developed the Tiágoras Construções brand:
Attempted Rebranding for International Law Office
We attempted to rebrand ILO, but ultimately could not reach the desired outcome. The client wanted something different and distinct:
Graphic Design for Loulé Mobility Week Promotional Stand
Still working with Loulé Concelho Global, we contributed to the graphic design of an event stand:
Beyond video, photography and design, there were other areas demanding our attention. Managing the company required time: planning, meetings, payments, invoices, accounting, operational management of clients and teams, proposals, emails, phone calls. Tasks that dissolve into the final results but without which nothing exists.
OTHER
Office
Our office kept gaining life. Colour. Objects. Furniture. Information.
Family
I continued living unique moments with my family:
BUSINESS CONSULTANCY
Production of a Brand Strategic Plan for Loulé Concelho Global
And amidst this complex and demanding year of work, one of the most interesting challenges we ever developed emerged. After delivering the video for Mercado Municipal de Loulé and getting to know, speaking with and connecting with David Pimentel, the opportunity arose to formalise a proposal for a Marketing Plan. It was a path we followed with the same dedication we had applied to Sisgarbe: with emotion, motivation and personal commitment. We set out to understand the team, the services, the context, the positioning and the purpose of that infrastructure. We spent time speaking to people. We spent time researching and searching for references. Back then there was no ChatGPT; we had to work differently. Through research, imagination and the ability to connect different businesses with similar capabilities. Working with LCG was a breath of seriousness. David Pimentel had also studied at the Portuguese Catholic University. There were converging points in our discourse and mindset. Subliminal understandings. Shared ambitions. And we, as a company, wanted results we could be proud of and use as proof that we were capable of doing more and better. LCG also has a success case portrayed in detail in the “Battles” section of our website. I will not detail everything we did here, nor how we did it. But I do want to emphasise how important it was to understand the world of urban transport, the world of the market and its operators, the world of parking regulation, the world of civic sustainability, and how politics is perceived by citizens, tourists and visitors. Public service can often be thankless. And to be honest, from my experience, very few people genuinely wear the shirt and feel the role they perform with a true spirit of mission the way David Pimentel does. I saw it. I confirmed it. I materialised it in practice alongside him.
PHOTOGRAPHIC SUMMARY
In summary, another “factory” year!
In a quick search for the meaning of “chouriço”, I found the following: “it is a food rich in saturated fat, sodium and, in most cases, preservatives. Frequent consumption is associated with increased risks of gastric complications, cardiovascular diseases, liver deterioration and may even contribute to the development of dementia.” On the other hand, “chouriço” may also be “rich in high-quality proteins and B vitamins, essential for energy metabolism. It also provides important minerals such as iron and zinc.”
For me and João, these “chouriços” brought consequences.
Good ones.
And bad ones.
