Art Works Wonders

In our short film for an arts education program called ArtWorks, we captured the excitement and enthusiasm of a group of highly-energetic New York City third graders as they visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the first time. Sponsored by Learning Leaders, ArtWorks is an all-volunteer program that introduces painting, sculpture, decorative arts and architecture in a 6-week in-school course culminating with a museum visit for children who otherwise would not have such an opportunity. One of many touching moments in the film – as the children are looking at a Renaissance-era painting of a young prince surrounded by his toys and pets, the ArtWorks volunteer/guide asks the children whether the little boy in the painting is a prince or regular kid. After a moment of reflection, one of the kids in our group brilliantly answers “He’s both”. View the video on our youtube channel at http://youtu.be/fDk7O_Wczzo

A Bridge to the Future of Online Media.

We recently created a 2-minute promotional film for a large public relations firm highlighting their online media engagement center. The film’s theme “A Bridge to the Future” incorporated dramatic stock footage with team member interviews and discussions, and live screen graphics to give the viewer a quick overview of this newly launched service. Developed to help the firm keep their clients abreast of the ever-changing business news environment, the film is used in new business presentations and will be featured on their website. View the film at http://youtu.be/epYgUdiiKGo

How Do You Surprise The Man Who Plans Everything?

How do you surprise the man who plans his own 50th Birthday celebration down to the time, place, guest list, menu and wine selection? (FYI: 7pm, at La Grenouille, 39 guests, wild mushroom risotto and sea bass with a big Bordeaux). One very clever and generous wife sprung a surprise that is still being talked about – a humorous personal tribute film by Significant Films. Just as the host and birthday boy raised his glass to make a speech to his guests, his wife asked him to sit back down, as the screen came down and the lights dimmed. What followed was a witty, fast moving, 14-minute roast that literally had the host laughing, till he cried. The film was structured into 10 mini-chapters, each highlighting a period of influence in his life. Together with archival footage, home video and stills, as well as quick on camera comments from over 15 family members and friends, who roasted, toasted and teased the good natured birthday boy. No aspect of his full and colorful past or present was spared – which made for great entertainment and a surprise that sill delights after many, many viewings.

As Featured in New York Family Magazine.

We are excited to be listed in the Buzzworthy column of the November 2010 issue of New York Family Magazine. Here’s what they had to say about us:

LOOKING FOR SOMETHING A LITTLE MORE CREATIVE THAN THE TYPICAL MONTAGE OF FAMILY PHOTOS AND VIDEO? Significant Films, a film production company run by industry vets David Frieberg and Peter Galperin, produces unique, insightful and humorous personal films, which are a great way to celebrate a birthday, anniversary, corporate event or bar/bat mitzvah. Featuring guest appearances from friends and family and hi-definition video technology, plus tons of sophisticated features like voice-overs, Hollywood-style titles and credit sequences, your film will not only be the hit of the evening, but will serve as a treasured keepsake for years to come. For more information, visit significantfilms.com.

A Client with Great Taste and Great Connections.

One of the preeminent event marketing and food & wine festival producers recently turned to Significant Films to create a film that was dear to his heart. His own talented and budding chef of a daughter’s Bat Mitzvah. The “food” related theme and party at Alpine Country Club, in prestigious Demarest, NJ, featured elaborate centerpieces comprised of French cook-ware suspended from hanging chef’s racks. On the tables below, were baskets laden with more cooking utensils and canned food to benefit City Harvest. And, of course the food that night was served up by some of the top celebrity chefs and restaurants, complete with wines from his daughter’s birth year. Our client did not want the typical montage, but rather something entertaining, that incorporated their vast collection of family videos and stills and relate to the theme of the night –  food and cooking. Since they were on a first name basis with all the top celebrity chefs in the country, we hoped that there’d be some great cameos. Within hours of our first meeting, our client called with a great suggestion – their chef friends could appear on camera, each asking for cooking help from the Bat Mitzvah girl (unfortunately we don’t have permission to mention their names, but if you’re a “Foodie” you’d recognize every one of them!). We used each chef’s cameo as the introduction to one of seven mini-collages of family videos and stills. A very time-intensive project (we culled through over 40 hours of home video and hundreds of still photos), but tasteful choices and a great collaboration ensured that everyone was deliciously satisfied with the end results.

Film celebrates the end of a 12-year run.

Thirty-nine “cast members” on Manhattan’s Upper West Side have been “performing” together for the past 10-12 years. Now they’re about to celebrate their final appearance together before heading off to… 15 different High Schools. Using the theme and metaphor of a long-running Broadway production, Significant Films is creating a playful and entertaining 30 minute film “The Road to 2010 – An Upper West Side Story” that celebrates the 39 graduating 8th grade students, their 100+ teachers and the hundreds of experiences they’ve accumulated from pre-K thru middle school at the Rodoph Sholom School. After 4 days of shooting on set and on location, compiling and weeding through thousands of photos and film clips, the film is in the final edit stages, rushing to meet its screening date, in front of an audience of 1,000 people at the middle school’s upcoming graduation ceremony. Not only is the film meant to entertain the attendees of the graduation but it will be made available to all of the graduates and their families, as a record and reminder of the friends, events and mentors from their first 10+ years of school.

Tribute film to be shown in Seattle concert, May 16, 2010.

On May 16, 2010, our short film “A Necessary Luxury… Music” will be shown at the Everett Youth Symphony Orchestra’s 45th anniversary tribute concert in Benaroya Hall in Seattle, WA. The film and the concert are dedicated to EYSO’s founder, Jascha Galperin (Peter’s dad), who started the orchestra in 1965. Today, 45 years later, it’s a thriving organization, there will be over 150 children performing on the stage, and the entire event will be webcast live. You can connect to the webcast on the day of the concert at http://www.eyso.info/.

Dance film premiere May 1, 2010 in Kent, CT.

We are just finishing the final edits for an 8-minute fund-raising documentary that we have been developing for the past year for the Earl Mosley Institute of the Arts (EMIA). Earl Mosley is a well-known dancer, choreographer, and teacher affiliated with the Alvin Ailey School, who is the founder and director of a summer dance program in Kent, CT. The kids and instructors in the program are all amazingly talented and dedicated individuals, and we are very excited to have our film premiere at EMIA’s Scholarship Benefit in Kent, CT., on May 1, 2010. For more info about the event visit www.EMIAdance.org.