The GPOP Challenge: 1 Camera, 1 Day
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
Leonardo da Vinci
Late last year, the GoPro media team issued a department-wide, 24-hour challenge: use one HERO4 camera to create something we have never seen before. Dubbed the GPOP (GoPro Original Productions) Challenge, team members had only a few restrictions: no specialty mounts (except DIY inventions), no more than one camera, and only one day to shoot.
The stunning videos produced are a reminder that simple things can be powerful beyond expectation, and that every moment can be transformed into a story worth telling.
This week GoPro is honoring three of the best videos to come out of the GPOP Challenge. We spoke with each of the producers to get the full story behind the inspiration and execution.
GoPro: Grandma Flies a Drone, Produced by Tyler Johnson
Skate production artist Tyler Johnson has some serious GoPro history. Nearly 4 years ago, at just 17 years old, he was offered a job after GoPro creative director Brad Schmidt tripped over his DSLR tripod at a Colorado carnival. Schmidt asked to take a look at what Johnson was shooting (killer night lapse, FYI) and offered him a position at GoPro on the spot. Johnson is also the editor behind GoPro's most popular video ever Fireman Saves Kitten - which has more than 26 million views.
The GPOP assignment didn't come quite as easily, however. Johnson wrestled with a few ideas but none of them were the one. He knew he wanted something simple that everyone could relate to something that would spark an emotional reaction like that to the Fireman Saves Kitten video. Genius struck in the moment Johnson recognized that GoPro had not done a family oriented video that focused on older generations, and the idea for Grandma Flies a Drone was born.
For the shoot, Johnson worked with his roommate's Grandma, 91-year-old Els Van Boldrik, who lives nearby and spends her days gardening with her dog, Bill. To capture her outdoor routine, Johnson attached a spinny mount to a pair of headphones. The three-and-a-half-foot pole mount had a HERO4 camera on each end (for weight distribution) and spun 360 degrees to capture Van Boldrick's activities and the yard's landscaping. Johnson ended up loaning Grandma a beanie to wear during the shoot to help keep the bulky headphones and pole mount in place!
Johnson hopes that his video strikes a chord with viewers and encourages them to reach out and connect with their loved ones. I'd love to see more GoPro users include their families in their everyday documenting and capture more stories across generations.
GoPro: Retro Revolution, Produced by Ryan Truettner
Inspired by the cinematography in the snowboard film, Into the Mind, production artist Ryan Truettner set off to capture San Francisco in a revolutionary way (literally!). The first step in fulfilling his GPOP project was to DIY a revolving arm rig to capture a series of scenic shots from around the city. One trip to Home Depot and $25 later, Truettner built a light weight, compact rig that would allow him to capture the spinning, 360 degree video.
On shoot day, Truettner cruised the San Francisco streets on his bike, looking for iconic locations that had both an interesting foreground and cool background each essential in getting a shot in the desired revolving style. Video resolution 2.7K at 48fps was used exclusively because Truettner was working on a 1080 timeline and needed the extra resolution for resizing the image in post-production and extra frame rates to slow the footage down. I shot entirely in 48 fps and then slowed it down to 50 percent speed (24 fps) to have more frames for smoother stitching, he says of the editing process.
Truettner's favorite clip in his Retro Revolution video is of the river with the couple in the paddleboat. That was a total accident, he recalls. They happened to come out from under the bridge as I was filming. That moment has inspired Truettner to tackle another production using the revolving arm rig. I think the shot with the subjects came out the most interesting. I'd like to produce another video where there is something happening in every shot.
For more behind the scenes on the Retro Revolution video and snaps of Truettner's DIY arm rig, check out his Making Of blog post on Truettner.com.
GoPro: Pole Vaulting with Allison Stokke, Produced by Josh Currie
Team sports production artist Josh Currie had only 30 minutes with pole vault phenom Allison Stokke to capture his GPOP moment. In just a half-dozen vaults, Currie captured one of GoPro's top-performing YouTube videos ever, nabbing nearly 4 million views in its first week.
Currie affectionately describes the shoot as a scramble. After driving from San Francisco to Orange County, Currie learned that his time with Stokke would be cut short to just a half hour. I had no idea if what I was shooting was coming out because I didn't even have time to review the shots. He mounted the camera in different locations (on the mat, the block, the pole, the bar, among others) and shot Stokke vaulting in quick succession, hoping that he was getting content that looked amazing.
Currie chose to shoot in video resolutions of 960 at 100fps and 2.7K at 48fps in Medium to ensure that she could get lots of slow motion and also punch in the shots for close ups in post production. His special sauce moment came from the camera mounted to the end of the vault pole using the Roll Bar Mount. I didn't think it would look that cool. The way the pole fell, spun, and showed Allison falling on the mat. It was perfect.
Producer selfies - Josh Currie, Ryan Truettner and Tyler Johnson
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The GPOP Challenge: 1 Camera, 1 Day 
