For the fourth time in the past three years, Richter Studios won the coveted Dolphin Trophy for film excellence in the beautiful city of Cannes, France. The 2019 Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards were billed as its toughest festival ever, with over 950 films being submitted. After an initial round of judging, 206 films were shortlisted. Then a second round of judging narrowed the list of gold and silver dolphin trophy winners to 149 total. Among them, Chicago video production company Richter Studios won for the “Floating Gardens” film it created for the British International School of Chicago, Lincoln Park.
“I am so proud that Richter Studios has walked the red carpet at Cannes three separate times,” said Jeremy Richter, CEO of Richter Studios. “This event is the gold standard for corporate films and television worldwide and it was a great honor to see a Chicago video production company be recognized for cinematic excellence. Our creative team continues to reach higher and the view keeps getting better every year.”
Valerie and Jeremy Richter on the red carpet at the 2019 Gala Event in Cannes, France.
The win represents the third time that Richter Studios has won at Cannes for a production featuring the British International School of Chicago; and fourth Dolphin Trophy overall. Richter Studios won two Dolphin Trophies in 2017 in the Corporate Video and Social Media categories and another in 2016 in the Corporate Video category. The award in 2016 held a special distinction in that Richter Studios was the only American production firm to win in Cannes that year.
Richter Studios CEO Jeremy Richter with his company’s fourth Dolphin Trophy from Cannes.
Jeremy Richter on the red carpet sharing a special message for his award-winning creative team.
The winning film for Richter Studios was called “Floating Gardens” and it was created for the British International School of Chicago (BISC), Lincoln Park. Richter Studios won the award in the Corporate Video category. The short film tells the story of how the school’s students are utilizing their STEAM-based skills to bring the biodiversity back to the “Wild Mile” portion of the Chicago River. Appearing in the film with BISC Lincoln Park was Urban Rivers, whose mile long project has been officially endorsed by the city of Chicago.
“The ‘Floating Gardens’ film is an amazing portrayal of the impact of the schools collaboration with Urban Rivers,” stated Erin Woodhams, Director of Marketing, Admissions & Communications at BISC, Lincoln Park. “Providing our students the opportunity to tell this story on camera was incredible, furthering their commitment to repairing their local river and deepening their connection to conservation efforts and biodiversity. The team at Richter Studios are amazing at working with our students and faculty. The viewer is taken on a journey with the BISC-LP community and can feel the passion behind this project as a result of the storytelling in this film.”
BISC Lincoln Park “Floating Gardens” Film
The film was captured over four separate days in in Lincoln Park (a suburb of Chicago). All interviews and boat-to-boat footage was captured with a Panasonic Varicam LT. Separately, Richter Studios also captured aerial footage with a DJI Inspire 2. Additionally, Richter Studios developed several hand-drawn 2D animations that were featured in the award-winning film.
Students from the BISC Lincoln Park, surround a floating garden on the Chicago River.
Director Luke Sheldon and Cinematographer Nick Helfers collaborate on a shot.
Two crews in one shot. In the foreground is Michael Monar (Drone) and Joe Martinez, Jr. (Camera).
“Richter Studios creatively captured the essence of the Wild Mile in a way which inspired and motivated people about this fantastic project,” stated Nick Wesley, Director at Urban Rivers. “They have a unique ability to capture the joy and energy from the student at the British International School of Chicago, and distill that down to an exhilarating piece of film which leaves the viewer excited about the future of the project. Our team was especially impressed with how the film captured the whole vision of the Wild Mile in a way which reflected both our vision of urban habitat and the impact that it had on the children who are helping build the project. This piece has become the best way to explain the Wild Mile to the community.”
According to the Urban Rivers website, “the Wild Mile will be the first-ever floating eco-park of its scale in the world. The finished project will be a mile-long floating park located on the North Branch Canal of the Chicago River, a manmade channel along the east side of Goose Island between Chicago Ave and North Ave. The completed park will consist of floating gardens and forests with public walkways and kayak docks in the Chicago River. The Wild Mile will function as a public park, open-air museum, botanical garden, kayaker destination, classroom for the community, and provide habitat for native wildlife.”
The above map shows the future plans of the Wild Mile, Image courtesy of Urban Rivers.
BISC Lincoln Park Principal Ed Pearce (L) celebrates with Valerie (Middle) and Jeremy Richter (R).
Lucky Table #13 at the Award Gala Event, where Richter Studios and several of the world’s greatest production companies collectively won the most Dolphin trophies at the 2019 event.
“2019 has been a very special year for the creative team at Richter Studios,” stated Richter. “In total, we won nine creative awards for our body of work. The ‘Floating Gardens’ film also won the coveted Gold Trophy at the Deauville Green Awards this summer. It’s wonderful to see our commitment to creative excellence being rewarded on a worldwide scale.”
Jeremy and Valerie Richter enjoying a beautiful evening along the French Riviera for the Welcome Party Event.
Jeremy and Valerie Richter at the Welcome Party Event.
About Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards
The Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards annually honors the world’s finest corporate films, online media and TV productions. The 10th Annual Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards received 950 entries from over 40 countries. Only 149 productions (15%) were selected as gold or silver Dolphin Trophy winners at the prestigious competition by a jury panel consisting of several Emmy and Oscar-winning filmmakers.
Jeremy Richter (Middle) celebrates a wonderful evening with Tulipes & Cie Director Charles Drouin (L) and Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards Festival Director Alexander V. Kammel.
This effort joins an impressive list of education-related video productions championed by Richter Studios. The company has broad video production experience developing a wide range of corporate videos, explainer videos and brand films for the education industry. Included in its educational portfolio are productions for the College of American Pathologists, DeVry University, NCSBN, Saint Ignatius and UW-La Crosse,
Production Crew:
Executive Producer: Jeremy Richter
Director: Luke Sheldon
Senior Producer: Ed Grozich
Creative Director: Bianca Panos
Cinematography: Joe Martinez, Jr. & Nick Helfers
Aerials: Michael Monar
Editor: Luke Sheldon
Animation/Graphics: Patrick Cheng
2019 Cannes Corporate Awards Ceremony Event Film
About British International School of Chicago, Lincoln Park
BISC Lincoln Park is an internationally-minded private institution preparing students two-years old and up to succeed through a values-based education at a state-of-the-art, five-story campus with a true-to-the-heart Chicago neighborhood feel. Founded in 2001, the school’s mission is to provide an ever-evolving experience for ever-evolving learners. BISC Lincoln Park recognizes the uniqueness of each child through learning that promotes challenge and personalized education at all levels. To learn more about BISC Lincoln Park’s unique, international private school experience, please visit: www.bischicagolp.org.
BISC Lincoln Park Principal Ed Pearce (L) and Richter Studios CEO Jeremy Richter (R) celebrate a great finish line together in Cannes, France.
About Richter Studios
Richter Studios is a video production company based in Chicago’s gorgeous West Loop that has managed over 4,000 comprehensive productions, casted over 4,800 onscreen talent and created over 11,000 “films” over the past two decades. Widely regarded as pioneers in digital cinema, the company develops a diverse range of branded video content for its clients, including TV commercials, corporate videos, explainer videos, web videos and animations. The company has won over 60 international awards, including the Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards in 2016, 2017 and 2019; and the world-renowned German Design Award in 2018. Richter Studios has comprehensive experience filming up to 8K resolution and has coordinated many nationwide and global video productions for its clients, filming on location in over 48 states and 12 countries. To learn more about Richter Studios and its award-winning service offerings, please visit: www.richterstudios.com.
After seeing the creation of 11,215 “films” over the past 22 years, the iconic Richter Studios action slate enjoys a lovely afternoon view of the French Riviera.
Below are additional behind-the-scenes photos from the events in Cannes, France.
