In its fourth red carpet appearance in Europe over the last few years, Richter Studios recently won the coveted gold trophy at the 2019 Deauville Green Awards in Normandy, France. Out of 420 films that were submitted, the Chicago video production company was among a small group of production companies worldwide that were voted for the festival’s top honor.
“What a remarkable creative journey,” said Jeremy Richter, CEO of Richter Studios. “I am so proud to see my team at Richter Studios be honored in such a spectacular way. Our collaboration on this film with the British International School of Chicago, Lincoln Park and Urban Rivers was a truly special one. To see us honored in Deauville – a beautiful city that has celebrated the art of cinema for many decades – and to receive the gold trophy for such an outstanding body of work is something I will cherish forever.”
CEO Jeremy Richter celebrating with the gold trophy award along with jury member Lee Gluckman. Mr. Gluckman is also the Chairman of the Mobius Awards and US International Film & Video Festival.
All the gold trophy winners at the 2019 Deauville Green Awards. Photo courtesy © Naïade Plante.
Le film 2019 / The Film of the 8th Edition
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 “Preservation of Biodiversity” 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.”
The Winning Film “Floating Gardens” For The British International School of Chicago, Lincoln Park
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.
The Deauville Green Awards took place on June 12th and 13th, 2019 in Deauville, France. The famous resort town is also the site of the annual Deauville American Film festival, which began in 1975 and recently celebrated its 45th edition. Many American movie stars are celebrated by the city and are even provided a permanent beach cabin that bears their name. In 2018, Oscar-wining actor Morgan Freeman was inducted to much fanfare.
Jeremy Richter at the famous beach cabins named after American movie stars.
The iconic Richter Studios action slate enjoying a spectacular view on the beaches of Deauville, France.
The festival took place over the course of two days in early June (2019). The festivities kicked off with screenings of the winning films at the Villa Le Cercle. CEO Jeremy Richter was in attendance to present the “Floating Gardens” film and answered questions from the audience and jury members.
Jeremy Richter at the Villa Le Cercle for the opening celebration.
Jeremy Richter answers questions during the jury presentation of “Floating Gardens”.
During the second day of the festival, participants were treated to a special luncheon gathering at the famous Villa Strassburger. Built in 1907 by Baron Henri de Rothschild, it was later purchased by the American business tycoon Ralph Strassburger, who was a well-known racehorse owner. The estate was donated the town of Deauville in 1980 and is the most famous villa in the region.
Entrance to the Villa Strassburger, an architectural wonder in Deauville, France.
Jeremy Richter with his son Ethan during the luncheon celebration at the Villa Strassburger.
The highlight of the of the two-day festival was the award ceremony at the Casino Barrière de Deauville. Amazingly, this is the same venue that James Bond creator and author, Ian Fleming, based the famous film “Casino Royale” on. Although it was Fleming’s first-ever Bond novel (1953), the film was adapted for the screen three separate times. The most recent adaption featured megastar Daniel Craig.
Crowds form outside the Casino Barrière de Deauville for the Awards Gala Event.
Ethan and Jeremy Richter moments before entering the Award Gala Event.
Mayor of Deauville Philippe Augier (R) shares opening remarks at the Award Gala Event. Photo courtesy © Naïade Plante.
Ethan and Jeremy Richter proudly accepting the golden trophy for film excellence.
The dinner party following the award gala event at the Casino Barrière de Deauville.
The party at Casino Barrière de Deauville carried late into the evening.
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.
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, and brand films for the education industry. Included in its educational portfolio are productions for 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
Father and son enjoying a beautiful french town celebrated by Ian Fleming (James Bond author), F. Scott Fitzgerald (“The Great Gatsby”) and countless American movie stars.
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
