KitchenAid Grain Cooker
eCOMMERCE CASE STUDY
SIMULTANEOUS PHOTOGRAPHY + VIDEO — PROP + FOOD STYLING — CUSTOM SET DESIGN + BUILD — FULL STORYBOARDS FOR 18 VIDEO ASSETS — MOTION GRAPHICS — FULL SERVICE POST PRODUCTION
42 still images. 18 videos. All for one kitchen appliance?
It’s the new normal. As consumers make bigger and bigger purchases online (appliances and cars and homes, oh my!) they spend more and more time researching them. If a picture is worth a thousand words, well then, a video of the appliance in action? That’s almost as valuable as a writeup in Wirecutter.
The folks at Whirlpool’s KitchenAid brand know this to be true. When launching of a new grain and rice cooker appliance entirely online (zero in-store stock) in 2023, they came to us with a list of content needs that would populate their social media feeds, KitchenAid’s online store, and partner online retailers’ product pages.
The project’s complexity required a high attention to detail from our team. Each asset was being created for a special purpose. For instance, there were duplicate assets for domestic and international audiences, using imperial and metric units respectively. There were distinct aspect ratios for social. The list goes on.
We developed storyboards for every video asset and a detailed shot list of stills, planning our five-day shoot methodically to make the most of our time. We assembled a crew of 15 including a set builder, two food stylists and two prop stylists, and shot everything on a custom-built kitchen set at The F-Stop Studio at the edge of Chicago’s West Loop with one hand talent.
“The project’s complexity required a high attention to detail from our team. Each asset was being created for a special purpose. ”
Our props department, set builder and lighting team took cues from KitchenAid’s brand guide to create a consistent look and feels across all assets. A portion of these assets would be featured on Amazon, where brand recognition goes a long way for online shoppers scrolling through dozens of similar products.
CREATIVE DIRECTOR — MIKEY LITCHFIELD
PRODUCER — KAREN SCHMITZ
PHOTOGRAPHER — JON HAMBLIN
DIT — ELAINE MILLER
PHOTO ASSIST — JOSUÉ BRIONES
DP — SAMER ALMADANI
AC — MELISSA REVELS
GAFFER — BEAR ALDRICH
GRIP — GADI SOLIS
GRIP — MIKE CHO
PA — MARK LEJA
PA — TESSA STEELE
SET BUILD — DREW SMETHURST
SET DESIGN + PROP STYLIST — DOMINIC CORDILLA
PROP ASSIST — LEAH LUKAS
RIGGER — BRIAN DUPONT
FOOD STYLIST — ADRIENNE BLUMTHAL
FOOD STYLIST ASSIST — ARDEN KELLEY
TALENT — GRAY TALENT GROUP - TATIANA BUSTAMANTE
WARDROBE — FRANCESCA DUPONT-MADINIER
G&E — ATLAS LIGHTING, LLC
LOCATION — THE F STOP
VIDEO EDITING - ROSHAN MURTHY
MOTION GRAPHICS - CHAS FRIES
SOUND DESIGN - ANOTHER COUNTRY
COLOR CORRECTION - COLOR CORRECTION CHICAGO
STORYBOARD ART - ADAM RICHARDSON