The slogan for Ottawa’s Bytown Productions is, “You celebrate life we capture life”. We live in a world where home-made video is as easy as aiming and shooting. Sites on the Internet have made posting the best (not always the best) of our amateur efforts a breeze. From the diverse results available on-line, and after far too many, “come and see our, ‘insert your event here’ “, videos and pictures, there is comfort in knowing that for those special events and occasions there are talented professionals who can provide that extra special polished touch for that perfect video capture.
Andrew Mesley and Ryan Mantha are the two founding members of the Ottawa’s Bytown Productions.
I had the opportunity to ask Ryan and Andrew about their company and all that’s behind the lens at Bytown Productions. They were candid and eager to tell me their story:
JD: Tell me a bit about the birth of Bytown Productions; what brought you two together to create the company?
R&A: Bytown Productions was started in September of 2010. We have grown up in Barrhaven and had been friends for most of those years. We both graduated from Algonquin College. Ryan is a graduate of the TV Broadcasting program and Andrew from the Business Administration program. It has been a long time goal to start our own business and we felt our skills were best suited to a video production company. Jobs were not plentiful when we graduated so we decided to make our own.
JD: What is the range of work that you do – the genres and styles?
R&A: The products that we offer are video production for weddings, music videos and corporate services…promotional work and special events. We also do video conversion such as Beta, VHS, 8mm, VHSC, 8mm tapes to DVD as well as DVD editing. We produce video/photo slide shows and photo scanning of old photos and slides.
JD: Why should I come to Bytown productions over anyone else in the city?
R&A: As recent graduates we are trained in the latest video production and post-production techniques. We have the latest state of the art equipment and absolutely love what we are doing. Our enthusiasm and desire to go above and beyond in order to satisfy our client’s needs is our primary goal. Being a young company we have a lot of flexibility in the services we provide and are willing to tailor our services to meet the needs of our clients.
JD: Is there any interest in stretching out into full length features, production for television, documentaries or artistic videography?
R&A: Our primary goal at this time is to continue working in our current areas of expertise to further develop and expand our company by providing the high quality service that our clients have come to expect. We are definitely considering expanding into feature, tv (and) documentary production as future projects.
JD: What makes Ottawa a good place to set up shop in your business? What is it about the creative atmosphere of Ottawa? Schools – the people – unique economy?
R&A: Ottawa is a terrific place to set up business due to the very diversified nature of our economy. The financial
climate in the city is optimistic and people are executing their plans and not waiting for that ‘up-tick’. The city is becoming a hot spot in movie (and) TV production. With favorable economies people are expanding their marketing and there are a lot of weddings in this town. We are also in an interesting area geographically with many smaller centers within a manageable radius.
JD: With continuing advances in computer and web applications, all making homemade video production easier, why should I be going with to you guys for wedding or special occasion videos?
R&A: Never was it truer that you get exactly what you pay for. Usually for weddings and special occasions you only get one crack at getting it right. The technical skills needed for knowing what is the great shot, lighting, audio and producing a finished product that is professional and brings back great memories does not come from a computer program. The hands-on skill and knowledge of a professional videographer brings the artistic element to a level that ‘Uncle Bob’ just can’t produce.
JD: What drives you guys? Influences? Muses?
R&A: The excitement of being able to take a business from a concept to a living viable entity at this stage of our lives is a driving force for both of us. Seeing the delight on the face of a client when we have exceeded expectations and being able to salvage family memories from obsolete technology is very gratifying. Our future is wide open to possibility and as we further develop our company we know that Steven Spielberg started somewhere too. From an artistic point of view the great directors Coppola, Lucas, Hitchcock and yes, Spielberg are our heroes and our inspiration.
Andrew and Ryan have a genuine love for a well done project. They get a charge out making people happy and do that by being good listeners and by seeing each of their customers as unique. Personal memories, dreams and celebrations demand a strong sensitive acumen. That combined with professional agility with the ever expanding technology of video and video production and you have a perfect match.
For more information about Bytown Productions, or to chat with Andrew and Ryan about your next dream or celebration, please refer to their contact information below:
c/o 67 Townsend Drive, Ottawa, ON, K2J-2V2
http://www.bytownproductions.com/
t:613.440.3067
bytownproductions@gmail.com
