Schotter Teufel
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Employer Branding Video
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Writer & Director: Jan Schneider
1st Camera: Franz Leuschner
2nd Camera: Michael Auerswald
Project Manager: Pierre Marschner
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Agentur Junges Herz
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3 Minutes
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2 Months
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2 Days
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≈ 10,000€
THE BRIEF
Schotter Teufel was a family-run (de-)construction and mining business in Baden-Württemberg, Germany for almost 100 years. Some employees were even 2nd or even 3rd generation with having parents or relatives working there as well.
They were known for the warm working atmosphere and highly regarded for their friendly, open-minded, and lively attitude.
Now their plan was to grow a bit further. From 150 employees to 200 within the next year, and then to 250 the year after.
They didn’t want to become too big and lose the familiarity. They wanted to keep the family atmosphere alive.
The problem: even though they were well known in the region, they had difficulties recruiting new family members. So, they approached the agency I was working for back then – Agentur Junges Herz – and asked for help in creating a completely new appearance for them as a caring employer.
This included: new website, new logo, new social media strategy AND at the heart of it, an employer branding video.
I was part of a team of three video producers. Since this project was going to be bigger than usual, it was decided that all three of us would work on it together. Usually, it would only be one producer per project. We agreed that I would take over as writer and director. My colleague Franz as DoP and Michael as second camera, but all three of us would brainstorm the concept together.
“The family must be front and center, while at the same time showcasing our services!”
THE CONCEPT
Even though we came up with good ideas for a concept immediately, none of them felt right or good enough. Yes, the client’s wish of having ‘family’ as their core value front and center was included in every one of them. But they all lacked that certain something to make them stand out. So, after a day of brainstorming, we went home.
During that evening I was listening to some music, while working on something else. I didn’t even pay that much attention to the music. It was just background noise.
As soon as I heard the beginning of the next song, though, my brain kicked in ...
It was Rob Zombie’s version of “We’re an American Band”. The first thing you hear is not music or Rob Zombie himself. It is a little child saying: “When I grow up, I want to be a rockstar!”
Suddenly my brain connected that child’s voice with the fact that some employees at Schotter Teufel were 2nd generation. So, …
… what if, a child told their parent, that they want to work at Schotter Teufel, too?
… what if, we are replacing the workers in the video with their actual children?
… what if, the children then guide us through the loving and caring world at Schotter Teufel?
And there it was, the idea we had been searching for over the day: Follow the children hrough typical workday scenarios – from asphalting a street and office work to setting up and triggering an explosion in the mine.
THE SHOT
This idea was met with immediate huge enthusiasm.
So much so, that in less than 1 month we had an approved script, locations scouted, equipment booked, and every little detail planned and scheduled – including a B-crew.
Everyone at Schotter Teufel was so excited about the idea, that we even had all the necessary heavy machinery and little actors. We were ready to film!
For two days in the last week of August 2019 – working in two teams – my crew and I filmed children between 3 and 12 years old ‘using’ an excavator at a live construction site, trucks driving through the mountainous region of Straßberg, or gravel being crushed by huge machines into sand of various degrees of fineness.
The biggest challenge was to direct all the kids. Some were very keen to participate, others suddenly got stage fright, and one didn’t understand me, because they spoke the regional dialect.
In order to overcome this, I told the present parent(s) what their children needed to do and they forwarded my instructions in a manner the little actors were able to follow and to deliver the performance we wanted.
And yes, at the end of the day we blew something up.
THE RESULT
A video that celebrates family and team spirit.
“The video is the bomb.”
The video was featured during events held at the mine, shown at local theatres and gathered positive feedback. Schotter Teufel was able to achieve their set-out hiring numbers and grew to 200 employees within the next year.