The goal of this campaign follows our YouTube travel channel's mission to entertain, inspire and educate travel-focused viewers. We choose projects that will take our audience with us "virtually" to explore the world. This adventure project was intended to push the boundaries of what we have done for adventure vlogs in the past to tell our best story yet.
Unlike traditional "attention getting" YouTube video editing techniques, we use our own blend of cinematic filmmaking and vlogging. We are leveraging over 30 years of traveling and filming experience which began long before YouTube existed.
Our film “Other Worldly Iceland” builds on what we have learned from previous projects, such as our award-winning short documentary “A Day with Alaskan Bears” (2024, IMDB). We love projects that test our skills while we film in unpredictable conditions. This project also required more equipment and planning than any previous project.
We hope the Shorty Awards will help share who we are, help us make new connections in the entertainment community, and hopefully achieve the honor of taking a Shorty Awards trophy home.
The project concept of "Other Worldly Iceland" came to life after two visits to Iceland. We wanted to take our viewers with us to experience the Icelandic Highlands as if they were with us. We reached out to "Icelandic Roamers" and spoke with the owner, Miro. We shared our concept with him. As a fellow photographer, drone pilot and creator, Miro was happy to take us to the locations we couldn't previously get to with a "normal" rental car. He was willing to help us document our experience. Planning was critical to bring the project together.
We shared a map of what we wanted to explore in one day. Miro helped us fine tune our wish list into a workable plan. Miro let us attach cameras to his 2012 Land Rover named "Mr. Powder”. We packed all the gear that we might need. We brought four action cameras, two pocket gimbal cameras, four wireless microphones, three drones and several mounts, batteries and chargers so we would be ready for anything.
We built a storyboard for the start of the day and filmed our (storyboarded) b-roll of the Land Rover with Miro to kick off the story. We knew once we were with Miro, the day was simply going to unfold before our eyes, but we were ready.
We had the freedom to experiment with any shots we could think of. We mounted cameras on the dash of Mr. Powder; One cabin facing and one looking over the hood. We experimented with our cameras to get interesting views and angles to mix things up. The drones captured aerials and follow shots to make the viewers feel like they are there with us which is always our goal. The gear and batteries were constantly being charged to keep them ready to go. Miro served as an invaluable third cameraman. We focused on what shots would work with our gear and with our run and gun shooting, we achieved consistently immersive shots all day. With all that, there was no script. 100% genuine. With Miro we were a team of three.
Iceland's brutal and changeable weather tested us all day. Our second stop, Haifoss was so windy, we worried we might lose the drone, but Miro encouraged us to film. The shots were breathtaking! We fought rain and flew the drones in outrageous conditions, filming, landing, toweling them off and flying more. We would occasionally stop for b-roll opportunities with the ground cameras (using tripods or magnet mounts and clamps) to make the film more immersive. All day we captured what we needed to produce a fun and engaging story. The unexpected lurked around every corner, and we embraced it.
Every surprise was an opportunity. We made use of every moment. At the end of the day we had cameras full of video clips that were the puzzle pieces we needed to create our cinemantic adventure vlog film. That's when we began production and magic happened. The puzzle became a story.
We knew as we edited the intro/trailer at the house in Iceland that night that this project would be a success. Production took months of polishing for the film you see today. We are the actors, camera operators, directors, editing and sound team. We are very proud of our production. The natural chemistry with Miro and us on camera is magical. We used new editing tools to improve our production quality. It's fun, informative and looks fabulous on a big movie screen.
This project was rewarding because we were able to experience Iceland's beautiful Highlands while filming to tell a fun and informative story that influences others to follow in our footsteps. It holds true to our mission as a YouTube travel couple.
We want our stories to take viewers away from their daily routine and troubles for a while. A viewer battling endometrial cancer wrote and thanked us and said our Catskills NY video helped her stay positive during chemo as she planned a return trip. Our parents in their 80’s are former travellers. They inspired us to get out and travel the world. Now they watch and travel vicariously through us. This film is dedicated to them.
We always learn something and this time is was a host of audio challenges. Learning can be difficult, but that's how we grow and improve.
It would be an incredible honor to be nominated for a Shorty Award.
Chuck and Lori Kovac
