Let’s talk about our last shoot. The one we technically never shot.
The Landings is a 4,000-home private golf community on Skidaway Island outside Savannah, Ga. Residents enjoy miles of walking and biking trails, scenic waterways and preserved maritime forest, and more. Club members have their pick of six championship golf courses, extensive court sports, wellness activities, and more. It’s the kind of Lowcountry style that doesn’t tolerate low anything else.
That includes how The Landings is portrayed in its marketing and advertising. The creative is elevated and sophisticated, with a stronger emphasis on the active lifestyle residents enjoy.
And while The Landings’ marketing showcased beautiful images of walking trails, marinas, golf courses, homes, restaurants, and island landscapes, much of that imagery felt static.
In other words, it lacked people. There were no residents walking the trails. No boaters pulling into the marina. No golfers sinking a 30-foot putt on Deer Creek.
It wasn’t active. And The Landings turned to Falls to change that.
What about AI-powered video production?
When we presented our new campaign – video, print, social, all of it – we had a little bit of a problem. They liked everything and they wanted to move quickly.
How were we going to execute with the quality and sophistication it deserved, on the timeline and budget we had?
We called a videographer we’ve worked with to talk reference and ideas. We pored over the existing imagery to develop some sort of plan. That’s when the conversation shifted to a place we hadn’t expected: building a campaign using AI.
We were a bit skeptical.
If the work felt AI-y (is that even remotely close to a word?), it could backfire. We decided to do a few tests. If anything felt off or, you know, AI-y, we’d go back to the drawing board.
Were there glitches? A few, but all minor. Our favorite snafu was a “golfer” who took off his hat and, as he walked away, was mysteriously holding two hats. It was either AI magic or the man was a pickpocket. Still, an easy fix.
Once we saw how good it looked, how active that imagery became when movement was added, we jumped into the deep end.
What changed? What didn’t?
We chose AI because we saw its value as a tool – like Adobe Premier, Wonder Studio, or any other digital video post-production tool. We weren’t required to hand over our creative choices to AI. We could use AI video effects to fine tune our own creative decisions.
So while the tool might’ve changed, our judgment didn’t. This was a human-led AI production. We still:
- Ran the project. Including every decision about light, lenses and framing came from the same place as it always does: Us.
- Cast our AI residents. Their look, their ages, the ease in how they carry themselves on a dock at golden hour. We picked out clothes for our AI cast. That was fun.
- Scouted. Except the scout was photo references instead of a location visit. There were photos of Skidaway Island, photos of the property, photos of the way the marsh turns copper an hour before sunset. We had reference for porches, fire pits, even a specific golf flag. We used all of it as the anchors for every frame because it had to be right.
- Edited. Multiple rounds, client notes, revisions – the same approval process any shoot goes through, just a different kind of raw material.
One welcome surprise was the amount of control we actually had, beyond what we were used to. Every frame could keep the exact light we wanted instead of racing to beat the sun. We could put the same cast in five locations across the property without the cost of moving a crew between them.
None of that replaced the creative decisions, instead it just removed some of the physical constraints that usually shape those choices.
When should a brand use AI video production—and when should it use a traditional shoot?
That’s the question we keep asking ourselves since this one wrapped. We had to acknowledge how well AI production worked. That acknowledgment now requires a checklist for decisions about our next shoot.
From our point of view, AI makes sense when:
- The timeline or budget can’t absorb the realities of a physical shoot. One that involve permits, weather days, travel, a cast, and crew on-site for one week. Plus, the cost of all those Starbucks runs!
- The project is lifestyle and mood-driven work, where the goal is the feeling of the experience rather than a documenting one exact moment in time.
- You need volume and variety, whether it’s a :30 second spot, four :15 second cutdowns, print ads which are lifts from the video, and don’t forget the social posts in every shape and size.
When doesn’t it make sense?
When:
- The client needs to showcase an actual product, feature a real person, and accuracy is the whole point. Think testimonials, employees, anything regulated, or anytime “this is really us” is part of the message. In these cases, lights, cameras, and legit shooting is still the way to go.
- Performance and human connection are what sell the message. Some stories rely on genuine emotion, chemistry, spontaneity, and unscripted interactions. Whether it’s a customer success story, a leadership message, or a recruitment campaign, real people often create the credibility and connection that audiences can immediately recognize.
That’s a wrap
Our first AI shoot, delivered on time, on budget, while retaining full ownership of the work, is a wrap, as they say. I wouldn’t call us an AI video production agency quite yet. But we did introduce new technology to a high-end brand without compromising the quality they expect from us.
The client’s happy. We’re happy. And most importantly, the AI guy who walked away with his extra AI hat is ecstatic.
Want to learn more about what we can do for you? Let’s talk.
