Some favorite 1” analog, broadcast TV ads for Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh. I directed and photographed these commercials from 1995 to 1998.
All footage was shot on 16mm or 35mm motion picture film. 35mm for staged production scenes & 16mm for a “documentary” feel inside the hospital. Of course, everything in the 90’s was standard definition.
During film-to-tape transfers, we’d increase the grain effect from the 16mm negative and add an effect that simulates double printing each frame. An overall blue color grade was added to the 16mm to null out any red blood during operating room procedures.
Atlanta’s Cinefilm processed the color negative. Film-to-tape transfers were handled by colorist, Brent Clenny at Nashville’s Elite Post. Dennis Morabito was the principal writer & Paul Jorgensen was the hospital’s production coordinator. Don Wadsworth was our voice actor.
This fast-paced reel is a mix of varied concepts, visualized by Glenn Przyborski’s directorial style and production techniques. Some spots are new, others were produced over the past few years. All scenes are from actual on-air commercials created for ad agencies and clients from across the country.
From gritty to silky-smooth, Glenn’s years of experience allow him to create different visual “styles” using lighting & camera techniques to best convey an ad’s concept. Glenn’s at home shooting “guerrilla” style with a small crew of 4 or a 25 person, multi-day studio production.
CLICK HERE TO PLAY JOHN’S REEL
My friend, director/cinematographer John Pytka passed away in 2024. It happened soon after his 82nd birthday.
For years, John & I would get together for lunch every month or so. We’d share stories about film production in the 70’s through 90’s. Based in Pittsburgh, John & his older brother Joe, were “Pytka Productions”, one of the country’s top commercial production companies. On some of Joe’s projects, both brothers would work together. Separately, John directed & photographed network TV commercials for Alamo Car Rental, Gallo Wine, Budweiser, & many more. He was often used by San Francisco’s Hal Riney & Partners to photograph iconic ad campaigns, including Ronald Reagan’s memorable “Morning in America” TV commercial.
John’s reel from the days of 35mm film, showcases a different style of production than what’s en vogue today. It’s well paced, beautiful photographic images. Many of the scenes incorporate slow-motion that creates a “larger-than-life” feel to the action. I describe his photographic technique as “moving stills”. This contrasts with today’s fast cuts, punchy graphics & rapid camera moves.
As a true “filmmaker”, John also edited many of the commercials he shot. This involved cutting thousands of feet of 35mm work print, using a classic Moviola upright editing machine. At the start of his career, John worked at a motion picture film lab. He mastered all aspects of color film processing, Hazeltine color timing & the use of sophisticated optical printers.
John spent much of his retirement with his wife, Jennifer on their farm North of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He loved his dogs & would often take them for rides in his truck. We’ll all miss him.
For the 50th Anniversary of Boca Raton Regional Hospital, Tom Chakurda, vice-president of marketing and communications, asked Przyborski Productions to create a moving video that would be a tribute to their doctors, nurses and thousands of employees.
For the celebration, the medical center secured the rights to Barbra Streisand’s “Ordinary Miracles”. This inspirational song celebrates the work that people do everyday for the benefit of others.
Here’s a fun look at a crazy network ad campaign produced for Stanley Steemer, America’s largest residential and commercial cleaning service.
Corporate creative director, Jim McCabe called with an unusual production request. In 2006, the company had marketing success with a funny commercial that featured “Toby” a Labrador Retriever scooting his butt across the living room carpet to the shock of the homeowner and her friend. Jim wanted to revisit the concept, only this time “Toby” would scoot over carpet, tile and hardwood floors. Plus, Jim also wanted a trained parrot who harasses Toby.
Glenn Przyborski directed and photographed the campaign using 2 cameras on each shot for more editorial options. 2 cameras also gave an “insurance factor” just in case the trained animals “lost interest” after several takes. Everything was shot and edited in 4K UHD, then downsampled to 1080 for final release.
Living in the city of Pittsburgh, it’s easy to forget that most of Pennsylvania is rural farm country.
Once a year, my wife Carol and I travel an hour and a half north of Pittsburgh to Meadville, Pennsylvania. It’s the annual site of the Crawford County Fair, the largest agricultural and livestock exhibition in the state. For an entire week, kids and adults from all over Northwest Pennsylvania show off the best looking animals they’ve raised. 4H members and others take pride in their sheep, cattle, pigs, horses, goats, ducks and chicken. Every exhibitor hopes to win a prize and the bragging rights to having raised a “best of show” animal at the Crawford County Fair.
I call this video “Scenes from a Pennsylvania County Fair” because every week in the summer, scenes like these repeat themselves in rural towns across the state and throughout the country. It’s was a hot, sticky 92 degrees at the fair but everybody enjoyed walking the fairgrounds, eating junk food and catching up with their old friends.
Here’s a 4 minute “mini time capsule” of GNC’s early TV advertising. General Nutrition Centers had an amazing period of growth and profitability in the early 90’s. During this time, TV Advertising helped GNC realize it’s first quarterly profit as it went public for the second time.
From ’93 through ’96, Przyborski Productions produced most of GNC’s network TV spots. We introduced their “Gold Card” and many product lines that are still in stores today.
All the commercials were filmed in 35mm, then transferred and edited on 1″ videotape. By the end of 1993, we were editing on D2 composite digital. (In the 90’s, everything was standard definition.)
Most of these old commercials are dated and a little “corny.” Saturday Night Live even did a comedic parody on GNC’s “Colon Cleanser”, titled, “Colon Blow.” Thirty years ago, sophisticated computer graphics were in their infancy. The stock music GNC used also dates the ads. The commercials in this video were selected from several GNC campaigns.
On Friday, April 7th, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted England’s popular 70’s & 80’s rock group, YES. Cheering in the audience was John Brabender, one of the country’s best known political media experts, ad agency owner, and long-time super-fan of YES. Brabender also led a crusade to get his favorite band inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Every once in a while, a project comes along that’s completely different and fun to shoot. With hits like “Roundabout”, “Owner of a Lonely Heart”, “Long Distance Runaround” and many more, YES, is truly a super group from the 70’s & 80’s. Yet they still have a huge, cult-like, devoted following that sells out every performance.
For the group’s U.S. tour, Brabender asked Glenn Przyborski to direct and photograph several short videos that would play on YES’ concert video screens. They were tied to late 70’s nostalgia, including an homage to a scene from the movie “Almost Famous”. The videos were played before the band’s performance and to signal the end of intermission.
The videos were edited at Phenomenon by Thad Christian. John Brabender created the original concepts.
SmithFoods of Orrville, Ohio is a family owned company, founded in 1909. They supply premium dairy and other food products throughout Ohio, Indiana and Missouri.
The Innis Maggiore Agency of Canton, OH chose Przyborski Productions to produce SmithFoods’ latest TV campaign. The concept called for casting 5 children and 5 adults who could be those same kids, only now in their 40’s.
Glenn Przyborski directed and photographed the commercial in 4K digital. Props and wardrobe stylists selected kid’s clothes and table props that were popular in the mid-to-late 80’s. Back then, all TV was standard definition, so we rendered the opening sequence in the 4 x 3 ratio of older TV sets. After several visual tests, we decided not to alter the color or contrast of the opening sequence.
The commercial runs throughout Ohio and selected portions of the Mid-West.
All across the country, traveling carnivals setup shop outside hundreds of small towns and cities. Within a day or so, workers transform an open field on the outskirts of town, into a midway with rides, games and lots of junk food. Where else can you enjoy chocolate funnel cakes and deep-fried ice cream?
For many residents, a trip to the carnival’s an annual tradition. For the $5 admission, you can spend all day and night cruising the fair grounds. There’s groups of girls checking out the guys and catching up on mid-summer gossip. As day slowly dissolves to night, young lovers stroll the midway hand-in-hand.
At a Midwest carnival, tractor and truck pulls are very popular. A powerful truck or tractor drags a weighted sled down a dirt track. It’s not a sophisticated sport, but it’s fun to watch and very loud! The owner of the winning entry gets a prize, but more importantly, all his friends know he drives of the most powerful truck in town.
I shot this video to capture moments from a hot, humid July day, at the fairgrounds, just outside Butler, Pennsylvania.
