Black Sprockett - Day of Destruction

•

Black Sprockett Productions started in 1999 with a group of friends filming various snowmobile, dirt bike, BMX and car stunts for fun. The footage was eventually compiled into DVDs sold to friends and family along with t-shirts, sweaters and other merchandise. Starting in 2007, the group started having an annual “Day of Destruction” on a farm near Teepee Creek, a weekend-long camp-out where friends would gather to catch up, watch stunts, and maybe perform a few of their own on the homemade water slide and bike jumps, with the understanding that anything may end up in the next movie! By late 2010, thanks to word of mouth and YouTube Videos picked up by clip shows such as Tosh.0 and Most Shocking, interest in Black Sprockett and “D-Day had spread throughout the Peace Region. Seeing an opportunity to expand the small hobby business, producer Kory Blois decided to make the 2011 Day of Destruction event open to the public. In the past, Black Sprockett had been funded by those involved, but the decision to run a public event meant extra cost for proper security, insurance, licensing and advertising. It was hoped that at least part of the cost could be subsidized through sponsorship, with the rest covered through ticket sales.

In an effort to present a professional image to potential sponsors, we created a folder containing information about the event, a listing of sponsorship packages available and a draft program showing advertising space. Fundraising efforts would be focused mainly on motorsports stores, car & truck dealerships, towing companies, wrecking yards, mechanical shops, parts dealers and the like, using Black Sprockett's popularity with the 18-35 year old male demographic as a selling point

Image: Amanda Bain

Images: Kory Blois, Amanda Bain

With plenty of action shots from previous events, photographs became a key element in the folder and program designs. The majority of the work was produced in black ink, keeping cost down while lending a sense of drama inspired by advertising found in bike and board shops. The transition of the truck jump on the cover to the crash on the inside of the program was particularly effective at grabbing attention while showing in no uncertain terms the risky nature of the stunts being performed. The sponsorship folders and programs were well-received and created buzz among the community at large. Having generously subsidized printing costs, Parsons Printing also benefited as business owners impressed by the professionalism of the sponsorship packages came in to have similar promotional materials designed for their organizations.

Image: Apryl Blois

Images: Apryl Blois

Aside from advertisements on local radio and television stations, most of the promotion for Day of Destruction depended on posters that would stand out on bulletin boards throughout Grande Prairie and the surrounding area. The narrow width of Alternate Gothic allowed a large amount of information to fit into a relatively small space, with hierarchy established through size, colour and case. The film strip broke up the space and allowed multiple photos to be included in a contained area, while the slight angle provided a sense of movement to the layout.