Graveyard Carz has become synonymous with automotive resurrection. Since 2007, Mark Worman and his crew, the self-proclaimed “Ghoulz,” have captivated audiences by breathing life back into Mopar muscle cars that seem beyond saving. This reality TV phenomenon isn’t just about wrenches and engines; it’s a testament to dedication, expertise, and the meticulous process of automotive restoration. Like any intricate operation, the journey of resurrecting these classic vehicles involves countless hours, a specialized tool box, and even some “deleted scenes” – moments and footage that, while not always making the final cut, are crucial to the overall story.
Astonishing before and after comparison showcasing the incredible Mopar restorations featured on Graveyard Carz.
From Backlog to Breakthrough: The Unseen Side of Restoration
Behind the captivating transformations viewers see on screen lies The Division Productions, the team responsible for bringing Graveyard Carz to life. Based in Springfield, Oregon, this dedicated group of producers and editors works tirelessly year-round. Their challenge? Managing the vast amounts of media accumulated over years of filming each car’s painstaking restoration. As Aaron Smith, Co-creator and Executive Producer, explains, “We follow each Mopar through its transformation, which could take three to five years, or more. That means, we shoot a lot of footage well before the big reveal.”
This long-term production cycle created a significant media backlog. For over a decade, their assets were scattered across a fragmented storage system – external hard drives, a cumbersome LTO archive, and various RAID servers. The sheer volume of untagged, unsearchable media became a major obstacle, hindering their workflow and obscuring valuable “deleted scenes” and footage within the depths of their archives. Imagine a mechanic trying to find the right tool in a disorganized tool box – efficiency grinds to a halt.
A Graveyard Carz editor utilizes ShareBrowser MAM to efficiently preview and manage extensive media files.
Rising Above the Workflow Graveyard: Tools for Efficiency
“Everything was slow,” Smith recalls, describing their previous workflow. “We relied on multiple spreadsheets to track our footage, leading to hours spent searching for the right files.” This inefficient system was akin to having a disorganized tool box where finding the right wrench felt like an archaeological dig. Navigating and restoring data from their LTO archive was particularly frustrating, forcing them to work at the folder level, a cumbersome and time-consuming process. Their workflow was not just slow; it was actively holding them back from maximizing their creative potential.
To overcome these challenges, The Division Productions sought a solution that offered faster storage, improved organization, and a unified, searchable media experience. They turned to EVO and the EVO Suite, recognizing its high-performance hardware and comprehensive software as the “tool box” upgrade they desperately needed to resurrect their workflow.
An EVO shared storage server becomes the central hub, powering the efficient episodic television production workflow for The Division Productions.
Wielding a New Workflow: Precision Tools in Action
EVO became the cornerstone of their production process, much like a well-organized tool box is essential for any car restoration project. With enhanced speed and complete visibility across their entire media environment, editors could now focus on crafting compelling narratives instead of wrestling with storage issues. This new workflow, powered by EVO, mirrors the precision and efficiency that Mark Worman and the Ghoulz bring to car restoration.
Here’s a glimpse into The Division Productions’ streamlined video workflow: Footage captured with various cameras – Canon, Blackmagic Design, and GoPro – is ingested directly into the EVO server. EVO then automatically indexes and transcodes this media into proxy files, enabling previewing within ShareBrowser, EVO’s integrated Media Asset Management (MAM) software. This is where the real organization begins. Editors meticulously tag media within ShareBrowser, understanding that “the more we put into ShareBrowser, the more we get out of it.” This tagging process is akin to carefully labeling and organizing each tool in a mechanic’s tool box, ensuring quick and easy access when needed.
Each Graveyard Carz episode is expertly edited using Adobe® Premiere® Pro, an industry-leading choice for episodic television post-production. “We’ve been using Premiere Pro exclusively since about 2013. Everything we do is made in Premiere,” Smith states. Premiere Pro, in this context, becomes another crucial tool in their digital “tool box,” allowing them to shape the raw footage into captivating stories.
The Ghoulz and production crew on the Graveyard Carz set, capturing the essence of automotive restoration.
Adobe Premiere Pro and EVO: Seamless Integration for Storytelling
Adobe Premiere Pro, a powerhouse in video editing, offers a vast array of tools for crafting compelling narratives. Its power is further amplified through integration with the Adobe Video Ecosystem and key partners like SNS, the creators of EVO. This collaboration brings forth joint solutions that significantly enhance end-to-end video workflows, creating a synergistic “tool box” for video professionals.
EVO and ShareBrowser are integral components of this ecosystem. The ShareBrowser panel for Premiere Pro allows editors to seamlessly search, locate, and import media directly within their editing environment. This eliminates distractions and interruptions, keeping editors focused on their creative tasks.
“I usually have the panel up on one screen and my timeline on the other,” Smith explains. “I can just drag footage straight out of ShareBrowser, right into Premiere.” This drag-and-drop functionality streamlines the editing process, making it as intuitive as reaching into a well-organized tool box and grabbing the perfect instrument. With these advanced tools at their fingertips, the Graveyard Carz episodic post-production workflow now operates with the same precision and efficiency as the meticulously tuned engines of the Mopars they restore.
EVO and ShareBrowser facilitate effortless searching, sharing, and collaboration on media files, streamlining the entire workflow.
MAM to the Rescue: Unearthing Hidden Gems and “Deleted Scenes”
ShareBrowser, the MAM system within EVO, acted as the metaphorical defibrillator for their stagnant workflow. It brought their media management back to life, transforming chaos into order. According to Smith, EVO’s powerful yet user-friendly asset management system was instrumental in revitalizing their production process.
“Any shot I want to find, I can get to it instantly with ShareBrowser.” This immediate access is crucial when working on projects that span years. “We work on episodes for years, so having our footage tagged, commented, and searchable is absolutely crucial. We put everything into ShareBrowser, so when a restoration is finally complete an editor can type the car into a search and see all the relevant footage over the years, and narrow down to exactly what they need with just a few search fields.”
The power of ShareBrowser allows them to quickly locate specific shots, even seemingly obscure ones. “I can find a front three-quarter shot of the old 57 Belvedere, or a random shot of Darren with a Christmas tree, or—a clip we call back to in several seasons—Mark, sitting behind a desk, laughing fiendishly, smoking a cigar, while someone counts money in front of him.” These “deleted scenes,” or moments that might have been buried in the backlog, are now easily retrievable, adding depth and richness to the storytelling process. “That searchability and access to our files is something we’ve never had before, and now I can’t imagine working without it.”
Offline media becomes searchable and previewable within ShareBrowser MAM, unlocking access to archived footage and hidden moments.
Restoring Media from LTO Archive: Bringing Back the Past
Given the long-term nature of Graveyard Carz projects, the production team frequently needs to access clips archived to LTO. EVO’s LTO integration has eliminated the challenges associated with restoring archived footage.
“The integration into the LTO system absolutely makes my job easier,” Smith emphasizes. “I’m blown away by the fact that footage can be offline and we can still preview it, access it, and know what’s there. We can quickly find and restore access to archived footage right from our desk. We don’t have to go pull the LTO drives, and we don’t have to restore an entire folder just to see what files it contains.” This streamlined LTO integration transforms a previously cumbersome process into a simple, desk-based operation.
Smith illustrates the ease of restoring archived footage with EVO: “One of our editors needed to restore audio from several archived interviews. ShareBrowser gave my editor a simple way to say ‘this is what I need,’ and an even simpler way to get the media back online. He identified what needed to be relinked in Premiere, added those files to a ShareBrowser bin, then all I had to do was right-click, restore, and boom—we’re off to the races!” This rapid restoration capability ensures that even moments from deep within the archive, the true “deleted scenes,” can be brought back to life when needed.
Graveyard Carz, produced by The Division Productions, continues to captivate audiences for 20 seasons and counting, a testament to their enduring success.
In Good Spirits: A Workflow Reborn
The team at The Division Productions and Graveyard Carz have laid their old, inefficient workflow to rest, and they have no intention of returning to it. “The time we have saved with EVO is incredible.”
When asked about his favorite feature of the EVO workflow, Smith highlights, “EVO’s software is where it shines. ShareBrowser is more intuitive and user-friendly than other MAMs we considered, and it’s so much more than a MAM.” Just as a mechanic relies on a well-equipped tool box to resurrect classic cars, The Division Productions relies on EVO and ShareBrowser to bring the captivating stories of Graveyard Carz to our screens, ensuring that even the “deleted scenes” and hidden moments can contribute to the show’s ongoing legacy.
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