Vander Amaral has an understanding with ON Animation Studios, a Canadian and French studio that produces films, series, and short films in virtual reality, in which he is the technical director. He may be absent a few times a month from the office to work on the initiatives of his own company, Be Studios. One of such initiatives is a TV show, also broadcast over the internet, in which Vander travels all over Canada, immersing himself in extreme sports and adventures little known by traditional tourism. Working in two places sometimes produces curious situations.
“Generally, I completely disconnect to dedicate myself to recording the show. But once the Be Studios team waited for me to attend an ON Animation Skype meeting at the top of a mountain at minus 20 degrees before resuming shooting,” says Vander.
The show he refers to is The Routineproof Project, which in the first season featured seven 22-minute episodes and more than 10,000 kilometers covered over five months of recording, with some breaks.
The scenery of the show is perfect for those who like to enjoy nature with, let’s say, a good deal of excitement, as Vander and his partner in the series, also Brazilian Ray Andrade, exhibit, in addition to the wonderful landscapes, the performances in snowboarding, skateboarding, freeboard, surfing, mountain biking, and other such activities.
15 million spectators on TV
For the next season, the show will be given a new name, Roaming, and will continue to run on the cable channel Woohoo, where it has been airing for almost two years at prime time. On TV, the videos have reached about 15 million viewers, representing 24,000 people watching per minute.
The numbers attract brands such as Via Rail. In one episode, Canada’s national train operator gave Vander and Ray a ticket and a comfortable room with shower in the car, allowing them to leave Montreal Central Station to the port of Halifax, Nova Scotia, on a 24 hours trip. Halfway through the journey, they climbed onto the car with a panoramic view, where the pair watched the sunrise.
Filled with skating scenes, the episode ends on the beautiful Lawrencetown Beach, where, despite the few waves, – the sea was flat, as surfers say – Vander and Ray stared at the cold local waters.
Why Canada?
Vander has been in Canada for six years, but his entrepreneurial life began in Brazil, where he opened VnV Gamez, which later gave rise to Be Studios. At VnV he was dedicated to virtual reality projects and mobile games, attracting clients from several countries, mainly Canada.
From there on, moving to Montreal was a natural step. A member of CCBC since January, he attended the opening of the city’s CCBC office in November last year. During this time, with the institution’s support, Vander was able to set up meetings with potential sponsors of the show.
To watch one of the Roaming’s episodes produced by Be Studios, click here.
To check out some of ON Animation’s work, Vander hints: The studio produces the children’s series Miraculous Lady Bug (Netflix) and will launch in August in theaters “Playmobil – The Movie.”
Be Studios website: www.bestudios.ca
