MGM’s Rocky: Contenders Clothing’s oldest official license partners. With a deep rooted history to the brand and an equally foundational staple of the brands east coast fanbase, Rocky is as big as it gets over here. This is the full content collection I prepped, shot, and edited for Contenders.
Shot, Directed, and Edited
by Kelly Kosman for Contenders Clothing
Paid Ads and Short Form Content
E-com Statics and Lifestyle Photos
Like always, I would’ve killed to have more time with model and the location, the gym we shot in looked straight out of 1978 Philadelphia (in the best way). But ultimately this shoot was a blast, I’m very proud of the shots and footage we got, and I had the special privilege of having my best friend Nathan come out and assist with the shoot
Behind the Shoot
This shoot was about as “Run and Gun” as it gets. When it comes to shooting a new drop, I’m often tasked with doing so on the thinnest budget possible. I don’t mind it really. for all of the shoots at Contenders I handle casting, location scouting, shooting photo, video, editing, and touch ups for final delivery to our graphic designer. In this case the biggest obstacle, by far, was time. I had 17 different SKUs to shoot, some from different collections, some unreleased samples, but all needed to be shot to optimize the time had with the model.
I always begin pre-production with the product itself, what imagery would compliment it, and figuring how I can wrap the shoot around the world the product the product takes place in. Contenders specializes in taking a licensed IP, and making merchandise that would exist within the world of the IP. With the theme of this drop being “Rocky’s Neighborhood” I knew we had to get our model in the gym, and get him around some exposed brick. The texture of a vintage boxing gym was a non-negotiable for me, and we got it done. Securing the location required a few calls to the owner to get the price down, but if you’re a kind person, you almost never have to worry about the answer being a hard “NO.”