To help emphasize DC Public School’s commitment to teaching excellence, the DC Ed Fund created the Standing Ovation Awards program to give the school system something to rally behind (and donors something to invest in). Producing a video for each award meant a lean approach. Our time with these teachers, students and staff would be limited, so we thought of a hook to pack as much emotion into these half-day shoots. We convinced DCPS to allow us (and local press) to stage and capture the in-person “surprise!” moment. This allowed for each video to have a moving and somewhat unpredictable story arc based on the individual reactions.
Standing Ovation Awards
For three years in a row, we continued our partnership with the DC Education Fund to highlight some of DC Public Schools’ incredible programs and teachers. Producing a series of videos for the annual Standing Ovation awards show, we honored some the city's finest educators by creatively documenting their unique classroom experiences, capturing that OMG "you won!" moment on camera and talking to the adorable students, who say the things that we could never script. The results may move you.
Give Them A Hand!
Excellence in Scheduling
After the honorees were selected, Alexandria organized a tight timeline to shoot at schools across the city. DC Ed Fund and DCPS helped arrange for the “ambush,” calling for assemblies and even special appearances by the Chancellor and Mayor. Favata and Phil competed with sizable local news crews to get the close-up shots. As the hysteria settled, we directed honorees for b-roll coverage — to offer some perspective on their incredible contributions and inform the community about these worthwhile and often one-of-a-kind programs and personalities.
A Red Carpet Rollout
Favata and Rob cut together each video, looking to capture the individual personalities of the honorees, as well as the supporting staff and students. Dan created an elegant awards treatment to display the award titles and reinforce a filmic quality. The videos debuted at the new Anthem theater in town, reinforcing the school system's committment to rockstar talent in the nation's fastest-improving urban school disctrict.
Alexandria Kelly
Coming to us from Hollywood, Alexandria brings a jet set, never-quit work ethic.
Melinda Foscato
Melinda is the VP of Creative Strategy who is passionate about storytelling and connecting the dots. She's also BFFs with Rachael Ray. Jealous?
De'Von Wellesley
De'von has a diverse background; from filming in night clubs to fashion models and music videos.
Jun Young Yang
Jun has been traveling everywhere (including a place called Anguilla) to document special events and create unique images for clients.
Tiffany Lewis
Tiffany's unmistakable style makes otherwise flat statistics and images burst with excitement and life.
Anthony Jacoway
Under his calm exterior, Anthony is simmering with big ideas and a bottomless reserve of the latest industry trends.
Jordan Anderson
Jordan is a Cinematographer + Editor at LAI Video. Coming to us from Louisiana, he hails from a rich background of documentary and commercial-making, traveling the country to tell some incredible stories.
Sarah Wides
Sarah is as passionate about her love of television and video as she is about her love of sandwiches, which is to say – quite passionate.
Stephanie Ciaccia
A visual storyteller born and raised in Upstate New York, Stephanie once worked in a carnival show over a summer. Now an Associate Producer + Project Manager at LAI Video, she juggles a lot, but somehow doesn’t drop the ball.
James Favata
James specializes in exploring new avenues, and who knows, together you may even end up off the map.
Rob Kramer
Rob Kramer is an Editor-Animator-Producer-Videographer. Wow that's a mouthful.
James Loizou
Perhaps best epitomized by his signature red sneakers and tie, James Loizou thrives between the worlds of "the creative" and "the business."
