8 Ways Genius House has been Staying Busy
With numerous shoots on hold, time on our hands, budgets tightening, and a general atmosphere of a “wtf is happening?”, here is how we have been keeping ourselves busy at Genius House.
Pre-production planning. This is more important that ever, as strategizing for safe filming measures and creative solutions cannot be hasty. We are currently working with a nonprofit client on their annual impact video to be released in October, and have been navigating this production differently. We sent a GoPro and a shot list home with the subject to get some b-roll, we are gathering more assets such as photos, and also using some existing video from our archives. We are hopeful that we will be able to capture the interview down the road with our equipment as professional audio, lighting, and cinematic visuals are crucial for emotional storytelling.
Checking in on our small biz owners and entrepreneur friends. When we closed down the office and realized how much profit would be lost, there was nothing more comforting than hearing from partners, former clients, and friends asking if we were ok, what we needed. It meant the world to feel this support, and giving it out feels even better. Kindness can come through an email, a meal drop off, a Zoom or an offer to lend a hand, and it is fuel for the soul.
Producing animated videos and editing work. We have been insanely lucky to have post-production projects from the previous months that remained on the production schedule. Knocking out projects feels better than ever. Long-term client relationships are woven into our business structure, and we are grateful for this.
Helping organizations with streaming needs. Dallas Symphony continues to make music for their audience online, in multiple formats. One initiative is a weekly “Green Room Chat” between the DSO President and an orchestra musician, in which we have been able to help with the technical side of broadcasting. This kicked off in March with a Facebook Live broadcasted Zoom call from the Meyerson Symphony Center in Dallas all the way to Zurich, Switzerland where Music Director Fabio Luisi was in quarantine. Additionally, we helped Smart Barre move their format to a fully remote studio.
Re-purposing archived footage. When you can’t shoot, you use the resources you have, and we have seven years of video video resources for a number of clients. We were able to dig through the archives and deliver several TikTok videos for a brand that recently joined the platform.
Proposals + applications. So many grant applications, so much business assistance paperwork, lengthy proposals, and a lot of fingers crossed.
Being involved with Support Our Fort. This campaign was launched by friends of Genius House just days after the world as we knew it changed. They were quick to act, designing the creative, and building a website that immediately helped small businesses, while warming the hearts of front line workers. Our team rallied behind this win-win effort and produced a few videos to help communicate what they were doing, and build support: