On August 28, the United Way of Johnson and Washington Counties kicked off its Campaign for the Common Good. It was a great presentation and so much fun to see the CGV logo on the sponsor slide.

Earlier this month, I posted about the process of shooting this video, and now it is live! One of the highlights of this project was that for the first time ever, I worked with a musician who composed for the piece. Dan Brown is incredibly talented and his music contributed so much to the overall feel. The transition from gritty electric guitar to hope-inspiring ukelele perfectly matched the content. 

I would like to thank all the people I encountered on the Ped Mall who through their willingness to help a stranger, made this video possible.

Client: United Way of Johnson County
Location: Iowa City Pedestrian Mall
Gear: Canon 60D HDSLR, Canon XH-A1s

I am producing a video for the United Way of Johnson and Washington Counties' 2013 Campaign for the Common Good Kickoff Breakfast. The video aims to encourage giving by revealing locally-sampled statistics about issues such as poverty, domestic violence, and educational inequality. The piece underlines the slogan "Think We Before Me," promotes the notion that these issues directly or indirectly affect everyone within a community, and states that the responsibility to rise to these challenges is shared by all.  

Shooting the piece required me to roam downtown Iowa City seeking willing participants. At Mount Holyoke College, I was very comfortable with this guerrilla-style approach to casting because I knew the community was open and willing. Would Iowa City residents be open to participating in a video based on a stranger's solicitation? So far, I have found the answer is largely, "Yes." Whether or not it was the United Way t-shirt I was wearing, I was overjoyed by the level of interest in the project by people of many ages and backgrounds. 

For the opening of the piece, I needed to capture establishing shots for Johnson and Washington Counties. I loved this adventure and introduction to my immediate surroundings. In Kalona, which is notable for its large population of Amish people and Mennonites, I bought cheese curds at The Cheese House, passed men driving horse-drawn buggies, and shopped in a store lit exclusively with sunlight where I felt a little embarrassed for not being dressed more conservatively. From Kalona, I went to Riverside, which was quite a change in tune. There was a model of the starship USS Enterprise on the side of the road and a sign that indicated Riverside was the future birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk. Kirk is scheduled to be born March 22, 2228, so I won't be around to meet him, but I might consider checking out TrekFest next June. A visit to Coralville and North Liberty completed my establishing shot adventure. 

I am currently in post-production for this video, and will post it as soon as it is public. 

It would be overwhelming to attempt to comprehensively capture my first impressions of Iowa City, so instead I'm going to do a series of posts featuring a color. Since I arrived in that summer sweet spot right after the worst of the mosquitoes and before fall chills, I'm starting with green. 

I've never known a busier set of primarily freight-bearing tracks. I hear the haunting blasts, way more intense than a playtime "choo-choo," all day long. At first I was excited. Trains: a rare treat. I counted cars: 107. Over a hundred cars! Unfathomable gallons of petroleum, bushels of grain, and head of livestock moved miles upon miles. However, I have come to learn that the train is not at all rare. And it CHOOOOOOO CHOOOOOO's a lot. 

I feel more than a little silly for being surprised that there are apple orchards in Iowa. Everyone put so much emphasis on the corn. The quantity of corn astonishing, as is the abundance of soy beans, sometimes referred to as just "beans." A bike ride away, Wilson's Orchard grows dozens of varieties of apples also sold in the form of refreshing cider slushes and delicious turnovers, paired with a scoop of cinnamon ice cream at your request. When honey crisps come into season, watch out! I've heard people go nuts. 

Bunnies are everywhere! And they're unnervingly tame, too. 

Hiking encounters:

• Prairie flora like wild bergamot (above)
  
• Thumb-sized cicadas, producers of a weed-whacker-like mating call
  
• 3D archery range ,"CAUTION: Keep Out"