“San Francisco Ballet is one of the spectacular success stories of the arts in America...a national treasure.”
I was hired in 2010 to launch San Francisco Ballet's video program. I devised the content strategy and created all digital video content.
Videos I produced, shot, and edited include documentaries, calls to action, social media promos, TV spots, profiles, and on-site video installations in venues and museums, including Lincoln Center (NYC), the War Memorial Opera House (SF), the de Young Museum (SF), and the Museum of Performance and Design (SF).
I worked on more than 51 broadcast spots and 250 online pieces with the education, development, artistic, and marketing departments. For many projects, I also hired and managed freelance cinematographers, sound designers, and animators.
Over more than eight years, I helped generate more than $21 million in annual ticketing revenue and more than $20 million in annual donations. SF Ballet’s YouTube subscribers grew to 25,000. There are currently more than 4.5 million views.
YouTube Subscriber Growth
My videos were regularly featured on the San Francisco Chronicle website and were praised in a review as "crisply edited.” They were the centerpiece content for the Ballet’s first iPad app, funded by the Irvine Foundation, and they were part of the Webby honoree, Nutcracker: Guide To Our City. I also played a key leadership role in the conception and execution of World Ballet Day Live, a 12-hour streaming event, for which I created all pre-produced content.
With each project, I strove to support San Francisco Ballet’s mission to share the joy of dance with the widest possible audience.
Documentary Shorts
I produced more than 100 videos designed to give viewers insight into ballet’s creative process and the history of the art form. I filmed and edited the majority of video projects myself. Subjects included choreography, composing original music for ballets, conducting the orchestra, and designing the sets, costumes, and lighting.
Calls to Action
I crafted personal appeals that engaged the arts community in fundraising initiatives and thanked patrons for their support. In these projects, our first objective was to tell an engaging story about the Ballet, whether it be a dancer premiering a new role, the challenge of mounting a story ballet, or the commitment to new works. We then showed how instrumental donations were in making those goals possible. This content functioned as the primary communication pieces in email campaigns and on social media.
Social Media Promos
Each year, I created social media trailers for artistic programming and special events. These included the new works festival Unbound, the annual gala, Nutcracker, Sensorium (a young audience development initiative), and more.
TV Spots
I edited and produced all 51 broadcast spots from May 2010 to March 2018. I developed the production calendar, selected and licensed music, auditioned voiceover talent, edited footage, designed all graphics, coordinated mix recording/delivery with outside vendors, and trafficked to the stations. Repertory TV Spots netted 40+ million impressions each, and the annual Nutcracker campaign yielded 70+ million impressions in the greater Bay Area.
Profiles
I created more than 50 profiles of dancers, choreographers, teachers, students, musicians, designers, and others who worked at the Ballet or collaborated with it. These videos appeared in ticketed programming at the War Memorial Opera House and in exhibitions at the de Young Museum and the Museum of Performance & Design.
