Video Storytelling

As a kid, you could easily find me with an old clunky video camera in hand, directing my friends and family to create music videos, scary stories and commercials of all kind. Every family vacation — sometimes, yes, annoyingly so — I filmed and turned into short movies. I loved it.

As part of Team Tellwell, I was delighted to pick up this passion for video editing in a professional setting. During my time, I edited numerous videos as Lead Editor, using Adobe Premiere Pro. My approach to video editing is the same as my approach to writing; find the story. No matter what your goal is with the video, if you can craft a good story you can make people care.

During my time at Tellwell, I was able to work on a diverse array of video projects; capturing company culture for recruitment videos, recapping events, showcasing a downtown community, non-profit videos for fundraising campaigns and more. My favorite part of any video projects is capturing the human moments that give a story real heart, no matter what the topic. Watching our clients watch the videos for the first time and seeing their face light up is one of the greatest feelings.

Take a look at some of my favorite projects:

Levi’s Hope Story
Interviewer, Lead Editor

This is simultaneously one of the best and hardest stories I have had the privilege to tell. Levi's Hope is a non-profit started by the Gagner family and their son  Levi, who has a rare and severe form of muscular dystrophy. They asked us to help tell the story and showcase a "day in the life" or their family. We knew the Gagner family wanted this video to:

• Be a glimpse into what a day in the life is like.
• Show who and what Levi’s Hope is all about.
• Be real and raw; show the ups and the downs.
• Help other families in the rare disease community know they’re not alone.
• Show that through adversity can come joy.
• Communicate a feeling of hope.

My role as Lead Editor included creative direction from start-to-finish; initial storyboarding, crafting interview questions, conducting interviews throughout our 2-day video shoot, and editing all our content into a story. Editing this story was a particular challenge because over the course of two full days, we gathered over 4 hours of interviews and 6 hours of B-Roll. When I first sat down to begin crafting a story, it was daunting. That said, I used the emotion of the story to guide the narrative (not without some tears while editing) — always keeping in mind that the final feeling of the film should be one of hope. Give it a watch here (and grab some tissues.):

Watch Levi's Hope

Choice Bank: Ignite Event
Lead Editor

​For this film, we captured Choice Bank's annual leadership event, Ignite. Based on our conversations with Choice Bank, I knew this film needed to specifically illustrate the education, community involvement, and team-building aspects at the heart of Ignite and Choice culture.

We took this vision and ran with it, using seven interviewees with key players to form the narrative, and a host of beautiful B-Roll to illustrate the story. Throughout the editing, I sought to keep Choice's #PeopleFirst culture at the heart of the story.

Watch Choice

Fargo-Moorhead Area Foundation: Donor Film
Interviewer, Lead Editor

The FM Area Foundation came to Tellwell seeking a solution to a lack of awareness in the community for the work they do. With this in mind, we created two mini-films that inform the community about the work of the foundation, while inviting viewers to get involved.

We took what we call the “organic” route to the films, choosing to have a basic outline for the story but letting the interviews define the flow. As lead editor, I wanted these videos to have a sentimental feeling; showing older photos, telling the story of how FMAF allows generosity to pass from family to family for generations — using the interviews and visuals to show what it really means to leave a legacy.

watch donor film

Fargo-Moorhead Area Foundation: Grantee Film
​Interviewer, Lead Editor

watch grantee film

Habitat for Humanity: The Hero Build
Interviewer, Lead Editor
As a non-profit, video is one of the most powerful ways to draw in your donor base and raise awareness for the work you are doing. Part of our work with Habitat for Humanity in Fargo was to create powerful video content that would help them fundraise and grow their donor base.
For this project, we had a specific story to tell: the story of the Hero Build. The Hero Build is a Habitat home that was built in place of the home where Officer Moszer, a Fargo police officer, was shot and killed. A place of tragedy was turned to a place of hope thanks to Habitat for Humanity’s efforts, and we were honored to help tell that story.

watch grantee film

Watch Habitat

Roco: A Day in the Life
Scriptwriter, Storyboard, Creative Director
For this project, our client was seeking a way to highlight the perks of living in downtown Fargo, while garnering interest in the recently opened Roco apartments. They wanted a mini-film that was:

• Humorous
• Self-aware
• Scripted + using an actor
• Showcasing many different aspects of downtown Fargo

The result is “A Day in the Life,” starring Ryan as our friendly Fargo neighbor and young professional, leading us through a day in his downtown life. In my role, I wrote the script, storyboarded each scene, pitched the vision to the client, and served as a creative director during the shoot to ensure we met that vision.  I also assisted in the editing process and, in a post-production decision, assumed the role as "The Narrator." It was one of the most enjoyable and humorous videos to create and our team was proud of the result! Read more about this project, here.

WATCH ROCO