Montpelier Strong Fund
Project Snapshot
Project:
Fundraising Appeal
Partner / Client / Chief Funder:
The Montpelier Foundation,
Montpelier Alive
Role:
Production Company
Scope:
Volunteer Emergency Response, Production, Post-Production
GOAL
In July 2023 Montpelier, Vermont suffered major flooding of the downtown when the Winooski River swelled to a crest of 21.29 feet, leaving homes uninhabitable and wiping out small businesses overnight. While FEMA was beginning the process of addressing residential damage, businesses were left without funds or a clear path forward, so local civic organizations Montpelier Alive and the Montpelier Foundation launched a fundraising campaign for support. Well Told Films, which is based in Montpelier, joined the fundraising effort, volunteering our time to raise money for our neighbors.
PARTNER / CLIENT / CHIEF FUNDER
APPROACH
Downtown Montpelier was full of neighbors pitching in to clean up: pumping floodwaters from basements, removing ruined inventory and furniture, carrying bucketloads of river mud, and providing supplies and support for those in need. Our offices in downtown were fortunately unharmed but without power, so after quickly coordinating on a rough script for an on-camera appeal, we charged camera batteries at home and carried a minimal amount of gear downtown. We found a spot to the side of the ongoing cleanup effort and recorded the appeal with Katie & Ben, then Chad filmed footage around town. The goal of the video would be to accompany direct outreach efforts in order to show the scope of the recovery effort. The video was filmed on a Saturday, edited Sunday, and online for the fundraising appeal on Monday morning.
PROCESS
Pre-Production
The need was urgent, so we quickly chose a location at the corner of State & Main Streets to film,
Provided advice & feedback re: creating a fundraising appeal script quickly, with the understanding that we would need to adapt and alter the copy on the fly.
Production
To try to be unobtrusive we filmed with the a small footprint with a producer, cameraperson, and a monopod.
We adapted the script on the fly under stressful circumstances, so we filmed lots of flood cleanup and recovery footage, which helped not only demonstrate the damage but served as ‘coverage’ for edits.
RESULTS
IMPACT HIGHLIGHTS
- The Montpelier Foundation & Montpelier Alive raised over $2 Million to support flood recovery.
- 100% of the money raised was distributed as emergency grants to approximately 150 local downtown businesses and property owners.
- Following the success of this campaign, The Montpelier Foundation and the Commission for Recovery & Resilience merged to form a unified organization dedicated to ongoing long-term climate adaptation and infrastructure protection for the city.
- In the face of such overwhelming forces it is easy to feel helpless, so were were glad to be able to donate our skills in an effort to help our neighbors and our beloved town.
TEAM
Kristin Cantu
PRODUCER
Chad Ervin
CAMERA OPERATOR, EDITOR