Lights. Camera. Help.

Here at Greenlights we try to promote innovation (one  of our core values), so I was thrilled to learn about this great new opportunity for nonprofits to get creative, be innovative, and engage in new forms of media. Typically limited to informational videos, news interviews and the like, nonprofits haven’t traditionally been known for their creative use of video. (Of course, a lot of that is changing with the growth of social media and Web 2.0.) Lights. Camera. Help. is giving nonprofits a new medium for discussing their causes in a meaningful way – a film festival just for nonprofits.

Fittingly, it’s free to enter and any video is welcome as long as its emphasis is on a nonprofit or grassroots organization. American Cancer Society, United Way Capital Area, Capital Area Food Bank, and Best Friends Animal Sanctuary were the first to submit their films at the Reel-to-Reality event held last week at Southwest Key’s East Side Community Center.

From the announcement released by founders David Neff, Aaron Bramley, and Rich Vázquez:

This is the first annual Lights. Camera. Help. festival, where films and videos with a cause directly related to a non-profit or grass roots organization will be evaluated on a rigorous criteria by a panel of judges. The films and videos will gain recognition by being considered the best in one of several distinct categories. Proceeds from the event with go to the organization that is the subject of the winning video.

This festival is the first of its kind in the nation and reflects the spirit of Austin, a city with prominent non-profit, grassroots and activism communities. Non-profits, grassroots organizations and filmmakers will use the festival to spread the word about their cause, develop a community of followers, and expand the film-for-a-cause genre.

The great thing about Lights. Camera. Help. is its simplicity. The idea of a nonprofit telling its story is not a new one – in fact, it’s necessary for successful fundraising and donor cultivation. I mean, what is more compelling than a narrative? It is how we share so much of our information and it allows people to engage in our mission without having to have all the details, just getting to connect to a story. Good guys, bad guys, love, loss, lessons: we can learn a lot from Hollywood about how to get people to care about what we do.

So what better way to help nonprofits tell their story than through film? It’s so obvious yet so ingenious.

Lights. Camera. Help. film festival begins July 31st. Visit lightscamerahelp.com for more information and view trailers for some of the submitted films right here:

 

more about “Kids Cafe“, posted with vodpod

 

more about “Best Friends Animal Society – Celebra…“, posted with vodpod

 

more about “United Way and Hands On Central Texas…“, posted with vodpod