Producing for Perrier & Billboard Magazine at The Broad Museum
Jimetta Rose performing at The Broad Museum | all photos by Charde Kelly
This project was a long time coming. In January I pitched Billboard an idea for a video series around The Broad Museum’s Soul of a Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power 1963-1983 exhibit that’d open in March. The concept took a few turns, as they often do when you’re building with others. Perrier stepped up to the plate to sponsor it and in May we actually started locking in on the particulars.
On August 14 I’d be responsible for shooting and editing video footage of singer Jimetta Rose’s night at The Broad’s Black Fire Sessions for Billboard’s Instagram Stories, finding a photographer to snap pictures of guests sipping Perrier’s Juice Drink cocktails at their activation next door in Otium’s courtyard and writing a recap to be posted days later.
Jimetta Rose and More Bring Soul to The Broad Museum's Black Fire Sessions Finale
When the night finally came, it was pretty hectic. To start, I got intro clips of Rose and Broad curator Sarah Loyer, then worked that into something. Next, I scrambled from the stage to my MacBook to piece footage of Jimetta’s two awesome sets together.
Several video shorts and beautiful pictures (provided by my buddy Charde Kelly) later, Billboard and Perrier were happy clients. The cherry on top dropped the following Wednesday, when my branded event recap was published on Billboard’s site. Mission accomplished.
I’m particularly proud to add this project to my portfolio because I used to be on staff as Features Editor at Billboard and—as I spoke a bit about here—there was a time when the only involvement I’d have with the marketing team’s branded content would be if they needed a journalist to ask questions to whoever the featured talent was. Once the interview was over, I’d retreat to my cubicle and get back to assigning or editing articles. And it was back then in 2014 when I worked there that I decided to take video editing courses in Brooklyn to someday be able to confidently call myself more than a traditional editorial journalist.
So it’s cool to be able to say that five years later, they invited me and my company to work for them as a creative who can execute on three fronts: video, photography and, of course, editorial.
Sometimes you’ve got to pat yourself on the back. I’m proud of me.
Read the whole recap here.
