The NJVA membership is and always has been made up primarily of event videographers. However, a number of our members have worked in both broadcast and corporate television production. Even those of us who work primarily in the event world, occasionally find ourselves with an opportunity to do a PR video or commercial and sometimes we feel slightly unprepared for the task. Maybe we’re weak at writing scripts or lighting a set or maybe uncomfortable working with actors or interviewing people. On the other hand, for those who work primarily in the corporate world where projects are often scripted and planned out in advance, allowing for multiple “takes” until they get it perfect, the coverage of a one-time event can sometimes benefit from the skill set of an event videographer who is experienced at shooting on the fly. We learn from each other. A well rounded videographer should be exposed to work across the spectrum.

With this in mind, we were excited to welcome fellow member Andy Levison as our featured speaker this month. Andy is currently serving as head of video services for the Staten Island Borough President’s Office.In that capacity, he writes, shoots, directs and edits documentaries, also providing video coverage for press conferences and a variety of other video services.

Andy got his early experience both working and teaching at a public access station from 1996 through 2000.

In 2000 Levison started his own video production business, with a focus on shooting with Steadicam and camera cranes. From 2000 to 2006 he shot a wide variety of subjects, including commercials, local news, political campaign videos, documentaries, medical conventions, seminars, low budget movies, weddings and special events. Andy will share his experiences doing government and corporate video, pointing out along the way, the differences and similarities to event videography.

Since working for the Borough President’s Office, he has produced documentaries on a variety of Staten Island subjects and throughout his presentation he will show clips from these projects. The presentation will be followed by Q & A. We think many of you will go home with some very useful information.