video
Even the insiders are fed up with Washington. To understand why, NYT Opinion Video put the same eight questions to House and Senate members in both parties who are on the way out, looking for patterns and prescriptions to get a handle on the place. Corruption, money, perks, frustrations, solutions.
As the project's producer, I casted and scheduled all 12 participating Congress members and interviewed them in Washington D.C.
I talked about the project on TV and on the radio.
Video interactive and stub article
NYT newsletter I wrote about the project
Interview excerpts in NYT Opinion print edition
THE NEW YORK TIMES
.roles: casting, field producing, interviewing
A lot of people have recently weighed in on legacy admissions, the preferential treatment given to the children of alumni in the college application process: President Biden. Members of Congress. Supreme Court justices. But what about the legacy students themselves? Five shared their take on the issue in this video I produced with video editor Alex Stockton.
I casted and pre-interviewed all of the subjects, helped our DP Emily Holzknecht with setting up our studio, conducted the on-camera interviews, wrote the script with Alex, and found all archival footage.
NYT newsletter I wrote about the video
THE NEW YORK TIMES
.roles: casting, interviewing, scripting, archival research
Amid an enormous societal push to destigmatize mental illness and encourage more conversation about emotions, young people have been flooded with mental health information on social media and elsewhere. But much of it is unreliable and counterproductive. Is it possible all this mental health awareness is making young people feel worse?
I pitched this video and casted academic psychologist Dr. Lucy Foulkes, pre-interviewing her to conceptualize the argument. Adam Westbrook and I then wrote the script with her. And I found all the visual assets, including TikToks, advertisements, and PSAs.
NYT newsletter I wrote about the video
THE NEW YORK TIMES
.roles: casting, scripting, archival research
We often measure the tragedy of war in the suffering of children, but rarely do we hear from them. In 2021, filmmakers asked Palestinian children in Gaza about their dreams for the future. I discovered these interviews through Jordanian filmmaker Mohannad Abu Rizk's TikTok, then reached out to his team to propose a video juxtaposing these interviews (the children's dreams) with present-day footage of Israel's attacks in Gaza and the aftermath (the nightmare they're living).
As post producer and editor, I conceptualized the video, sourced the interview footage from the filmmakers, selected and pulled 2023 war footage, then edited the video with Jonah Kessel.
THE NEW YORK TIMES
.roles: post production, editing
Sophomoric insults. Rudeness. Personal attacks. Cross talk. These have become the defining features of American political debates these days. But things haven't always been this way. Before Donald Trump changed the rules of the game — and debate rules literally changed, civility once had a place in the political forum. This Opinion video documents the slow — then very rapid — "devolution" of decorum in presidential debates.
As the video's producer, I interviewed several presidential debate historians and watched way, way too many presidential debates (across six decades) to select and pull all the archival footage. Then I edited the video with Jonah Kessel.
THE NEW YORK TIMES
.roles: archival research, editing
When you're pregnant, there's plenty to worry about. Your baby. Your own health. And then there's the pregnancy police: strangers who judge pregnant women for all of their choices, such as drinking coffee, eating dairy, and even exercising. This is exactly what the elite distance runner Stephanie Bruce discovered while pregnant with her third child. But as she shares in this Opinion video, she knows her body best. How she treats it is her choice alone.
I was the video's field producer, which involved traveling to Flagstaff, AZ to interview Stephanie and working with our DP Elliot DeBruyn to shoot b-roll. I also found all the archival sound for the video.
THE NEW YORK TIMES
.roles: interviewing, field producing, archival research
In the decades-long effort to resolve the Israel-Palestine conflict, the "two-state solution" has seemed like the least flawed among many imperfect ideas. It's become official policy of most governments around the world and the basis for peace talks. But as this Opinion video shows, it has also become one of the most hollowed-out phrases in the Middle East — or anywhere. For all the shuttle diplomacy, summits and on-the-verge-of-success pronouncements, the goal remains frustratingly distant and, for many, dead.
As producer, I researched the two-state solution's history to find the video's archival footage and worked with video editor Adam Westbrook to conceptualize the final product.
THE NEW YORK TIMES
.roles: archival research, post production
Danielle Boyer founded her nonprofit The STEAM Connection to provide technical and cultural educational opportunities among Native American communities, combining both in the form of robots that teach Indigenous languages.
I got to spend an afternoon with Danielle, interviewing her about her inventions and work at The STEAM Connection, as well as shooting footage of her demonstrating her robots. We also took a trip to the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian where Danielle showed me some of her community's exhibits.
Link to the video I produced, shot, and edited on GMA's website.
GOOD MORNING AMERICA
.roles: casting, field producing, shooting, interviewing, editing
A study conducted by the National Center For Education Statistics showed test scores in math and reading hit new lows after the pandemic. I spoke with one family, fourth grader Yara Valerio and her mother Emma Mercado, about these results, their experiences with remote learning, and their hopes for the next school year.
I took the lead on producing this segment. I booked the interviews with Emma Mercado, Yara Valerio, and Adeola Whitney, then traveled to NYC to field produce the story, directing the crew in shooting b-roll of Yara's first day of fourth grade and also conducting the in-person interviews with Yara, Emma, and Adeola. I also worked on writing the script.
GOOD MORNING AMERICA
.roles: casting, field producing, interviewing, scripting
Minneapolis public school teachers negotiated a new contract earlier this year after a strike, which includes a hiring policy that protects underrepresented groups during layoffs.
I did the initial legwork on this segment for ABC News Nightline, which originated from my digital article.
My contributions included booking guests, collecting elements and reportable editorial, and helping with producing the in-person studio interviews.
ABC NEWS NIGHTLINE
.roles: casting, producing
Pastor Michael Jennings, 56, was arrested by local police while watering plants for an out-of-town neighbor this past spring.
I took the lead on producing this segment. I booked the exclusive interviews with Pastor Jennings and his attorney Harry Daniels (making ABC News the first outlet to interview Jennings since the bodycam footage release). I also coordinated the camera crew sent to shoot the in-person interview at Jennings' home and b-roll and remotely conducted the interview with Jennings and Daniels over Zoom. I also obtained the body camera footage featured in the package.
GOOD MORNING AMERICA
.roles: booking, interviewing
Lloyd Mackay is The Harvard Crimson's longtime custodian. In this video interview, I ask Lloyd to recount a few of his memories and stories from his 15 years caring for our building on 14 Plympton Street, including his run-ins with The Crimson's Sorrento Square neighbors (rivals), the Harvard Lampoon. For context, at the time of the interview, I was serving as The Crimson's president.
DOCUMENTARY CLASS ASSIGNMENT
.roles: shooting, editing, interviewing
Harvard College announced all undergraduate classes in fall 2020 would be taught virtually, inviting a limited number of students to spend the fall semester in residence. Those invited to return began trickling into campus late August, arriving at pre-assigned times staggered over the course of a week.
During that week, I reached out to several students living at Harvard in the fall to interview them and guide them through filming different aspects of their lives—from traveling to Boston to concluding their mandated quarantine period. Throughout the process, I regularly checked in with the students to provide further instructions and updated checklists of footage to shoot. I pitched, remotely produced, and edited the entire video.
THE HARVARD CRIMSON
.roles: editing, interviewing, (remote) field producing
After Harvard sent students home to prevent the spread of Covid-19 on campus, the Class of 2020 lost innumerable traditions, farewells, and last memories of places and people.
However, in the weeks leading up to their online graduation, seniors have reimagined the quintessential senior spring experience, trading spring break trips for service projects, final sports seasons for at-home gyms, and stage performances for virtual fans.
I asked several of them to share videos of how they have spent the last few months. I guided them through recording the videos from afar and remotely produced and edited this final product in its entirety.
THE HARVARD CRIMSON
.roles: editing, interviewing, (remote) field producing
When the Science Center Plaza first opened in 2013, there were only five food trucks. Today, there are a total of 20 trucks that serve food in the space throughout the week. I interviewed several of the vendors that frequent the plaza to hear what it's like running a food truck at Harvard.
THE HARVARD CRIMSON
.roles: shooting, editing, interviewing
CHINESE SCHOOL: A DOCUMENTARY
Chinese schools are a nexus of Chinese community life in the U.S., offering essential childcare services, language and cultural enrichment, as well as academic support. Through an eclectic array of activities, curricula, and programming, these schools strive to simultaneously prepare Chinese American children for success in American society while cultivating their connection to Chinese heritage.
A mosaic of vignettes capturing quotidian life at Kwong Kow Chinese School in Boston Chinatown, this verité documentary offers a glimpse into how students from kindergarteners to teenagers navigate and interpret the complex institution that is the Chinese school.
.roles: directing, producing, shooting, editing