For as long as I can remember, stories have been a part of my life. In fact, some stories are from before I can even remember — and were told to me growing up. Whether these were happy or sad stories, they stirred something within me and created emotion. That is the power of stories.
Growing up outside of Philadelphia, there was always something interesting happening or something to talk about. When I learned that I could take photos, or videos, of an event and then show people who were not in attendance what happened or what it looked like — a whole new world of storytelling opened up to me.
Fast forward to today, I get to create videos telling other people’s stories every day. It is a dream come true. Filmiamo Productions evolved over the years as my passion for photography and film grew. After studying Photojournalism at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, I began freelancing as a videographer working directly for small business clients, nonprofits and political campaigns. I quickly learned that stories can motivate people to take action in a way almost nothing else can. I was honored to have the opportunity to create such content.
I look fondly back to the early days of my career; taking on shoots because they sounded interesting, but barely broke even with travel expenses; long drives in a car loaded with Pelican cases; and redeye flights that land before you can fall asleep. Those scrappy memories are part of my story that have led me to where I am today.
During the COVID pandemic my wife, Hannah, and I began to work together and launched Filmiamo Productions. It quickly became clear that as a team, we could grow our capacity. On set, we were both able to take on different roles to ensure the production went smoothly. With one of us filming and the other planning the next shot we could move seamlessly through an event. When we created Filmiamo Productions, we named it as such to promote collaboration.
In Italian, ‘Filmiamo’ means “we film” or “let’s film.” We believe this name sends a message to team members and clients alike, that it takes all of us to create meaningful content. It is also a nod to both my and Hannah’s Italian heritage, and our personal stories.
We refer to Filmiamo Productions as a scalable production company, because we have been conscious to maintain the original passion for storytelling that started this work. Sometimes, telling the right story requires a single person with a camera who can essentially be a fly on the wall, and simply bear witness to someone telling the rawness of their story. Other times, a much larger crew is needed to create that space for someone or a group of people(dressing a studio, operating multiple cameras, etc…).
As we continue to do this work and grow Filmiamo, I try to remain true to my passion for photography and filmmaking. Ultimately, we get to create a space for a story to be told. We get to control the light; motivate the background and choose music to accompany it. While these are often seen as mundane elements on a check list, they are the value pieces that push visual content from good to great.
I recently started one of the most exciting chapters of my life; fatherhood. As I watch my son grow up, I am already flooded with stories of him and things he’s experienced. None that he will remember personally (at least not for a few more years), but ones that represent memories and emotion for us, and milestones for him. My hope is that he grows up, he will learn some of the stories and they will become part of who he is. But most importantly, I hope and pray that he will learn to live beautifully and create his own stories.
Written by : Luke Rafferty
