Before a single light goes up, we knock, we say hello and we get to know the people whose story we are about to tell. Here is what a shoot day with Happy Productions feels like from your side of the door.
Happy Productions is an ethically trained collective of filmmakers who give their time pro bono or at a discount to causes they care about. So we never send whoever is free. We match you with a storyteller who already cares about your cause.
Scroll through the day with your storyteller.
Your storyteller rings the bell and introduces themselves before a single case comes out of the car.
They walk the space with you, choose where the equipment will sit and where we will film, and ask what is off limits.
Your storyteller takes time to meet the people in the story and get to know them a little, with the camera off.
Furniture pads go down over your floors before any tripod, light or case touches them.
Interviews are filmed straight into the lens, with the interviewer sitting right behind the camera.
Every interview ends with the question we have asked people all over the world: are you happy?
Everyone on camera signs a release before we pack up.
Pads up, cables out, furniture back where it was. Your raw footage lands in a shared folder your organization owns.
Before anyone arrives, our producer writes a brief for the day and hand-picks a visual reference: a film or a scene that shows your storyteller the look we are going for. So when the door opens, we are ready to listen.
Guests first. Filmmakers second.
In-person productions are part of our yearly production agreements. Monthly Partnership clients can upgrade anytime.