Enlightened Pictures Inc.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

 I am a principal planner for a city government.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

We wanted to take the 10 most asked questions we receive in the city and create videos answering them to get ahead of the public and free up our staff's time. We thought that if we made such videos, members of the public would have that information available and wouldn't feel the need to contact our staff to ask those same questions. We wanted these videos to be posted on our web page and YouTube account.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Enlightened Pictures Inc. produced explainer and informative videos for us to use as part of our website and share with the public. These videos were related to city planning processes and development standards.

Before we even got to the actual video production, Enlightened Pictures Inc. was very helpful in going through our RFP process to formalize the agreement and ensure that the scope of work included everything we needed to achieve our goals, especially because it was our department's first time in creating these types of videos.

Once we finalized the scope and the agreements were in place, the next step was going through the 10 questions we always get from the public. From there, Enlightened Pictures Inc. created storyboards to show us how they viewed the videos, illustrating the concept and ideas we wanted to get across.

Out of these videos, 8/10 were animated. Given that this project started in early 2022, some of the COVID-19 pandemic's restraints were still in place, so we wanted to make sure that the videos could be created and stay evergreen. We didn't want to have any masks to appear in the video so that people wouldn't date them to the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, we decided as a team that animated videos would be the best approach moving forward.

The videos created range in length. The shortest video is about two minutes long, whereas the longest video is nearly nine minutes long. After we first launched the videos, we had to go back to Enlightened Pictures Inc. to ask them for additional changes. There were some changes to the state law that affected the information we were putting out, so we worked with the team to revise the videos.

What is the team composition?

I primarily worked with Daniel (Video Producer) and Jessica (Producer). Daniel was in charge of the video creation, and Jessica was in charge of the admin side.

How did you come to work with Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

We initially were in touch with them through a formal RFP process that we released as part of the city's procurement. One of the driving forces behind choosing Enlightened Pictures Inc. was the interview we had with Daniel and Jessica. Both of them came across as really personable individuals with whom we wanted to work.

Projects like these require a lot of time, so we wanted to ensure we had a good rapport with our potential partner to achieve a level of comfort, which is especially important in creative projects.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent approximately $97,000 on the first phase of the project. Revising the videos was an additional $17,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The RPF process happened in late 2021, so the actual project started in January 2022. We first completed the project in November 2023. Still, the video revision was completed in March 2024.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The quality of Enlightened Pictures Inc.'s work far exceeded our expectations. We went into this project after seeing a couple of other cities produce planning informational videos. Comparing those videos to ours, the creativity and level of production quality of our videos were head and shoulders above all the other videos we saw out there.

How did Enlightened Pictures Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

The team, especially Jessica, was instrumental in trying to keep us on track. A lot of the delays were on our side. Still, Enlightened Pictures Inc. was very flexible in working around our schedules and accommodating the longer review times our city had due to the different supervisors and managers involved. Overall, they were very accommodating and professional in producing a product and working with us to achieve our goals.

As for communication, we used phone calls, emails, Google Docs, and another tool that Enlightened Pictures Inc. used to share draft videos. This tool allowed us to view the videos and leave comments directly in the frame we wanted to revise.

Are there any employees from the service provider's team that you would like to give a shout-out to in this review?

Both Daniel and Jessica were exceptional.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What stood out most about Enlightened Pictures Inc. was their ability to produce a product that met all our goals. They were very receptive to our comments and ideas, taking notes from people without experience in creating this type of content and working to deliver exceptional videos.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There's nothing Enlightened Pictures Inc. could have improved on.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Communicate with Daniel and Jessica. Both of them are exceptional and easy to work with. They're easy to talk to and open to your ideas, so in order to achieve our goals, have an open communication with them and ensure any differences of opinion are resolved before moving forward.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I lead marketing & communications for the Entertainment Services division of Iron Mountain, IMES. IMES provides full-service archival solutions for the Media & Entertainment industry.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Enlightened Pictures Inc., and what were your goals?

We needed a video produced that would clearly articulate what IMES does, and why we're the best at what we do. We know that this story is best told with an in-person visit to one of our studios, so our goal was to recreate that in-person visit through a video.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Daniel and Enlightened Pictures were referred to me through a colleague. I saw some of his previous work and thought it looked like the right style and approach for our project. That he was so flexible and professional to work with really sealed the deal.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail, including the project steps and all stages of production.

Through a series of meetings and collaboration via email, we worked with Daniel to establish the storyboard and script. We booked two days of production due to weather and talent (our staff) availability. The video was shot in live action on site at our studio, and Daniel then edited and provided us a couple of rounds of drafts before we landed on the final version.

Who did you work with and what was the feedback process like?

I worked primarily with Daniel. The feedback process was incredibly smooth and fluid - I really enjoyed Daniel's style and willingness to share options with us about how we could achieve various effects within our budget.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Our studio tour video was a tremendous success. Not only does it do exactly what we hoped from a marketing perspective - succinctly shows what we do and showcases our facilities and people - but also, the internal team is incredibly proud to show it off. Finally, they have a piece that's approved to use with their friends and family that shows what it is they do!

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Daniel is highly professional, efficient, and responsive. Any delays we had with the project were solely driven by availability on our side.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The creativity applied to a "standard" marketing video. Daniel takes his work seriously but also brings his artist side to the equation, which makes it fun and inspiring to work with him.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

I don't have any suggestions for improvement. I really enjoyed working with Daniel and would call him again in a heartbeat when I have another video project to work on.

UPDATED REVIEW

This review was published on September 20, 2022.

Stacy Schwartz

Marketing Coordinator, Iron Mountain Entertainment Services

Media

201-500 Employees

Boston, Massachusetts, United States 

$10,000 to $49,999

Feb 2022 - Jun 2022

Project summary

Enlightened Pictures Inc. produced a marketing video for an entertainment company. The team was involved in all aspects of production, including writing, directing, and post-production.

Feedback summary

Enlightened Pictures Inc.'s work has gotten high acclaim from the client's entire department. Their timely and creative team and effective workflow were easy to work with. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the marketing coordinator for Iron Mountain Entertainment Services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

We hired Enlightened Pictures to produce a marketing video for our company.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

My boss had worked with this vendor in the past.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

The project that I worked on was pre-production, production and post-production of the video. Daniel and his team helped write, direct, edit and post produce the entire video.

What was the team composition?

Daniel worked closely with myself and the head of our marketing department to help create the vision and execute the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The video has gotten tremendous positive feedback from our entire department, from SVP to clients.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very effective. It was a great collaboration and they were easy to work with in a timely fashion.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Daniel and his team were timely, creative, professional and super easy to work with.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

None.

RATINGS

Overall rating: 5

Quality: 5

Cost: 4

Schedule: 5

Willing to refer: 5

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for the California Science Center Foundation in Los Angeles, a nonprofit, hands-on science museum — the biggest one on the West Coast. On average, we have two million visitors per year. It’s one of the most popular museums in Los Angeles, and it houses the Space Shuttle Endeavour, a real space shuttle on-site. I’m the director of special exhibitions, and I bring in touring exhibitions from other organizations. I also lead the science center’s traveling exhibitions to other museums. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

We needed a video company with a quick turnaround time. We’d been closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and as we were reopening, we needed to let people know what to expect when they come to the science center. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Enlightened Pictures created a video that used live talent mixed with video overlays and graphics between scene changes. One of the main purposes of the video was to let people know our rules relating to COVID-19 restrictions. To produce the video, the team made screens for us that talked about our mission and safety protocols. We also wanted to give the video a bit of fun branding. 

Since the science center hosted the Space Shuttle Endeavour, we wanted the video to incorporate astronaut themes. Enlightened Pictures also put fun animations on top of the live-action video that we had. The team also helped in casting. Because of COVID-19 protocols, we had to cast real families to avoid the mingling of people from different households. 

Moreover, we worked collaboratively in the scriptwriting process. We had a strong concept of what we needed, but they brought ideas to the table. They created the first draft of the script, and our team shaped it. We had a lot of back-and-forth conversations, and they gave us many suggestions. 

Further, the Enlightened Pictures team handled the editing process. They also picked out the music for the video. We wanted to present everything in bilingual format, so they made sure the videos had English and Spanish open captions; viewers could see the captions even if they didn’t turn them on. On top of that, they uploaded the video on YouTube in 4K quality for people who wanted to view it before they arrived at the science center.  

What is the team composition?

We worked with 4–5 people from their team, including the director and producer, a camera operator, a lighting designer, and a drone operator. Then, the post-production process was handled by Daniel (Video Producer) and an outside animator. 

How did you come to work with Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

We looked at several companies, but Enlightened Pictures drew my attention the most because of their sample videos. Not only did the videos have great quality; they also had humor, which was important given that the COVID-19 pandemic was serious. We didn’t want to be a downer; we didn’t want the video to be super formal and heavy. As a result, we contracted Enlightened Pictures to work with us. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted from June–July 2020. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

We were able to turn the project around in less than a month. We didn’t get any feedback from the people outside of the science center since we didn’t do any survey to see what they thought about it. However, our people inside the center were happy about the project’s results. I also felt great about the final product.

How did Enlightened Pictures Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

Enlightened Pictures did well in terms of project management. They always kept us informed of what was happening during the entire project, and they were amazing in terms of scheduling. If they needed to change any schedules, they’d let us know.  Most of the time, though, the changes happened on our end because we had a challenging review process. 

In any case, the team was reliable when it came to dealing with such changes; they were flexible. To communicate, we used emails and phone calls. They always kept us well informed. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Throughout the project, Enlightened Pictures had a blend of creativity and practicality. They were super personable, and they met our budget and schedule requirements. Overall, working with them was great.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there weren’t any. I was truly happy with them. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Come to Enlightened Pictures with a well-defined concept, but be open to new ideas that might come from their team. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing director of an art logistics company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

We were trying to communicate and convey how our handling training program with a museum works.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Enlightened Pictures Inc. worked with us to create a short video of our handling training program in Los Angeles. Daniel (CEO) helped us with every aspect of the production of the video after we set up the project’s treatment and goals.

He led the shoot’s schedule, coordinated the content, made the script, and prepared the two individuals to be interviewed. Before that, Daniel scouted the internal and external sites of the museum and created some footage of it. Consequently, he captured the interview material and took some shots of our courses to edit into the actual footage.

After that, he provided us with the ability to review the interviews he captured, and then Daniel edited them with our input in terms of what to highlight. In addition to that, we added the credit lines and captions to finish the project.

What is the team composition?

Daniel was our main point of contact, but we had two other people involved.

How did you come to work with Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

We did online research to find someone based in Los Angeles, and a colleague of ours referred Daniel to us. After our initial conversation with him, we saw his website and previous work; we were impressed by the material and thought he could work for us based on his esthetic approach.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from April–June 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We’re delighted with the final product; it drove more traffic to our site, and the video has gotten a lot of visits. It also served the intention of successfully promoting the program — we had a steady flow of applicants. 

How did Enlightened Pictures Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

They were awesome; their team was collaborative and organized — I’m delighted with their performance. In terms of communication, we used email and phone calls.

What did you find most impressive about them? 

Their attention to detail, commitment to follow through every step of the way, and applying his vision were key traits. He also gave great advice and could foresee any issues before they happened, which made everything smooth to avoid surprises along the way.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they can improve on — they guided us and laid everything out for us, which was helpful because we were novices in this area.

Any advice for potential customers?

Have open lines of communication with them; that’d be the best way to get the most out of them. They were a responsive and proactive team, so try to maintain solid and consistent communication with them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the recruitment manager for a government agency.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

We needed someone who could help us promote our current recruitment vacancies by producing a series of videos about who we are and why people should work for us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We hired Enlightened Pictures Inc. to produce 20 recruitment videos for us. We’re still in the project’s infancy stage, so we’ve only done one video so far.

In preparation for the first video, Daniel (Filmmaker & Producer) and Jessica (Project Manager) went through our website and did some research about our agency to figure out who we are and what message we were trying to communicate to our audience. They then came up with a storyboard based on the information that they gathered and helped me finalize the script, which we’ve already prepared. 

Their team then flew here to film the video along with our director, after which they handled all of the video’s post-production efforts.

We’re currently working together to develop the storyboards for the next videos.

What is the team composition?

I’m working with two people — Daniel, who’s in charge of all the creative content, and Jessica, who’s in charge of the communication between teams, scheduling, and logistics.

How did you come to work with Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

One of the main reasons why we chose Enlightened Pictures Inc. is because we like to support small businesses. They also have experience working with government agencies, which is an advantage for us.

We also solicited other companies for this project, but we were really blown away by the quality and style of Enlightened Pictures Inc.’s previous works, so we ultimately decided to go with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $7,000 on the first video so far, and we have a pre-set budget of around $150,000 for all of the videos.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2021, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We’ve received great feedback from our department, director, and executives — they had a lot of great things to say about the video’s content, visuals, and graphics.

How did Enlightened Pictures Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

Enlightened Pictures Inc. has performed exceptionally well in terms of project management — I enjoy working with them a lot. They’re very accessible and easy to work with.

We primarily communicate through email and phone calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It’s really great how Enlightened Pictures Inc. brings a lot of fresh ideas to the table. I also appreciate how personable, thoughtful, and communicative they are. All of these things make them very easy to work with.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could work on their editing and proofreading skills a bit more. I found a couple of typographical mistakes in the first video.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It would be a good idea to look through their site to see how great the quality of their work is.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Manager of IIAR

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Trade association for Natural Refrigeration

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Enlightened Pictures Inc. to accomplish?

• Three videos that showed what IIAR is, why natural refrigeration is better than synthetics and what NRF is

SOLUTION

How did you find Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

Online Search

Why did you select Enlightened Pictures Inc. over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost

How many teammates from Enlightened Pictures Inc. were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Three videos that showed what IIAR is, why natural refrigeration is better than synthetic, and what NRF is.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

successful complettion of three videos

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Yes

What was your primary form of communication with Enlightened Pictures Inc.?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

I was impressed by their very good communication with production and costs.

Are there any areas for improvement or something Enlightened Pictures Inc. could have done differently?

Timeline of delivery was a little later than expected, but we were not on a firm deadline for the final product.