Donald Silverman of Silverman Productions recently directed a series of dynamic and emotional spots in a new campaign for The Humane Society of the United States, headlined by film and TV actress Jenna Elfman.
For The Humane Society of the United States campaign, Donald Silverman directed three two-minute direct response TV spots, each of which offers a distinctive and moving plea to support the organization in its daily work to protect animals worldwide against cruelty, exploitation and neglect. The first commercial spotlights actress Jenna Elfman (best known for TV’s “Dharma and Greg”), while the additional spots showcase children and adults alike speaking out for animals, including HSUS President and CEO Wayne Pacelle, who urges viewers to take action in support of the organization.
“I enjoyed the challenges and opportunities the spots provided, and appreciated being able to showcase the bond between humans and animals,” comments director Donald Silverman. “My goal with the spots was to emphasize that bond visually, preserving a balance between the human call to action, and the animals themselves.”
All of the commercials visually emphasize the importance of pets in daily life. For the first commercial, Silverman guided Elfman, holding a dog her in her arms, to project her natural warmth and commitment to animal welfare in a direct and powerful appeal for support. Silverman filmed the pieces on location in Richmond, Virginia; Bethesda, Maryland; and Malibu, California, and shot the footage using the RED ONE™ camera, which offers more than five times the resolution of HD. The resulting commercials are clear and visually striking, and from Elfman, to Pacelle, to the children’s calls for support, feature their subjects framed against simple, yet visually appealing backgrounds, with eloquent words and warm lighting. In each segment, the animals are the primary focus, with the speaker segments framing heart-tugging images of the cats, dogs, and other animals protected by The Humane Society of the United States, often from terrible and inhumane conditions and environments.
The new campaign is airing now on U.S. Cable TV networks nationwide, and was created in order to help raise awareness of The Humane Society of the United States.
The spots can be previewed in their entirety by visiting the following links:
The Humane Society of the United States (“Jenna Elfman”):
<a href="http://(www.silvermanstockfootage.com)/reels/humane_society_of_the_us_jenna_elfman.mov”>http://(www.silvermanstockfootage.com)/reels/humane_society_of_the_us_jenna_elfman.mov
The Humane Society of the United States (“Kids”):
<a href="http://(www.silvermanstockfootage.com)/reels/humane_society_of_the_us_kids.mov”>http://(www.silvermanstockfootage.com)/reels/humane_society_of_the_us_kids.mov
The Humane Society of the United States (“Wayne Pacelle”):
<a href="http://(www.silvermanstockfootage.com)/reels/humane_society_of_the_us_wayne_pacele.mov”>http://(www.silvermanstockfootage.com)/reels/humane_society_of_the_us_wayne_pacele.mov
Credits
CLIENT: The Humane Society of the United States
DIRECTOR: Donald Silverman
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY: Bunt Young & Ken Garff
POST PRODUCTION: Robert Hura, Blinking Eye Media
About The Humane Society of the United States
The Humane Society of the United States is the nation’s largest animal protection organization — backed by 11 million Americans, or one of every 28. For more than a half-century, The HSUS has been fighting for the protection of all animals through advocacy, education and hands-on programs. Celebrating animals and confronting cruelty — on the Web at humanesociety.org.
About Silverman Productions
Silverman Productions has been producing and shooting award-winning TV commercials, marketing films, PR videos, investor relations films, and educational videos since 1981, and for a wide range of clients that includes top advertising agencies, large and small corporations, universities, and trade associations. Silverman shoots on RED ONE, HD and 35MM film formats, and accomplishes everything from concept creation, to scriptwriting, talent casting, location scouting, set design and construction, wardrobe, props, crew, camera equipment, editing, voice-over recording, sound effects, animation, music, duplication, and distribution.
The studio also offers a stock footage branch, Silverman Stock Footage ((www.silvermanstockfootage.com)), which represents over 500 stock footage suppliers throughout the world, on almost any subject or format, licensing film and HD footage to feature films, TV programs, documentaries, advertising agencies, web producers, and more. Silverman Stock Footage clients include An Inconvenient Truth, McDonald’s, “CSI/NY,” National Geographic, “Criminal Minds,” The Day After Tomorrow, “Alias,” “Sleeper Cell,” MTV (The Hills), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, VH1, as well as a host of independent films, TV spots, websites, and corporations. After three decades of providing superlative production, post and stock footage, Silverman understands on an intuitive level what producers, editors, directors and post-production supervisors need in order to tell their stories.
