Storytelling
The team had studied film, but hadn’t done much cutting, splicing, or editing. They also didn’t have the funds to purchase or rent an editing studio. They did, however, know that there were options. “We knew that we could pull an Apple editing system together for a few thousand dollars,” says Travis Russell, Jason’s brother and all-around tech guru at Invisible Children. “We knew that they could hop on a Mac and get things going. We could edit a full-length feature film in our bedrooms.” They also knew that Mac computers could give them the muscle they needed to get a full-blown business off the ground—providing them with tools for communication, organization, and project management right out of the box. “But the Mac isn’t just a great graphic platform,” says Travis. “It’s a complete business tool.” Using applications like iChat, iCal, and Pages, they’d be able to create a professional company capable of anything.
Invisible Children now cranks out podcasts and short films on an almost daily basis. And their production work is quality. “We’ve been so successful in editing that some major motion picture houses have asked us if we could edit videos for them,” says Travis. “With a couple Macs and some creative inspiration, you can have the impact of a major motion picture house.”
Backstage Broadcast
Newsletters can convey plenty of information, but they can’t capture attention like a podcast. That’s why Invisible Children chose to use podcasts in its email newsletters to dispatch information about their strategies. In spring 2006, the podcasts documented Invisible Children’s Global Night Commute, a worldwide peace protest that commemorated the nightly commute made by thousands of Ugandan children. More than 80,000 people across the United States slept outdoors, some in rain and freezing weather, during the event. “When you send out words or an email, the response is good, but when you’re able to visually show people what you’re doing it adds a different dimension,” says Travis.
The team filmed their podcasts using high-definition video cameras and edited them with Final Cut Pro. “Right out of the box, there’s plenty of plug-ins and export settings,” says Travis. “Everything starts as high-definition video, and Final Cut can spit out three QuickTime sizes for the web and automatically format video for the iPod screen. It’s simple and easy and it lets us put our content up anywhere.”
The podcasts triggered dozens of news stories across the nation and earned the crew a spot on Oprah. Equipped with Final Cut Pro and a few Mac computers, the team at Invisible Children turned into a media machine and a respectable business. “It was me and three other guys,” says Travis. “The four of us churned out so much stuff that there were articles written about our ’marketing department,’ how effective it was. It was hilarious. We were just four guys with Macs in a cheap apartment. Then suddenly we were this full-fledged, international nonprofit, a successful business with its own marketing force.”
Visible Children
The team at Invisible Children continues to devise new ways to introduce westerners to the children of Uganda. “We want to put iSight cameras on the ground in Uganda so sponsors can communicate with the kids,” says Jason. “Using video messaging or video chat, the kids can respond to gifts they get or show sponsors how they’re doing in school. It’s a revolutionary way to do sponsorship. If you can see and talk to the person you’re sponsoring, you can bridge the gap in the world. The kids become just as fun and exciting as your family. They’re genuine people.” They’re calling the new service Visible Children and it should launch within a year’s time.
“Having a real child to talk to is priceless,” adds Jason. “They’re not just a picture on your refrigerator. And our generation wants that connection, that personal experience.”
In 2008, Invisible Children will release its final version of the film that started it all. They’re calling it Invisible Children: Final Cut. It will feature more footage from the original 2003 trip, along with footage from the team’s most recent trip to Uganda in 2006. The film, says Jason, will introduce even more westerners to the children of Uganda and, with any luck, help bring peace to the region. In the meantime, they’ll continue to reinvent the way nonprofits get their message to the world.
