Palmer Home for Children

video production

"For more than 125 years, Palmer Home has empowered children in critical situations to reach their true potential by providing restorative environments that support healthy development and nurture resilience." That's how Palmer Home describes their work. In my words: they restore hope.

During my agency years at Mabus Agency, we produced a narrative short film telling the true story of Douglas — a boy whose childhood was spent caring for his younger siblings when no adult would, until Palmer Home found him. The film runs about three and a half minutes, told in the first person: we began with interviews with the real Douglas, a member of our team shaped those interviews into narration, and a voice actor gave the story its voice while actors brought its moments to life on screen.

The production matched the story's ambition — casting child actors and coordinating with their schools for shoot days, filming across multiple towns and locations over several days, even bringing in the local sheriff for a night scene. I worked the project across its whole life: planning, scheduling, casting and location coordination, the shoot itself alongside our camera operator and PA, and the final edit and delivery.

It ends with the line the whole film is built toward: "I'm Douglas. And my story is just beginning." Palmer Home put the film to work in their fundraising, sharing Douglas's story with the audience it was made to move.