The Baylor School
Video script writing, communications counsel
The Baylor School is a grade 6-grade12 independent day and boarding school in Chattanooga, Tennessee—blessed with a breathtaking campus, exceptional academic and athletic programs, committed faculty, and a rich history. It’s easy to say great things about them—but harder to do so in under three minutes.
In planning for the public launch of their $50 million Forever Forward campaign, Baylor approached my colleague Andy Brommel and I to write a script for a video to publicly announce the campaign at their annual gala and auction—then to be used in a variety of other broad-based communications.
The video had several jobs to do: it had to connect the Forever Forward campaign theme to their gala theme, Rolling on the River, without turning into theme gumbo. It had to quickly communicate who Baylor is today, where it's going next, and how the campaign will help the school get there (without getting too into the weeds). And it needed to make people feel: not in a way that left them mired in a sepia-toned nostalgia swamp, but in a way that builds on what they already love about the school to inspire them to learn more and get involved.
Andy and I rose to the challenge. We wrote the script and developed the shot list, and Baylor’s fabulous videography partner shot and edited the piece—which was well received by our clients and the Baylor community: a tangible example of a strong client partnership.
Worth noting: this video won a CASE Circle of Excellence Gold Award (category: long video).