pix+stones produces promotional video for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission featuring an introduction and closing remarks by Mayor Gavin Newsom

When the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) needed an introductory video featuring San Francisco Mayor, Gavin Newsom, to be played at the opening of the American Water Works Association (AWWA) Annual Conference and Exposition they sought out pix+stones’ proven track record in documentary style features.

The overall scope of the production tapped Thom’s capabilities as both producer and director. Along with Director of Photography, Wes Dorman, he traveled to Hetch Hetchy Valley and the O’Shaughnessy Damn to capture original and stunning footage of the locations. At the Public Library he sifted through a variety of publications to secure photographs and headlines from the early 1900s that would add a historical perspective and atmosphere to the documentary. And most testing of all, along with Director of Photography, John King, he tenaciously followed Gavin Newsom, waiting for the Mayor’s Office to confirm that there was the briefest of openings in his day when the Mayor’s introductory and closing comments could be recorded.

As a result of precision editing, post-production motion graphics and a great working relationship with the SFPUC, Thom and James delivered a well-received video. Having aired it at the AWWA’s Annual Conference and Exposition, the SFPUC is now proudly using the documentary to educate politicians, community groups and the general public on the magnificence of the Hetch Hetchy project and Michael O’Shaughnessy’s original vision.

Amy Sinclair, Public Relations Officer with the SFPUC, summed things up when describing pix+stones..."They are detail-oriented and always looking for what they call the 'definitive shot' - a term I quickly learned means the perfect mixture of light, color and scenery. They added great historical film footage to our project and produced exactly what we wanted - a high quality video telling the story of our agency.”