As a nonprofit, the hardest, most important work happens at the grassroots level, but to gain support for it, you also need to communicate—a lot.
Whether you’re engaging with donors, seeking sponsors, raising awareness, or canvassing funds, much of your success hinges on how well you convey the urgency and importance of your cause and the effectiveness of your organization’s work. There is no better way to do it than with a nonprofit video strategy.
But here’s the thing. Many, many nonprofits are already aboard the nonprofit video production bandwagon. There are countless causes competing for attention, and it’s hard to find a way to make your message stand out in a sea of sameness.
So, we’ve put together five of the most memorable and successful nonprofit video campaigns we’ve seen and analyzed what makes them work so well. An item on this list just may spark your next viral video.
Read our guide to making budget-friendly nonprofit video campaigns.
5 of The Best Nonprofit Video Production Campaigns
Each one of the following campaigns demonstrates a different style of storytelling, whether in filmmaking and production techniques or in terms of the script. We’ve picked these examples because many of them are creative and out-of-the-box, a class apart from the conventional narratives we’ve seen for that particular cause.
Falling Whistles
Talking about war is a delicate business. The world is teeming with wars, and the narratives around them are always fraught with triggering visuals and painfully desperate appeals for awareness and help that most would prefer not to contend with. However, Falling Whistles has navigated the complexity of this situation with grace, choosing to rely on a powerful symbol: quite literally, a falling whistle.
The imagery poignantly evokes the urgency and traumatic reality on the ground in Congo–without needing to include triggering images. This is an example of outstanding, nuanced storytelling that nonprofits can use as inspiration.
Takeaway: What visual metaphors could your organization use to represent your cause?
Robin Hood Foundation
Devastating headlines declaring death tolls and images of infrastructural wreckage and grieving victims only tell half the story of storms like Hurricane Sandy. But first-person storytelling zooms into the heart of it.
This video begins by crystallizing the lived experience of Kaneisha, a mom with hopes and dreams and a stable life now lost.
From hearing Kaneisha talk about herself to watching her enter her new manufactured home with her family, viewers are pulled into her highs and lows. As the makers candidly capture Kaneisha and her family’s tearful joy while exploring their new home, we come away understanding the profound impact Robin Hood’s relief fund has had on the lives of hurricane victims.
Takeaway: Is there a particular beneficiary you can think of who could speak to the impact of your work?
The Girl Effect
How do child marriage and teenage pregnancy contribute to widespread HIV, sex trafficking, and poverty? That’s a hard one to explain in three minutes, but Girl Effect does it beautifully using one of filmmaking’s most engaging techniques: animations.
Motion graphics like the ones used in this video are a great tool when real-life pictures and footage, or even jaw-dropping facts and figures, cannot satisfactorily demonstrate the complexity of an issue. Using the metaphor of a ticking clock, the organization communicates the urgency of the problem, but motion graphics and a delightful background score keep things hopeful and uplifting.
Takeaway: Is there a complex chain of cause-and-effect that your nonprofit needs to break down for your target audience? How does your solution fit in?
Mama Hope
Mama Hope first released a video called “Alex Presents Commando.” It struck a chord with the four Kenyan men featured in this two-minute film, who reached out to the organization wanting to create a fun satire poking fun at the stereotypes around African people.
This video succeeds on two counts: not only is it hilarious, but it was co-created with the very people Mama Hope wants to impact. This adds authenticity and relatability to the problem of racial stereotyping without calling it out in a way that would make its perpetrators defensive. Using live video interspersed with footage from Hollywood movies, this film shares its message with power and simplicity.
Takeaway: Humor is a great leveler. Is there a lighthearted take on an issue that your nonprofit addresses? Are there any beneficiaries who would like to co-create your video with you?
First Descents
A film speaks in two languages at once: one is the spoken language of the words it uses to support the narration, and the other is the silent language of the visual techniques and nonverbal elements involved.
This video by First Descents, an organization that provides life-changing outdoor adventures for young adults diagnosed with cancer or multiple sclerosis (MS), is a great example of the latter.
What keeps it engaging is its pacing: the fast cuts and breathtaking aerial shots of the natural settings create a sense of excitement and energy during action sequences, while slower cuts and close-ups during interviews allow for more emotional depth and reflection. The drama of the soundtrack reinforces the themes of hope and empowerment – effectively capturing the duality of the thrilling yet meditative power of adventure.
Takeaway: Contact an experienced nonprofit video production company like Rock Creek Productions to help you find the best visual language to communicate your nonprofit’s work.
3 Successful Nonprofit Videos From Our Showreel
Over decades of thriving as a video production company, we’ve had the privilege of working with some of the finest nonprofit organizations in the country. Here are three of our favorite videos:
Fair Trade America
You might have seen a Fairtrade label on one of your latest hauls from the farmer’s market. That’s from Fairtrade America, an organization that certifies that farmers and manufacturers are paid a fair price for their products. We had a lot of fun partnering with them for a short video to promote their brand.
Filming at Alexandria, Virginia’s Saturday Farmer’s Market, we used a hidden camera motif to capture people’s reactions as an actor rudely cuts queues and interrupts shoppers at a kiosk. The purpose was to drive home the importance of supporting fair trade practices. This video went viral.
United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County
Once you’ve got an individual or group to donate to your cause, it’s important to keep them abreast of where and how their donations have been distributed in the community. This encourages them to help more and canvasses new support. Rock Creek produced a short animated infographic-style awareness and fundraising video for the United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County, North Carolina. This filmmaking technique was appropriate and effective in appealing to our largely family-centric audience.
Sojourners
We created a short web video for Sojourners, a progressive Christian media and advocacy organization that works for social justice. The video features a diverse group of teenagers expressing their reasons for voting and their hopes for their community and country. Featuring the voices of the very people that Sojourners hoped to reach with this campaign added authenticity and relatability to the video.
Take a look at our nonprofit video production portfolio.
Maximize Your Impact with Rock Creek Productions
With tight budgets and a lot of stakeholders to answer to, we know it can be difficult to justify spending on video production services – but it could be your best investment. If your video is well made, you might just see an improvement in the donations coming in – according to Nonprofits Source, 57% of people who watch nonprofit videos go on to make a donation. And the results could even stick around! Some of the videos in the list above continue to get views on YouTube years after they were first published on the platform.
If you’d like to explore bringing life to your video strategy, reach out to our team. We’d love to walk you through the details of nonprofit video production – and even brainstorm a few ideas with you!
