As we reflect on the last 12 months, 2011 brought many exciting changes to our Boston-based video production company. When McElroy Films outgrew it’s office, increased staff, won 3 more Davey Awards, and expanded services all within a calendar year, it’s safe to call 2011 a success, but that success is something we’ve come to expect in our office.

Yet again, we were awarded three more Davey Awards for non-profit videos produced for Fenway Health, the South Shore Habitat for Humanity, and the New England Pediatric Center. The latest awards came in addition to the Telly Award given in early 2011 for yet another Fenway Health video.

The winning ways extended into our wedding division as McElroy Weddings won the highly coveted Bride’s Choice Award from the Wedding Wire and the Best of 2012 from The Knot. Both awards are based solely on positive client reviews and are only awarded to the top 5% of the many hundreds of thousands of members on each website.

2011 saw dozens of exciting new videos produced for new and established clients.

Acclaimed singer, Brian Evans, originally of Haverhill, MA, enlisted us to promote his hit single At Fenway in a 30-second spot featuring Hall-of-Famer Jim Rice. The spot not only fueled the song’s induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame, but also aired during the Super Bowl in several regions across the United States.

We also produced a hip-hop music video for local artist, G-Star, which accrued hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube in mere weeks.

At about the same time, McElroy Films delved into the New Hampshire Republican primary, becoming former Speaker Newt Gingrich’s personal videographers at a time when the race was still hotly contested. Videographers Ben and Brittney found themselves traveling to every corner of the Granite State, following Newt as he campaigned from senior centers to college campuses. After the New Hampshire primary, McElroy Films produced web spots and commercials for the South Carolina primary.

New videos for non-profit Fenway Health were featured at two of the largest gala events for the LGBT community in the country in both 2011 and early 2012: The Men’s Event and the Women’s Diner Party. Another non-profit giant, the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America (CCFA), had a video produced for their premiere fundraising event as well as videos detailing the CCFA’s major fundraising programs such as the Take Steps and Team Challenge campaigns. All the videos went a long way in detailing the missions of Fenway Health and the CCFA for potential donors.

The past year also included training videos for Triple-S and the Boston Fire Department as well as educational videos for Fenn School, Holy Name High School, and the Pakachoag Music School.

With all the success and a host of new projects on the horizon, McElroy Films seems ripe for even greater success in 2012 and beyond. We would like to thank our clients for trusting us with their video, web hosting, and distribution needs, as, without them, our success wouldn’t be possible.

Photo by: Marilyn Humphries

That’s why the students at Holy Name Catholic High School in Worcester, MA have decided to take a proactive approach. Several years ago, Holy Name students created a group called SMASH, which stands for “Stop Madness and Severe Hating.” They aim to stop bullying and increase awareness of the effects it has on children and teens.

SMASH puts on an assembly every year that includes skits focusing on the various types of bullying. There are also live student testimonies recounting their experiences and lots of information on how fellow students can help combat bullying.

We had the opportunity to attend the assembly this past winter and talk with some of the members of SMASH. We filmed this anti-bullying video for them to help spread their message. There is also a longer version for a DVD that they offer to any other schools that want it. This is a much faster and more effective way for SMASH to get its message out, rather than traveling to each school to make their presentation.

Read the full article by Joni Koogler of The Banner.

McElroy Films, has proven that sticking to a philosophy that video can affordable and created at a lower cost is a recipe for success. McElroy Films has had an office & studio close to Boston but since it’s doors have been open we’ve already out-grew that space and have had to move to a larger facility and hire additional staff.

McElroy Films new location at 50 Mall Road in Burlington, Mass houses a staff of editors, sales and marketing, and a new theater room with additional space to expand.

Another year… another award-winning set of videos. This year saw a new diversity of videos from training videos for the Boston Fire Department, to book trailers, to hugely successful music videos, but the newest award-winners came from long-time clients of McElroy Films.

“Our entire team has a commitment to provide our clients with the best possible product while keeping our costs down,” owner and executive producer Benjamin J. McElroy said. “It’s always nice to be recognized for our work ethic and I couldn’t be happier with the videos that won this year.”

McElroy Films has won three silver Davey Awards in the Non-profit category for videos produced for Fenway Health, New England Pediatric Care and South Shore Habitat for Humanity. While the quality and production value of all McElroy’s videos are top-notch, the videos produced for these three non-profits were especially powerful in their imagery and message.

Benjamin J. McElroy,  Brittney Marvin & Joe DiMattia headed up the video production and still photography work. Here’s a quick run down of the day’s events. Photos by, Joe DiMattia.

First stop was at Insight Defense Company where he met with the CEO and workers at their HQ in Londonderry NH. Here’s the full article on the Christian Science Monitor

We then traveled to a Mom & Pop’s Pharmacy in Hollis NH. Where he was greeted by media and supporters. Here’s the full article on Boston.com

Afterwords, we traveled to Nashua High School where he went on television and spoke in an Editorial Board meeting for Nashua.

Later that day we traveled back to Manchester to Dyn Industries. I real 2.0-type company that hosted a small event to workers and media. Full Article on Boston.com

In the early evening we headed to St. Anselm College to the Institute of Politics for a CSPAN debate with Gov. Jon Huntsman. Here’s the article in CNN.

That evening Newt drew a huge crowd of over 1000 people for his town hall meeting at Windham High School. Here’s the full article on Patch.com

As a company McElroy Films is very honored to be apart of this selection. Additional winning titles include: Maskar Design, The Dow Chemical Company, Wired Safety, Zemoga, A&E Television Networks, Sony Pictures, The Coca-Cola Company and many more.

Our winning entries are the following:

Fenway Health HIV Trial Vaccine Testimonials – Provider of medical care and mental health services to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender communities. Click here for more information.

New England Pediatric Care – New England Pediatric Care is a skilled nursing facility in No. Billerica, MA for children who need post-hospitalization care, or complex care for medically fragile children. Click here for more information.

South Shore Habitat for Hummanity – Based in Braintree, Massachusetts, SSHH is a nonprofit, ecumenical Christian ministry dedicated to building homes in partnership with family partners. Click here for more information.