The MAYSLES DOCUMENTARY CENTER Story
Founded by the legendary documentary filmmaker, Albert Maysles, (Grey Gardens, Gimme Shelter, Iris) this uptown, indie documentary cinema features social justice programming, and also offers free filmmaking classes for teens. The cinema is a beacon of culture and stories in the vibrant neighborhood of Harlem.
Challenge
Tell the Maysles Story! Thankfully, we are a quick study as an agency, and from the jump we designed and developed all marketing and communications for the cinema, screenings, its site, social media, weekly newsletters and its film festivals, workshops, events and education programs. From sponsor pitch decks to invitations to PR and red carpet management for the Albie Awards, the Maysles annual fundraising gala, our work communicates and supports the powerful medium of film and the directors who are moving culture and social justice forward.
Solutions
Every day, content and creative decisions are crowned by small highlights and large…
Results
In one example, our public relations work garnered millions of media impressions for the first Albies gala and billions for the second. Our connections secured an episode for the Harlem Globetrotters’ NBC show, “Play it Forward,” featuring the students in the Maysles educational programs.
We are problem solvers! From turning around Instagram ads in an afternoon to when our tech-savvy team member detected a site glitch and found 500 missing opt-ins to add to the mailing list.
Tapping into Maysles’ passionate audiences, our video series “What I Love About Maysles” generated thousands of engagements on Instagram.
I grew up in Harlem, so when I heard that Albert Maysles had founded a documentary center here, I was kind of shocked. When you meet the staff and talk to everyone, there’s definitely a community feel here. Once I started filmmaking and came to Maysles I saw that film could be used as a tool to acknowledge people and give them a voice and perspective, because stories are what connect people. I saw that this was a way to become an agent of change and make an impact. In our education programs we teach the process of filmmaking as a way to help develop critical thinking skills. The young people here are all eager to tell a story and all eager to learn, it’s a safe space and definitely a place where they can express themselves.
— Rey Rodriguez
Filmmaker, MDC Educator