“We’re honored to receive this award,” said WHITECOAT CEO David Welch. “We put a lot of time and energy into this project and it’s always nice to be recognized. But the real winner here is Corey, who thanks to advancements in biotechnology can now live a more normal life. We’re just happy we had the opportunity to tell his amazing story.”

About the Communicator Awards:
The Communicator Awards is the leading international creative awards program honoring creative excellence for communication professionals. Founded by communication professionals over a decade ago, The Communicator Awards is an annual competition honoring the best in advertising,corporate ommunications, public relations and identity work for print, video, interactive and audio. The 2011 Communicator Awards received over 6000 entries from ad agencies, interactive agencies, production firms, in-house creative professionals, graphic designers, design firms, and public relations firms.

Who is behind the Communicator Awards:
The Communicator Awards are judged and overseen by the International Academy of the Visual Arts (IAVA). The IAVA is an invitation-only member-based organization of leading professionals from various disciplines of the visual arts dedicated to embracing progress and the evolving nature of traditional and interactive media. Current membership represents a “Who’s Who” of acclaimed media, advertising, and marketing firms including: Condè Nast, Coach, Disney, The Ellen Degeneres Show, Estee Lauder, HBO, Keller Crescent, Monster.com, MTV, Polo Ralph Lauren, Sotheby’s Institute of Art, Tribal DDB, Victoria’s Secret, Wired, Yahoo!, and many others. See www.iavisarts.org for more information.

Editors Note:  Below is a blog post Welch wrote last year about producing the video:

As a producer of science and biotech films I look for three important story elements: Excitement and drama, compelling heroes, and yes, a little romance. This may surprise some people. After all, this is science…not a Lifetime movie. But when we discuss amazing cures for our planet, whether it be in medicine, agriculture or industry, the makings of a really good story are always at hand.

I am happy to say this short form three minute video has all three elements. What could be more exciting than a biotech cure to a rare genetic disease that had left 9-year-old Corey Haas virtually blind since birth? Or more dramatic than 3-dimensional animation that visually describes Corey’s procedure. Heroes? This video is packed with them. From Dr. Jean Bennett and her clinical trial and surgical team to Dr. Steve Rose and his research colleagues at the Fighting Blindness Foundation to young Corey himself. And if you’re looking for a little love and romance you need to look no further than the emotion of Corey’s parents who never lost hope that one day their son would have his vision restored.

The inspiration for the video actually came from Dr. Stephen Sherwin, president and CEO of Ceregene and currently the Chairman of the Biotechnology Industry Organization. Steve asked us to produce a video about renewed hope and interest in gene therapy that he could show during his Keynote Address at the BIO Convention in Chicago.  He wanted a factual and realistic portrayal of Corey’s story and a video about hope and perseverance.

In reviewing the final cut I was again reminded that the stories of science and biotechnology are best told visually. Video allows us to bring together the scientists with those who benefit from their science. It is a powerful and emotional combination. I must also admit to a little luck. Jean Bennett and Steve Rose are fantastic interviews, each presenting their expertise in language easily understandable by wide audiences. Their dedication to science combined with a personal affinity for patients like Corey really comes through.

In the end, however, it is a story about a special little boy who is as normal as apple pie. He rides his bike (fast) and plays hand-to-eye games on Wii like a world champion. And in 2009, Corey Haas completed his first season of Little League baseball. I don’t think his batting average even mattered.

Visualizing the future, when it comes to scientific advances, offers similar confidence.  Smart companies looking to secure investors, convince researchers or win contracts of their own are increasingly turning to 3-D animation. For almost a decade, WHITECOAT has incorporated graphic 3-D animations into our award-winning videos. Our scientific animator was trained by members of Pixar and Sony Imageworks and has a background in Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Genetics and Microbiology. He says his goal is to explain complex science in a way that makes it fun and visually exciting to learn by using state of the art 3-D animation software. Check out some of our award-winning work, and let’s talk about how we can build the right video animation for your needs.

1.  What interested you in starting a career in video production?

I originally got into video production because I enjoy telling interesting stories.  When I began, I primarily worked on long-form historical documentaries for A&E, The Discovery Channel, The History Channel and PBS producing programs ranging from the history of the U.S. Secret Service to the problems in Kashmir, India and the work of the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

2.  Describe what a typical shoot is like.

No two video shoots are ever alike.  Each one has its own challenges that we must work through to give the best product possible.  I have always found that spending the time surveying the location beforehand provides tremendous benefits both in time and quality.  Whether we are shooting interviews or B-Roll, figuring out the lighting scheme and acoustical traits prior to turning on the camera always works best.

3.  Who are some of the most interesting people you’ve met though your work?

I have been very fortunate to have worked with some very interesting people throughout my career.  I have interviewed Presidents, famous athletes and world leaders.  Among my favorites were General Colin Powell and Andrew Agassi.  But my favorite memory actually comes from an interview with Nobel Prize winner Norman Borlaug.  I first saw him in the parking lot carrying his own bags into the Danforth Center in St. Louis – pretty impressive for a man in his mid nineties who was the founder of the Green Revolution, a Nobel Prize recipient and responsible for feeding billions of people throughout the world.  I found him to be an inspiration that hard work, common sense and a drive for excellence can change the world for the better.

4.  What are some of the most interesting topics that you have filmed?

This is a tough one.  I have enjoyed most of the programs I have worked on.  I have especially enjoyed the last few years since we started WHITECOAT Strategies.  I have gotten to be a part of some very exciting discoveries.  Although, I would never claim to have any direct involvement in the research fighting Multiple Sclerosis or Cancer, renewable plastics or energy or crops that feed billions of people every day, I do find satisfaction that I have played a very small role in telling these stories to the public and furthering understanding of this incredible work.

5.  What part of biotechnology fascinates you the most?

Many find it surprising that I actually like the agricultural side the most.  Maybe because I grew up in a rural town in Southern Illinois, but I have always enjoyed seeing that from small seeds beautiful crops are grown and provide life to people throughout the world.

6.  What is your favorite video that you have produced?

It’s funny, I often times get asked this question and I have never come up with an answer that I have been completely happy with.  I wouldn’t go as far as asking a parent to pick a favorite child because not all projects are created equal.  Sometimes the subject matter is a lot more interesting to me or we have the time to try new ideas that really work for the video.  Budget is also always an issue on what we can accomplish but budget alone isn’t necessarily a guarantee of a great or bad video.  In fact, one of my favorites was a video we did a few years ago for a start-up kayak company.  It was totally off topic for us which I found refreshing.  It was a low budget endeavor but really came to life because the founders had a wonderful story to tell and because of the location we were able to do all of the shooting in one day.  Another of my favorites was the first Biotechnology video we ever did.  It was also the first completely HD we produced.  It was a wonderful experience to work with both patients and scientists and convinced me these are the types of stories I want to tell.

7.  Why do you think video is important when it comes to science and related topics, such as biotechnology?

Biotechnology can be difficult to explain because it involves the manipulation of living organisms at the cellular and molecular level.  Or, as I like to say, working with things that we cannot see with our own eyes.  Video creates this virtual world where things can be seen and better understood.  It is not just awe inspiring 3-D modeling that makes this science more understandable however; it is the stories themselves, written in a way that everyone can understand and appreciate the hard work that these people are doing.  Most of us are apprehensive about the unknown.  It is understandable and sometimes stops us from making foolish choices.  We now have the ability through video to take much of the “unknown” out of this science and allow people everywhere to make up their own mind on how the future of the world will look.

In a society that turns increasingly to visual media to communicate, the complexity of advanced science combined with issues that often stir debate and controversy, the role of effective video is obvious.  More and more, news and information consumers rely upon the old adage, “seeing can mean believing.”  Or, put another way, pictures trump words and video trumps pictures.  Of course, broadcast television and later cable television figured this out a long time ago.  And now, with the Internet, laptops and smart phones, we are never further than an arm length from the temptation to take a “look and see” for ourselves.

During the last month, two historic and controversial scientific news events hit the airwaves and the Internet.  Both shed the spotlight on the amazing advances of biotechnology.  One was the FDA’s position concerning what could become the first genetically engineered animal food approved for human consumption (Aqua Bounty’s AquaAdvantage salmon).  The other was the first clinical trial using embryonic stem cells in humans.  In both cases, video footage and animation provided by the companies were used to show their stories as well as tell their stories.  WHITECOAT shot and created the visuals used by the television networks and many of the videos on the Internet.  It is why we at WHITECOAT often say, “Video IS public relations.” With so much breathtaking science now in the pipeline the public will likely be treated to an ever increasing dose of equally breathtaking video presentations.