The visual, specifically video, medium is a very powerful tool in creating awareness and positive change.  I kept these goals firmly in mind as I followed the progress of a young student struggling with learning disabilities and attention deficit hyper activity disorder over the past summer.

The Active City television show hoped to capture the everyman challenge of physical activity as well as the benefits that come along with perseverance.  The actual show is 24 minutes in length but the following segment was cut down for use in ADHD education.

I am thrilled to be a part of the third season of The Active City television show.  The third season, thanks to the generous support of The Ontario Trillium Foundation, will continue to inspire and engage the residents of the Waterloo Region towards a more vibrant and healthy lifestyle.  Here’s the press release:

Local physical activity Advocate gets focused on third season of The Active City

Active advocate and filmmaker, Andy Hourahine, wasn’t ready to call a wrap on the locally produced television program, The Active City, just yet.

The program, which first aired on Rogers Television in 2010, focuses on sharing the stories and successes on those who live an active lifestyle.  Hourahine has showcased everything from surfing the Great Lakes to 24 Hour mountain biking all in hopes it will reinforce healthy behavior and encourage others to join in.  That’s why he was so reluctant to let it go.

“We finished production on Season 2 in January and had no funding secured to continue the program even though I felt that there were still so many worthy stories to share and good work left to be done,” explains Hourahine.

Thanks to a grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, Active Andy, as he is known in the community will get his wish.

The program will play a key role in a multi-media platform that will continue to educate the community about the joys and benefits of physical activity, while offering tangible ways to get involved.  Hourahine has been on a local, active mission since 1999 and, together with Active Cambridge, has already gained plenty of notoriety for our local fitness efforts including recognition from the CBC as one of the most active communities in Canada.

“This area is one of the richest, active hot spots in the country, you don’t have to venture very far to find an inspiring active path.  It’s all right here.”

Charles Wechsler, head of programming at Rogers TV, is excited about having the show returning to his line up.

“Active City has been a mainstay in Rogers TV’s line-up since the series began back in 2010. The concept of being active is made real and accessible; viewers are introduced to new sports and activities; and ultimately, they end up absorbing the benefits of an active lifestyle. “

During the 2012 calendar year, Active City aired a total of 366 times in Waterloo Region. Almost a third of these airings were in prime time. In addition, the series had a similar numbers of airings in our three other nearby markets (Brantford, Guelph and Stratford), for a combined total of 1,472 airings. That’s almost 740 hours of health promotion going out to almost 200,000 households in those four markets.

The new season will have some returning people, places, and pursuits but with a new mission, say Hourahine.

The goal for season three is to follow the story of everyday people getting off the couch and embarking new adventures in fitness by connecting with activities that are true to their latent, active personalities.

“Lack of belief in one’s self and misinformation about physical activity is a big barrier to participation for many people.  We’re going to take that head on by showing that it can be done…by anyone.”

Production begins for the new season in May 2013 with episodes to air beginning in September.  Hourahine invites anyone who is looking to get active or with a fitness story to share to contact him at andy@forceproductions.ca.”

When I discussed Next Level Performance Training’s (Cambridge, Ontario) video production project it became clear that they wanted to share to the importance of strength training for ALL sports and for anyone who considered himself or herself a competitive athlete.  In addition, they wanted to create a compelling story that would introduce newcomers to the process of training in hope to breakdown the initial barriers of intimidation.

We chose to follow the training story of an athlete and sport not normally associated with strength and conditioning and filmed the process over a few months.  The story is ongoing but both NLPT and I were excited about the resulting video and impact on their business.

Here’s what Andrew Hopf, president and CEO, had to say:

 “Early in December of 2012 we began work with Andy and Force Productions to create a video web series that had the primary objective of educating the general population about proper athletic development through a structured strength and conditioning program. This initiative also set out to educate athletes of any sport about the importance of strength and conditioning and progressive development.

Besides the professional and superb quality Force Productions videos provide, I believe what sets there productions apart from others is the manner in which they convey the message.  Andy has a very unique was of positioning questions and creating a frame of reference for the intended audience that makes the message much more clear and concise.

The quality of the video production was nothing short of professional and something we have never experienced before. Using the latest technology and a very artistic sense, Andy was able to create brilliant videos that captured our message of athletic development and also the training environment we try to provide our clients here at NLPT.

For any company out there who is looking to capture and present the image/message of their company through a video like the ones we have done, I would very strongly recommend Force Productions.”