Business Objective: Introduce an intricate concept in an alluring visual medium that grabs the attention and interest of its audience, primarily attendees of a PARSA Community Foundation gala event.

Situation: The PARSA Community Foundation is the first Iranian-American community foundation in the United States and the leading Iranian-American philanthropic institution practicing strategic philanthropy and promoting social entrepreneurship around the globe. The foundation was preparing to hold a gala aimed at changing perceptions of Iranians while also celebrating the Iranian culture and heritage. PARSA CF needed a way to promote itself, its message, and its grantees in a way that would engage, entertain, and inspire the guests at the event.

The Mercury Solution: With key executive members of PARSA CF scattered throughout the nation, Mercury coordinated and videotaped interviews from coast to coast. During the interviewing process, Mercury met with a veritable who’s who of top business leaders, including one of Google’s Senior VP’s, the President of the Carnegie Corporation of New York, and the first female space tourist and co-sponsor of the prestigious Ansari X Prize. Nine days, five cities and 22 interviews later, the Mercury production team had over 30 hours of footage to condense into a 15-minute mini-documentary.

Timeline: 1 month

Results: The PARSA CF video played at the Gala event to an enthusiastic crowd. PARSA CF continues to use the video to entice interested parties to invest in their cause. The video content can also be viewed anywhere, anytime on PARSA’s MySpace page.

Further Accolades: Mercury’s work on this project was recognized with an Aegis Award, a leading competition for professional video and filmmakers that recognizes the people and organizations responsible for developing some of the most effective video/film productions being produced.