ANNUAL REPORTFY 2016

In short, it was a good year.

Some years writing the “From the Director” note to the annual report has been a bit of a struggle. Although it doesn’t happen often, I admit to occasionally having to think a little about what was so special about the last year. Not this year.

This year was very special. In fiscal year 2016 we completed an endeavor that we started more than two years before. We brought dozens of members and volunteers together in meetings and work sessions that involved hundreds of hours of planning and preparation. We hired architects, contractors, and vendors from a wide variety of area firms to help us build new production and distribution facilities within the AIM studios on North Danville Street. We created new curricula, new policies, and new workflows to accommodate our new capabilities. We hired and trained new staff to help us with the increased workload. We contacted area press to promote our new endeavor and were pleased by their enthusiastic response and positive coverage. We welcomed hundreds of new members and dozens of new producers and volunteers to the fold; we introduced them to our new project and trained them in the use of our new equipment. We hosted our community at the largest event AIM has ever thrown and counted down the seconds until we threw the switch.

In short, we started a radio station.

I don’t mind telling you that when the idea of starting a radio station was first raised three years ago, I was nervous. Could we do it? Was it a good idea? Would our members and the community support it? Where would all the programming come from?

Well, I’m happy to tell you that my fears were unfounded. It turns out that Arlington loves radio and has embraced WERA in a way that exceeds all expectations. Not only has our membership increased by 50 percent, but our longtime members have also welcomed the newcomers with open arms. We’re seeing tremendous crossover between radio and television, and the two groups are trading tips and learning from each other. In less than five months we trained 159 members in radio production and put 50 radio programs on the air. We hear every day from listeners who love the station and we continue to receive applications for new shows. Our social media presence in the community (and the world) has jumped astronomically and our local presence in the press has also increased.

In short, it was a good idea.

It’s important to remember that WERA didn’t replace our other media training, production, and distribution activities. No, we added WERA to an organization already nationally famous for local, independent media. In addition to all the amazing things happening on the radio side, we also managed to have another outstanding year teaching video, television, and other forms of digital media to our members and provided them with state-of-the-art production facilities. In return they provided the Arlington community with another year’s worth of fantastic programming that featured the sights, sounds, people, places, and events in and around Arlington.

In short, we’re really awesome now.

Of course, none of this could have happened without the help of our volunteers. In fiscal year 2016 we received a record shattering 4,250 hours of volunteer time from our members. This represents a breathtaking dedication that is unheard of in most organizations. It is not overstating the case to say that without our volunteers, there would be no WERA and no AIM. It’s only through the selfless sacrifice of their free time that hundreds of radio and TV programs get made and Arlington gets to enjoy the best in local, independent media.

In short, we’re very grateful.

Paul LeValleyExecutive Director

Annual ReportFY 2016Arlington Independent Media

In Memoriam EventsIn the CommunityCommunity ProjectsMembershipVolunteersProgrammingTrainingFacilities & EquipmentFinancial Audit

4 56–7 8–9101112–1314–1516–1718–27

“Our mission is to promote and facilitate free speech by providing access to

established and emerging media.”

Don Hammond

AIM lost a great friend, amazing producer, and stellar volunteer when Don Hammond passed away this year. Don produced the Arlington Weekly News every week for the past 35 years, making it AIM’s longest running series—and one of the longest running, continuously-produced shows in America. In fact, Don was producing the Arlington Weekly News before there even was an AIM.

But Don was more than the producer of the News. He was also intimately involved with the organization at every level. He was a teacher of new crew and talent on the News and was personally responsible for dozens of people over the years getting their first experience in television production. Don was also a member of the AIM board of directors for many years and served as the president from 1996 until 1998. With Don as president, AIM successfully negotiated a move to our current location from the third floor of the GMU Metro Campus at Virginia Square.

Most importantly, Don was a friend to all. His perpetual smile and nonstop good humor was such a staple at AIM that it’s hard for us to believe he’s gone. We all owe Don a huge debt of gratitude for the many years of service and dedication to AIM. For 35 years he led the way. He will be greatly missed.

4

This Year’s Highlights:• Launched WERA-LP 96.7 FM in December 2015• Trained record number of members (891)• Set new record for highest number of Rosebud Film Festival entries (105)• First year of Document Historic Arlington• First year teaching Camera Grip and Digital Cinema Production workshops• First year offering several new audio classes: On-Air Radio Broadcast, Basic and

Advanced Audio Production, and Pro Tools

5

Summer Happy HourVideo Production Camp 1 Movie PremiereProducers’ MeetingAnnual PicnicFAIM SpeakEasy: CopyrightVideo Production Camp 2 Movie PremiereSummer Lovin’ KaraokeBooth at Arlington County FairBooth at Clarendon DayAnnual Meeting of MembersDocument Arlington Movies PremiereHalloween KaraokeFAIM SpeakEasy: CastingWERA Launch PartyHoliday PotluckRosebud Film Festival Nominee ShowcaseRosebud Film Festival Awards GalaFloat at Mardi GrasFAIM SpeakEasy: Radio Production

Mexicali BluesAIM StudioAIM StudioBluemont ParkAIM StudioAIM StudioAIM StudioThomas Jefferson Community CenterClarendonAIM FacilityAIM StudioAIM StudioAIM StudioAIM FacilityAIM StudioNavy Heritage Center Clarendon BallroomClarendonAIM Studio

June 9, 2015July 3, 2015July 13, 2015July 19, 2015July 23, 2015July 31, 2015July 31, 2015August 5-9, 2015September 26, 2015September 27, 2015October 8, 2015October 24, 2015November 12, 2015December 6, 2015December 13, 2015January 23, 2016January 24, 2016February 9, 2016March 10, 2016

6

Media Appearances

• Arlington Connection• Arlington Magazine• Arlington Sun Gazette• ARLnow• Brightest Young Things• Current• DCist• Elevation DC• Falls Church News-Press• Fourth Estate• InsideNoVa.com• It’s All Journalism• Mix 107.3• Northern Virginia

Magazine• Radio Survivor• Spark!

• Urban Bohemian• WAMU 88.5’s Art Beat• WAMU 88.5’s Bandwidth• Washington Blade• Washington City Paper• Washington Post• WTOP• Yahoo! Tech

Local Sponsors

• Ben’s Chili Bowl• Bracket Room• Cherrydale Hardware• Delhi Dhaba• Earl’s Sandwiches• Fireworks Pizza• Four Sisters Grill• Fuego cocina y tequileria

• Giant• Heidelberg Pastry Shoppe• IOTA Club & Café• Java Shack• Liberty Tavern• Moby Dick’s House of

Kabob• O’Sullivan’s Irish Pub• Pete’s New Haven Apizza• Rhodeside Grill• Rocklands• Whitlow’s-On-Wilson

Spark Club Members

• Karen Akerson• Diane Allan• John Andelin• Cheryl Beversdorf• Jim Bloch• Ken Briley• William Calder• Erin Crawley• Doretha Dixon• John Duran• Maribeth Egan• Mary Fantucchio• Paul Fiddick• Hilary Freer• Bruce Gilbert• Joseph Gueron• Grace Holden

• Janet Irwin• Olga Jevtich• Tato Joelson• Clara Kelly• Gene Kreider• Kenneth Kukovich• Larz LaComa• Nickolaus Leggett• Wendy Mann• John Marston• Martha Newman• Erik Pages• Rob Parrish• Cameron Pippitt• John Richardson• Andrew Rosenberg• Jackie Steven• Thomas Wallace• David Wiederkehr

• Funk Ark• George Mason University• Global CoLab• Jamie Nicholas Printing &

Graphics• Leadership Arlington• Lyles Movie Files• Meridian Homeschool

Club• Mexicali Blues• MPTD• Nine Hours Films• Our City Film Festival• Poetry N.O.W.• Prometheus Radio Project• Reel Affirmations• RIFE• Rosslyn Business

Improvement District• Smithsonian

Museum of Natural History

• Sons of Confederate Veterans

• Stonehenge Auditions

• Strategic Partnerships & Initiatives

• Sunny Knight• Taken

Back Our Community

• Takoma Radio WOWD-LP FM

• Teens Dream• The Beat &

Path• The Humanities

Project• The UPS Store Clarendon• Thomas Jefferson

Summer Activities Fair• Two Ton Twig• U.S. Navy Memorial• Virginia Film Office• Volunteers of America

Chesapeake• Wakefield High School• Washington Lee High

School• Washington Metropolitan

Area Transit Authority• WGMU• WMGU Radio Camp• Women in Film and Video

of Washington, DC• Yorktown High School

AIM served and worked alongside the following groups in FY 2016:

• 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness

• African American Heritage Museum

• All Quiet on the Set• Alliance for Community

Media• Arlington Career Center• Arlington Chamber of

Commerce• Arlington Committee of

100• Arlington County Board• Arlington County Civic

Federation• Arlington County Fair• Arlington County Parks

and Recreation• Arlington County’s Historic

Preservation Program• Arlington Public Schools• Arlington Cultural Affairs• Arlington Economic

Development• Arlington Humanities

Commission• Arlington Public Libraries• Arlington Street People’s

Assistance Program• Arlington Student Film

Fest• Arlington Teen Summer

Expo• Artists and Makers

Studios• Arvold Casting• Busboys and Poets• C-SPAN• Carlin Springs Elementary

School• Clarendon Alliance• Clarendon Ballroom• Clarendon Day• Copyright Counselors,

LLC• Cub Scout Pack 141• DC Filmdom• DC Shorts• DC Web Fest• Debo Band• Dirty Dozen Brass Band• Docs in Progress• Doorways for Women and

Families• Edison High School• Francis Scott Key

Elementary School

Founders Club

We are grateful to the following businesses and individuals who contributed to the WERA Founders Club:

• Arte Modus• BlochHouse Media LLC Audio• Cardinal Construction• Gary Thayer• MainStreet Bank• Rust Insurance

Thanks,Paul

7

Document Historic Arlington Project

This past year AIM held the Document Historic Arlington Project for the first time. Three students from Arlington County high schools were chosen to create a documentary about a facet of local history. Students created a short film about Arlington’s forts as used during the Civil War.

AIM provided technical and production training, access to professional equipment and development assistance for this internship.

Document Arlington Project

Each year Document Arlington produces documentaries that address community issues. Six local high school

interns, selected from more than 30 applicants, chose two topics—h o m e l e s s n e s s in Arlington County and public landmarks named for Confederate

AIM partners with many local organizations to produce community video programming, facilitate special events, and provide educational opportunites in media production and media literacy. Providing such services to the community enables us to extend the range of our mission while developing strong community ties.

iPad After-school Movie Club

The iPad movie club ran three sessions with Francis Scott Key Elementary School students and one session of students from Meridian Homeschool Club. There was an average of nine 4th and 5th graders in each class.

Each group drafted a story and created a movie from scratch. They learned story structure, shot-framing, and visual story telling.

Upon completion they held premieres here at AIM. The pieces also aired on our channel and went up on YouTube. Some students from this club have gone on to participate in the AIM Video Production Camp.

Video Production Camp

AIM held two sessions of its increasingly popular summer Video Production Camp. Each camp lasted for 10 days, in which time nine kids aged 9–13 learned about all aspects of video production. Under the guidance of an instructor and camp counselors, participants then created a short film working as a team.

Session 1 campers created Write On, the story of a girl who wants to attend art school, although her parents insist she join the military academy. Session 2 produced David, a movie about a boy who perceives the world in black in white.

8

Youth Programming

iPad After-school Club MoviesAttack of the Gummi Bear

Battle of the LikesSpeak Out

The Cherished Pen and the Map

Video Production Camp MoviesWrite On

David

Document Historic Arlington FilmArlington’s Forts

Document Arlington FilmsHomelessness in Arlington

Hate or Heritage?

9

Festival Winners

Best of Show:Last Night

Harold Jackson III

Audience Choice Award:The Confidential Informant

Stephen Kinigopoulos

Master PlanJoseph Malinski

Southeast 67Betsy Cox

Tex: Wisdom of the Old WestWilliam R. Coughlan

for the first time; the recipient was chosen by audience members during the festival showcase.

The showcase of nominees was screened for the first time at the Naval Heritage Center of the U.S. Navy Memorial. The awards ceremony was held at the Clarendon Ballroom in Arlington.

High School Sports

High School Sports filmed at the three Arlington public high schools this past year, providing coverage of three football games and five basketball games (both men’s and women’s teams). The games were broadcast on AIM’s channels and posted on YouTube for the public.

This has led to great partnerships with area schools and has raised AIM’s profile in the community due to the number of people involved—athletes, coaches, administrators, volunteers, viewers, and more. It has also given our members many opportunities to gain experience with our mobile flypack equipment.

figures—and made a documentary about each. The documentaries explored both controversial issues from multiple perspectives.

They were s c r e e n e d at Arlington I n d e p e n d e n t Media, aired on Comcast channel 69 and Verizon channel 38, and published on YouTube. Some of the interns involved continue to partner with AIM on other projects including High School Sports coverage or have gone on to submit films or video projects to the Rosebud Film Festival.

Rosebud Film Festival

The distinguished Rosebud Film Festival strengthens ties between AIM and film and video artists of the DMV area

every year. Honoring the innovative, the experimental, the unusual, and the deeply personal, this annual showcase competition offers nominated artists new opportunities for public and professional exposure in all genres and styles.

Twenty artists receive nominations and five are honored as winners, one of which is selected as Best of Show. During fiscal year 2016, the Audience Choice Award was distributed

Organization Members

This past year AIM’s membership for businesses and nonprofits, the Organization membership, has flourished. Nine local organizations are enrolled with AIM. There are four levels, each offering price ranges depending on the number of individuals partaking in the membership.

Benefits of Organization membership include:

• 25% discount on all basic class fees for designated individuals

• Invitations to exclusive media/communication seminars• Prominent listing on AIM website• Voting privileges for one designated individual in annual

election of AIM Board of Directors

Basic Members

AIM saw 427 new memberships in fiscal year 2016, including residents of Arlington and the greater DMV area. At $25, the basic membership includes:

• Opportunity to enroll in our media production workshops• Use of AIM equipment and facilities pending certification• Invitations to all AIM member events• Right to submit programming to our channel• A subscription to our e-newsletter• Invitations to special AIM events• Voting privileges for Arlington residents in the AIM

Board of Directors election

Friends of AIM

An individual may join as a Friend of Arlington Independent Media (FAIM) member for $50 annually or upgrade from basic membership for an additional $25 per year. Benefits of FAIM membership include:

• Exclusive invitations to quarterly FAIM SpeakEasy seminars featuring local, regional, and national speakers and guests

• Insider information from the FAIM Eyes Only e-newsletter twice per year

• An additional 25 bonus volunteer hours• An exclusive Arlington Independent Media shirt• All the privileges of basic membership

10

MEMBERS FAIM BASIC ORGANIZATION TOTAL

New Members 71 341 10 members/5 organizations (Level 1)5 members/1 organization (Level 2) 427

Renewal Members 50 138 188

Expired Members 14 46 60

Total Members 121 479 15 615

Organization Membership Tiers

Level 13 individuals register for $145 per year

Level 25 individuals register for $225 per year

Level 38 individuals register for $370 per year

Level 412 individuals register for $680 per year

While volunteers are the heartbeat of any nonprofit organization, they serve a critical purpose here at AIM: to help make content of all kinds for our producers. Volunteers keep productions going strong from week to week, contributing their time to essential programming throughout the year—working over weekends, through long hours, and even in the roughest of weather.

Our volunteers give a significant amount of time and energy to our programs. Over the course of the fiscal year, AIM volunteers contributed 4,250 hours to various productions.

Their experiences range across all types of tasks for the community. Whether promoting WERA at Clarendon Day or setting lights in the television studio; running cameras or engineering audio; editing videos or handling grip equipment; volunteers help out with hundreds of projects each year.

Just as our equipment and facilities get upgraded, so do the skills and talents of our volunteers. Year after year both veteran and new members take workshops so they can volunteer on new types of programming, from Digital Cinema Production to Basic Audio.

We applaud these volunteers and thank them for all of their hard work!

Top Volunteers

400 Hours or More:Heff Munson

200 Hours or More:Cameron Pippitt

Bill Weisner

150 Hours or More:Nort Beckerman

Bill CalderSteve Cordle

Jay GolterPaul Mahood

Shamiso Mapondera

100 Hours or More:Ken Briley

Mary Fantucchio Antonio Villaronga

VOLUNTEERS TOTAL HOURS

Basic Members 2,021

FAIM Members 2,247

Organization Members 10

Total Volunteer Hours: 4,250

11

Television

On Comcast channel 69 and Verizon channel 38, viewers will find award-winning community-produced programming. Our volunteer producers and their crews spend thousands of hours each year to capture the sights and sounds of Arlington and to bring their voices into our homes—not as part of their livelihood, but as part of their life. We all benefit from the diversity of their viewpoints and the freshness of their perspectives.

In fiscal year 2016 there were 399 new programs and 865 new program hours. Programming included high school sports, candidate interviews and debates, panel discussions, concert series, class projects, local documentaries, public service announcements, youth projects, theater performances,

and numerous other community events. And yet our programming also reached well beyond the Arlington region: we featured international coverage from half a dozen countries, including Mongolia, Vietnam, and Ethiopia.

Radio

On December 6, 2015, WERA-LP 96.7 FM went on the air. For some of us, it was hard to believe that the launch finally happened. After all, it had been under consideration, under discussion, and under construction for more than three years. But once it got underway it took off in a way that none of us imagined was possible.

Of course, during that time, we had a tremendous amount of help and encouragement from our members, producers, volunteers, and friends. But, we’re not going to kid you, more than a few people also seemed a little skeptical. “Why,” they would ask, “are you building a radio station in this day and age?” “Why not just go ahead and build a telegraph?” they would joke. Ha ha.

Well, the joke’s on them because radio is very much alive and well. Radio is

12

TELEVISION PROGRAMMING

PROGRAM MATERIAL QUANTITYPRODUCED TIME

Individual In-house 63 81hr

Individual Member-sponsored 18 32hr 30min

Series In-house 113 145hr

Series Member-sponsored 147 606.5hr

In-house Shorts,Promos, PSAs, etc. 44 6hr 5min 14sec

Member-sponsored Shorts,Promos, PSAs, etc. 13 1hr 9min 9sec

Staff-produced ShortsPromos, PSAs, etc. 18 1hr 28min 54sec

Staff-produced Series andIndividual 16 57hr 30min

Hours of New Programming 865hr

New Programs Produced 399

13

their artistic expressions, their political beliefs, or their spiritual convictions, we all benefit.

In short, when people come here, they stop being just consumers of media and start being producers. We think WERA will be a great new medium for them—and for the

community. As our volunteer producers broadcast their programs on WERA, they are heard by up to 700 thousand of the best educated, most racially and ethnically diverse,

and most civic-minded people in America. Now that’s an audience, that’s a community. And we’re mighty proud to provide our producers with a new way to engage with them.

thriving. Radio, we’re told by those in the know, is cool.

Here’s an interesting statistic: Nielsen reports that in an average week more than 220 million people still tune in to the radio. That’s a lot of people. It’s more, by the way, than watch TV—or use their computer or cell phone to access the Internet.

So why build a radio station in this day and age? Because that’s what we do. We build stuff—but we don’t build it for ourselves—we build it for you. We build TV studios and radio stations in order to build community. Because when the community comes here to talk, to play their music, to share their voice and their vision, to share

Radio Program Applications135 Received64 Approved

*Radio programming data runs from December 5, 2015, WERA launch through April 30, 2016, end of fiscal year.

RADIO PROGRAMMING*

STATION MATERIAL QUANTITYPRODUCED TIME

Shows 50 (23 live/27 pre-recorded;26 music/24 talk) 62hr 30min

Show/Event Promos 20 11min

Legal IDs 10 60sec

Interview Segments 12 47min

Rosebud Film FestivalRecorded Segments 4 2hr

PSAs 3 3min

Underwriting Spots 3 60sec

Liners 8 60sec

Total Material Programming 60 64hr 30min

Total On-Air Time 3,480hr

14

combine fun entertainment with insightful education. With this win-win scenario, we teach students to be creators instead of consumers, and they learn the value of media-making.

Arlington Independent Media provides a comprehensive training environment that allows students of all ages and skill levels to learn techniques, technologies, and theories of media production. From basic classes that certify members to use our state-of-the-art production equipment to master classes that provide opportunities for exploring unique artistic visions, AIM offers Arlington an educational resource with a 35-year record of success and a nationwide reputation for excellence.

Basic Classes

Our courses give students the chance to learn in a hands-on environment. Upon completion of these classes, students may become certified to reserve and use AIM’s equipment and facilities. Introduction to Community Media is the prerequisite for all other AIM workshops. Students who come to AIM with a high level of knowledge and experience in media production were allowed to test out of the basic courses in order to get their certification

for our equipment.

Master Classes

Our master workshops consist of highly interactive, in-depth courses focused on various facets of

media production. Specialized instructors, drawn from the greater DC area arts and media community, work with students to create their own productions using advanced media concepts as well as technical and writing skills. A small class size ensures that learning is tailored to students’ needs. Upon completion of these advanced workshops, students receive a certificate allowing them to reserve facilities, operate equipment, and volunteer on projects. In addition, students leave with a portfolio demonstrating their mastery of a variety of skills.

Youth Classes

The projects for youth—ranging in age anywhere between 4th and 12th grade—allow us to connect with the community in fresh new ways. Teaching youths to conceptualize and create their own works as part of a team not only builds self-confidence, but allows exciting new perspectives to launch in community media. Enabling youth to contribute to our channel fosters creativity, both for the community and for the filmmakers. By focusing on topics about and within Arlington, we

Newly Added Classes

BasicCamera Grip

Digital Cinema ProductionOn-Air Radio Broadcast

Pro Tools

MasterAdvanced Audio ProductionStorytelling for Visual Media

YouthDocument Historic Arlington

15

CLASSES

MASTER BASIC YOUTH

Advanced Audio Production4 workshops, 21 participants

Basic Audio Production 15 workshops, 76 participants

Document Arlington1 session, 6 participants

Advanced Camera Technique1 workshop, 9 participants

Basic Editing10 workshops, 63 participants

Document Historic Arlington1 session, 3 participants

After Effects1 workshop, 6 participants

Camera Grip2 workshops, 9 participants

iPad After-school Movie Club4 sessions, 36 participants

Digital Still Photography1 workshop, 5 participants

Digital Cinema Production3 workshops, 18 participants

Video Production Camp2 sessions, 18 participants

Documentary Production1 workshop, 7 participants

Field Production9 workshops, 63 participants

Location Lighting2 workshops, 16 participants

Intro to Community Media26 workshops, 295 participants

Storytelling for Visual Media1 workshop, 8 participants

Location Audio4 workshops, 16 participants

Mobile Flypack3 workshops, 14 participants

On-Air Radio Broadcast28 workshops, 159 participants

Premiere Pro9 workshops, 48 participants

Pro Tools5 workshops, 16 participants

Studio Production6 workshops, 42 participants

Total Master Workshops: 11 Total Basic Workshops: 120 Total Youth Sessions: 8

Total Master Participants: 72 Total Basic Participants: 819 Total Youth Participants: 63

Total Workshops: 139

Total Participants: 954

Radio Studio

To go along with the beautiful audio production suite we built the year before, in fiscal year 2016 we built a broadcast studio for WERA, and in a little more than four months we managed to broadcast 23 live weekly radio programs in it. Another 27 weekly pre- recorded shows—all but three locally p r o d u c e d —helped make our first few months a total success.

As we continue to grow, our only problem is accommodating all the producers who want a shot at creating radio for Arlington in our live studio. It’s a good problem for us, and Arlington, to have. To help manage the demand, in fiscal year 2017 we will be instituting a “super-volunteer” program that will provide producers with facility help during times that we are not normally open. In the meantime, we continue to train and prepare new radio producers every day and the studio is in almost constant use.

We lack the space to thank everyone who contributed to building the radio studio and WERA—we’d have to add hundreds of pages to this report—but one individual MUST be recognized.

Ted Schneider donated hundreds of hours of his extremely valuable time and expertise to not only design and install the radio studio, but also the antenna, the microwave link, and the transmitter site. We’ll never be able to adequately repay Ted for his dedication

16

and effort, so we hope he will accept the gratitude of all the members, producers, volunteers, staff, board, friends, supporters, and listeners of WERA and Arlington Independent Media.

Cinema Camera Support

AIM now offers independent producers a full array of support and grip equipment to help bring out their professionalism and expand their b o u n d a r i e s . For those who

want to bring the full fire power of professional gear to their productions, we now offer a Steadicam, a jib arm, a dolly with 10 feet of straight track, an Atomos Ninja recorder with confidence display, and a desktop slider all fitted for the Canon C300 cinema camera and the four prime lenses we provide.

Our producers have plenty of location sound and lighting gear to go along with the camera and camera support equipment. With the package that AIM now provides, our producers can—and do—create content that rivals anything coming out of Hollywood and the Networks.

We’ll continue to add capabilities in the future. It’s a good deal:

equipment and facilities in exchange for amazing local programs created by our friends and neighbors about the community we all live in.

Audio Production

The audio production room made its debut in April 2015. Producers have utilized the suite for many facets of audio production, such as creating

podcasts, recording live bands, doing voice-over work for animated programs, making radio promos, and more. Over the past year the audio room has been used 611 times, and this high-demand recording studio continues to grow in popularity, particularly for radio producers who prefer pre-recording their shows.

In fiscal year 2016 four new classes were added to AIM’s roster in conjunction with the audio suite:

Basic Audio Production, Pro Tools, On-Air Radio Broadcast, and the Advanced Audio Production master workshop.

Designed according to the live end/dead end

(L.E.D.E.) principle, our audio production room functions as both a mixing and recording space. Over the past year, 27 radio programs were pre-produced, most often in the audio suite.

Witnessing the creative, compelling ways that the audio suite has been used so far, we are excited to see members further maximize their potential and push boundaries with this versatile workspace available within our facility.

Field Production

Our remote production packages include cameras, tripods, lights, microphones, monitors, and all the accessories that allow our talented producers to go into our community and record the sights and sounds of Arlington and bring them into our

17

our producers transform the studio into everything from intergalactic starships to talk show sets.

Given that the studio can be rented for $16 per each session, one can easily see why our producers continue to value it as an essential component to their production process.

and rewarding. We think that the consistently high quality of the finished programs shows off their abilities quite well.

The digital classroom has been a big help to students learning to edit at AIM. An instructor, aided by a video projector,

demonstrates editing concepts and techniques while each student works alongside using their own workstation. The digital classroom will continue to be invaluable as we introduce new programs in the future.

Studio Production

A producer, director, camera operators, lighting technicians, audio experts, graphic designers, and performers all come together as a team to create AIM programs in the production studio. Each program represents the work of as many as eight or ten volunteers who generously give their time to provide quality programs to our viewers.

In a two-and-a - h a l f - h o u r session, the crew will build and light a set, mic and rehearse the talent, and record the

program to hard drive or send it out live to our viewers. On a daily basis,

homes.

We think producing on location can have a lot of built-in advantages. It allows the producer to explore Arlington in a way that shooting in the studio does not. Documentary, dramatic, and artistic productions all benefit from the insights into the community that only a location shoot can provide.

Editing

AIM producers use edit sessions to piece together a finished program from the video and audio that they record on location. AIM’s two edit suites provide a producer with the means to trim shots to the proper length, rearrange the order of events, and add titles, graphics, voice-over narration, music and sound effects.

Although learning the basic concepts of editing is not difficult, mastering the techniques takes time and effort due to the fact that editing can be as much a science as an art. The programs that are available to today’s producers are very powerful and they give an editor an amazing amount of control over the final p r o d u c t , but that also means they can be very complex. AIM’s producers, however, know no fear and find the process both challenging

Facilities & Equipment Uses

Television Studio 1,022

Audio Production Room 611

Edit Sessions 357

Field Camera Sessions 545

Mobile Flypack Sessions 94

Ancillary Sessions 124

Large Classroom Sessions 886

Small Classroom Sessions 306

Digital Classroom Sessions 68

Total Facility & Equipment Usage: 4,013

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27