At San Diego Mesa College, a program called the Mesa Impactship Program is changing lives. By connecting students with real-world projects, it builds career skills while meeting community needs. When they asked Uptown 11 to help share their story, we knew the students themselves had to be the stars.
The Mesa team had already collected hundreds of student video testimonials. They handed us a treasure trove: raw, heartfelt reflections on how the program shaped their journeys. Our job was to weave those voices together into something powerful enough to show funders, faculty and the community just how transformational this program is.
Here’s how we told the story:
Conducted interviews on campus with program leaders Pavel Consuelga and Shawn Fawcett, whose passion shines through every frame.
Found natural light and simple spaces to create clean, beautiful visuals that let the stories speak for themselves.
Wove student testimonies with leadership perspectives into a video that makes clear: Mesa Impactship isn’t just a program, it’s a lifeline for opportunity in San Diego.
The final film positioned the program as a critical piece of the region’s workforce and education infrastructure. It helped Mesa advocate for the funding and stability the program needs to continue shaping the futures of thousands of students.
And this is just the beginning. Our partnership with Mesa is ongoing — we’re already working on new videos, capturing the same passion, grit and heart that makes their story worth telling.
