In 2013 Deep Focus found a tweet about a new program being developed by the Urban Resources Institute (URI) in New York City. URI was setting up the first shelter for domestic abuse survivors that allowed them to bring their pets into the shelter with them. They needed help to make it happen. We realized this would be a perfect fit for Purina due to their core belief that people and pets are better together.
We helped organize donations of food and pet supplies as well as welcome kits so that people had everything they needed to take care of their pet when they entered the shelter. In addition Purina donated the funds to build a play area for pets in the outdoor space next to the building. This provided a safe and private place for the survivors and pets to be outside.
In addition to facilitating the partnership, we documented the process to help build awareness of it and advocate for it on behalf of Purina. This included being there when the first shelter and dog park opened in Brooklyn, promoting the Purina summit where Rita Garza from URI presented the program and finally, the opening of the second shelter in Harlem.
Role: Producer
I helped coordinate many of the moving parts and logistics of this project. This included researching and ordering supplies for the welcome kits, planning and producing the shoots to document the partnership, writing the questions and interviewing the people featured in the videos and putting together the list of shots we needed to get, and helping shape the final edits.