Cases
Challenge
As a startup auction house, Fortuna Fine Jewelry and Watch Auction needed to build brand awareness and develop trust in the market.In collaboration with Fortuna’s marketing team, Magnason Film ideated two video series: “Stories That Define Us” and “Q & A With Our Experts.” These video series express the pain points and solutions of buyers and sellers in the market and illustrate Fortuna’s real customer experiences.
Results
Fortuna’s project manager Kate Verashaka:
“They come in with the best equipment. The quality of the footage is incredible.”
“The main subject in one of the videos was so impressed he consigned $200,000 worth of watches with Fortuna. Now we are his only auction house.”
“It’s wonderful to work with a partner who really believes in you like Mathias. It can make a person feel really good, feel really proud of themselves, then they can start to shine on camera. Mathias does that—he’s genuinely fascinated and curious.”
Day One
Challenge
Day One needed a fundraising video for its annual gala but would only have five minutes to engage the audience and inspire attendees to donate. Magnason Film interviewed three survivors and wove their heart-wrenching experiences together, capturing their stories of dating abuse and subsequent healing through Day One.
Due to the sensitive nature of the testimonials, this video can only be viewed in private. Please contact Magnason Film for further details.
Results
Day One hit its goal, raising $100,000 at its gala.
Day One’s former marketing director Namasha Schelling:
“The video was beautifully shot and makes you tear up. He’s a pro, a natural, so good at getting people to spill their guts out. Our director teared up just reading the script.”
“You can tell Mathias is getting something artistically out of it, not just going through the motions and not caring. Other filmmakers just wanted to offer a service and get it done—‘This is what we do; we do it all the time; we can get it done.’ But not Mathias. You could tell he always made time for us, responds quickly to emails. It felt like we were making a movie together.”
Hard to Believe
Challenge
Hard to Believe investigates forced organ harvesting of prisoners of conscience in China, a human rights topic that was shrouded in mystery. With almost no hard evidence and a public opinion that the issue is ‘conspiracy,’ the project faced enormous difficulty.
Results
Magnason Film acted as the rainmaker, bringing in Emmy award-winning producer Ken Stone, Irene Silver, and Swoop Films as executive producers. Magnason Film gave artistic direction, shot and edited the film.
Aired across the US on PBS as the first film on forced organ harvesting to be broadcast on network TV.
Inspired resolutions from the United States government, Canadian Parliament, European Parliament, and the Australian government.
Watched in 12 languages.
Won 18 film festival awards.
The issue is now being openly discussed on mainstream news networks.
Livestrong
Challenge
Livestrong—America’s top instructional video producer—hired Magnason Film to be a one-man-band to produce, shoot, and edit instructional videos with tight turnaround times in a wide range of topics, such as fitness, cooking, US law, and real estate.
Results
Produced, shot and edited 500 instructional videos in total.
Earned Livestrong’s Annual Outstanding Contributor Award for Consistency in Quality.
One of the subjects—fitness trainer Holly Del Rosso—earned Livestrong’s Woman of the Year Award after shooting 70 videos with Mathias.
"I hired Magnason Film to create a story, edit, and finish a 30-minute Documentary. The quality and professionalism exceeded my expectation by a mile, and the people from MF did above and beyond what we expected. Highly recommend them."
"I have worked multiple times with Mathias Magnason and his company Magnason Film, and I highly recommend him for producing professional, tasteful, high-class videos. Mathias Magnason is an outstanding creative editor, producer, and director."
“The video was beautifully shot and makes you tear up. He’s a pro, a natural, so good at getting people to spill their guts out. Our director teared up just reading script.”
“Mathias was very confident and natural in his process, and also respected my input whenever I had ideas or concerns. He honored my budget and worked within my time frame. I absolutely love the end result.”
“His gentle approach, drawing the truth out of her, then weaving it together was really impressive. He’s a creative genius.”
“He has an incredible sense of how to tell the story visually. He elevates the quality to a point that I can’t reach on my own.”
“The main subject in the video was so impressed he consigned $200,000 worth of watches with Fortuna. Now we are his only auction house.”
"His ability to craft a compelling narrative with engaging footage was remarkable. Despite being behind a paywall, the documentary garnered 1.7 million views. We also received nominations and were finalists in multiple award categories, a testament to the film's impact. Given the tight production timeline, Mathias's willingness to take on multiple roles was invaluable to our success."
"He flawlessly put together years of material, photos, and videos on many different platforms into a powerful, impactful film that fully captures the essence of who I am and what I wish to bring into this world. I am very grateful that I found him!"
"It is so rare to find professionals who genuinely care about your company's brand or story, share your passion for going the extra mile with every project, and are also incredibly easy to work with. Their talent is unmatched, and consistently exceed expectations."
Latest Awards and Recognitions
Art, Always In Motion
Magnason Film is an award-winning creative production company.
Our nonfiction storytelling has garnered over 30 film festival awards and reached tens of millions of views on social media. We’ve even helped a beauty queen win her national contest… twice.
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