By Richard Greco | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com
Perlow Productions is a company that set out to toss the cookie-cutter idea of video production out the window. It paired with corporations, non-profits, marketing firms, public relations agencies and businesses to produce immersive videos used for sales, marketing, promotions, recruiting and training. It quickly became a well-known video source on the east coast.
Then, the coronavirus hit.
Like nearly every business throughout the nation, Perlow Productions needed to pivot.
“When all of this started a couple of months ago, we didn’t know what we were going to be able to do as a video production company,” Perlow Productions President Mike Perlow said. “We realized that there was an increased need for live streaming and also for video in general.”
That pivot shifted Perlow Productions to the idea of virtual graduation and the Marlton-based company has already begun collaborations with Ewing, Cherry Hill East, Cherry Hill West, West Windsor-Plainsboro North, West Windsor-Plainsboro South and North Plainfield high schools as well as Beck, Carusi and Rosa middle schools in Cherry Hill.
Perlow Productions is bringing the same approach to its virtual graduations as it does to its marketing and promotional videos. Simply put, these are not going to be simple live streams of principals reading names.
“Each school’s graduation production is going to be different – even within the five schools in Cherry Hill,” Perlow said. “They are not going to look the same. The structure isn’t going to be the same. We want schools to make their ceremonies different and make them their own. Our goal in all of this is that when families and graduates watch these, they are blown away by how cool and fun they are.”
From highlights of a state championship-winning team to a marching band performance to musical productions and fundraisers, Perlow Productions has brainstormed with each and every school individually on how to make their graduation special for the senior class.
“There are options out there that are a little more cookie-cutter, but we’ve never wanted to do anything that way,” Perlow said. “It makes for a lot more work for us and a lot more creative energy, but we’re also confident that people will love the graduation videos that we make. The extra work will pay off. We want to be able to show off every video that we make.”
The shift to virtual graduations has hit Perlow Productions like a whirlwind but has opened doors that leave the company excited for the possibilities moving forward.
“It’s been a fun road to travel the last two months,” he said. “It’ll be interesting to see where things go after graduation season is over, but I have no doubt that this will help us. Along this journey, we realized that we are not only serving as a video production company, but we are also helping people.”
Richard Greco covers Mercer County news for NJ.com and may be reached at rgreco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @Richard_V_Greco. Find NJ.com on Facebook.