Case Study: Austin Jazz Workshop Fundraising Videos

As a regular practice, Connecting Our Stories team members offer reflections about our completed projects. We believe sharing our insights about bringing stories to life not only helps us improve and grow, but benefits the entire field and our collective storytelling work.

By: Anne Bannister, Advisor + Storyteller

Deliverables

Mission-focused impact video
Short and engaging social media video
Amplify Austin fundraising campaign content
Communications strategy support & recommendations for the next phase of the organization’s work

Project Goal

For more than 30 years, the Austin Jazz Workshop (AJW) has brought professional jazz experiences to local students through campus visits and collaborative jam sessions. Each year, AJW musicians visit over 100 elementary schools across Central Texas, showing kids that jazz is fun, accessible, and inspiring.

This nonprofit holds a special place in our founder’s heart. Lauren Cook’s next-door neighbor, Susanna Santos, serves on the AJW board, and her son, Paolo Santos, has been a longtime band member. Lauren watched Paolo grow up with a love for music—one that eventually became his career.

To celebrate the next phase of AJW’s work and people (including new Executive Director Terrance McDaniel), Connecting Our Stories (COS) was entrusted with creating a fundraising video that would showcase the organization’s mission and vision. As they look to their next 30 years, they wanted new creative content reflecting their passionate team, the magnetic pull of jazz, and the profound impact of early exposure to music on students’ lives.

Our Approach

To create compelling videos, we embedded ourselves in AJW’s community.

*Anne and Lauren conducting interviews at the Rosedale School in Austin.*

We utilized a nimble crew with Lauren as our producer and interviewer, myself as director and editor, and a brilliant freelance team of Brian Diggs and Jonah Ende as our cinematographers. We filmed at two schools, captured a jam session at Batch Austin, recorded at Austin’s premiere jazz club, and spoke with band members and board members to fully understand the organization’s mission and approach.

*The scene at Austin’s most famous jazz club, the Elephant Room. Paulo Santos, AJW saxophonist, at center stage.*

With so many incredible voices on the AJW team, we needed a central story. Paolo’s journey stood out—he first encountered AJW as a student at Brentwood Elementary in Austin, and today, he returns to the organization as a professional musician, playing at the very school that inspired him. His full-circle moment embodies AJW’s impact.

*The view from behind the camera of an interview with Paulo at his parents’ home, a place where he was inspired to pursue music.*

Along with Paolo’s voice, it was essential to center students' perspectives. We conducted interviews at Brentwood Elementary, Rosedale School, and with middle and high school students participating in a jam session with AJW.

*Lauren interviewing a high school student at Batch Austin during an AJW jam session. Cinematographer Jonah Ende filming.*

The Results

Supporting a Key Fundraising Moment
The videos will play a large role in AJW’s Amplify Austin annual fundraising event, helping to engage donors and drive contributions.
Boosting Visibility and Engagement
We anticipate the videos will increase social media and website traffic, expanding AJW’s reach and impact.
Enhancing Recruitment and Outreach for the Organization’s Next Phase
AJW is excited to use the videos in presentations to recruit new schools, generate enthusiasm at participating campuses, and inspire donors to support the program’s growth.

One particularly memorable moment came during a screening with AJW board members. They were surprised and delighted to see a student on camera whom they described as incredibly shy. Seeing this student confidently share their thoughts was a powerful reminder that storytelling isn’t just about the final product—it’s about the process. Creating space for someone to be seen and heard can be transformational in itself.

Mission-focused impact video

Short and engaging social media video

Our Insights

Our team was delighted to film the AJW experience at Rosedale School, which serves Austin ISD students with severe disabilities. Watching the students light up, dancing with pure joy to the music, was a powerful reminder of jazz’s universal ability to connect and uplift.

From a video editing perspective, this project was both a delight and a challenge. We had to carefully weave together live performances, interviews from multiple locations, and audio with varying quality. Finding the right balance between visuals and sound required creativity and precision but tackling these complexities made the project all the more rewarding.