Philadelphia Agency Exec Helps Produce Academy Award-Nominated Film
On the morning of January 24, 2017, Joe’s Violin was nominated for a 2017 Oscar for Best Documentary (Short Subject). This 24-minute film is a moving story about a Holocaust survivor, a violin and a 13-year-old Dominican-American girl. The story follows the violin as it is donated to an instrument drive and arrives at the young girl’s school in the Bronx. In its telling, the film reveals the power of a gift and the unexpected bond that forms between the giver and the recipient.
“It is a small film, but with the most enormous heart,” relates Peter Kenney, Executive Producer on the film. The film was directed by Kahane Cooperman and produced by Cooperman and Raphaela Niehausen.
Mr. Kenney is also a Founder and Partner at DiD, a health and wellness advertising agency in the Philadelphia, PA area. He and Cooperman were classmates at film school. As Kenney describes his role, “I knew Kahane was extraordinarily talented. When I heard how excited she was about making this story, I knew the film had to get made soon and had to get in front of as many people as possible.”
Before the Oscar nomination, Joe’s Violin had won awards from a number of film festivals, both in the US and Europe. It can be seen on The New Yorker magazine’s website. (Link: http://video.newyorker.com/watch/the-new-yorker-shorts-joe-s-violin)
“When Rick Sannem and I started DiD, one of our core pillars was telling insightful, inspiring stories for our clients. This has been one of the keys of our success over the last dozen years,” Kenney explained.
DiD is an advertising agency with a number of clients in pharmaceutical, medical device, vision and OTC consumer product industries. Formed in 2004 by Kenney and partner Rick Sannem, DiD now has 3 locations: Ambler, PA; Center City Philadelphia, PA; and Healdsburg, CA. Despite providing a range of strategic and creative services across all media, DiD has a deep heritage in video. Currently, the company is working on television spots for a few consumer products companies, a digital video series for J&J and a VR 3-D MOA for another pharmaceutical client.
Kenney believes that his experience on this film will prove to be valuable for clients. “Joe’s Violin has been a great lesson. First, it shows the power of a story that is well told. Second, it reinforces that a film does not have to be expensive to have an impact. Finally, even before the Oscar nod, Joe’s Violin saw incredible traction and viewership through social and earned media. People share stories when their hearts are truly triggered.”
We will soon see how the film triggers the hearts of AMPAS voters. Joe’s Violin will learn if it wins the Oscar for Best Documentary (Short Subject) during ABC’s Prime Time telecast on Sunday, February 26.
