Prepared for H2OCinematic storytelling,
built for the work that matters most.
A short, private overview of how we approach film and documentary work at Hilltree, and where it could fit alongside what H2O is already building.
How we think about film.
Cinematic storytelling is one of our five core lanes at Hilltree, and it tends to be the lane we lean on when an organization hits an inflection point. By that we mean a moment when the mission has sharpened, the stakes have grown, and the story needs more than a deck, a brochure, or a photo gallery to land the way it should. Film is the medium we reach for first when the story has to move someone.
We come at the work from a documentary background. Small crews, existing environments, and the patience to let a worthwhile moment happen instead of manufacturing it. The films we make are built to hold up over time and to travel across contexts, whether the job is rallying a community before a vote, anchoring a capital campaign with one defining piece, or giving a complicated mission the room it needs to make sense to an outside audience.
H2O is a large, multi-national corporation that is engaging in several high-capacity and highly-technical aspects. This requires a deft touch, particularly around storytelling, something Hilltree is uniquely positioned to provide. A longer documentary piece can live at the center of a campaign or a site rebuild. Shorter work, event coverage and campaign cutdowns have the opportunity to keep the brand present between the bigger releases.
Our process runs through four stages: concept and pre-production, principal production, post and color, and final delivery in whatever formats the work actually needs to live in. Crew size flexes to the project. On smaller films we usually operate as a tight embedded team, and on larger ones we are glad to plug in alongside an existing creative group when the scope calls for it.
Cadence is up to you. An engagement can be a single film, a defined campaign with a clear beginning and end, or an ongoing relationship across the year, whichever fits the calendar and the budget you are working with.
Closest in tone to your work.
Campaign Teaser
Hancock Forward
A short, emotive film built to move a community to vote yes on a school bond. Closest in tone to the awareness work H2O could anchor in the Southern market.
Simmons School Brand Film
SMU, Annette Caldwell Simmons School of Education
A documentary-style brand film for a university school, produced end to end by our team. The structural template most relevant to longer-form H2O storytelling.
Three ways to work together.
Anchor Film
One defining piece
A single film built around one story, used across the site, fundraising, and key moments. Typically a multi-month engagement with scope shaped to the story and timeline.
Campaign Package
Film plus supporting pieces
The anchor film plus a handful of shorter cutdowns and supporting pieces shaped for specific audiences or moments in the year. Larger in scope and timeline, with pricing scaled to the breadth of deliverables.
Ongoing Cadence
A retained rhythm
A quarterly or annual partnership of shorter work: mini-docs, event coverage, leadership pieces, and campaign cutdowns that keep the brand present between the bigger releases.
These are directional shapes, not fixed menus. Most partners end up somewhere in between, or blend two over time. Each engagement is priced according to its scope and timeline, and because we run a small, nimble team without the overhead of a traditional agency, our pricing typically sits below industry standard for work of this caliber. If one of these feels close, we can shape a proposal around your actual calendar and priorities.
"I am grateful for the opportunity to meet you and hear more about the incredible work H2O Innovation is putting into the world. The scale and complexity of your work is remarkable, and the stories that live inside it deserve to be told with the same precision and care you bring to the technology itself. We have assembled this page as a living reference for your team, something you can return to whenever you need. Whether that moment is a campaign launch, a site rebuild, or simply the recognition that the next chapter of your story needs a partner who understands how to tell it well, we will be here."
Blake Houston
Partner & Lead Strategist, Hilltree Creative
Let's find the first film, Serguei.
Feel free to reach out to us anytime, or share this with your team to get a conversation going about how Hilltree can partner with H2O.
HERE'S TO THE PIONEERS.