Brendan Babinski, Lex Hollenbeck and Hunter Wilson formulated their friendship during years spent in the Midland Public Schools. Even though the trio has gone their separate ways for college, that friendship has continue to deepen as the have combined their talents to form Monumental Media, LLC, a humanitarian video marketing firm.
“Lex and I played freshman basketball together,” said Wilson of their years at Midland High. “Brendan and Lex were already pretty good friends.”
Even though the three are at different colleges, they are beginning to realize how they can mesh their strengths into a single goal of running a successful firm. Babinski studies cinematography and video editing at Columbia College in Chicago; Hollenbeck, a sophomore at Alma College, is majoring in clinical health and fitness; while Wilson, a student at Lansing Community College, has enrolled in the 3+1 agreement with Northwood University as he pursues a degree in business administration and marketing.
“Brendan is the main editor and cinematography director,” Wilson said. “Lex is very, very creative and does a lot of our writing. I do the marketing and business side. Since we’re all in different locations, we’re trying to learn about each other’s gifts. But, we’re motivated enough to know that we need to be flexible.”
Last weekend, the 2012 graduates of Midland High completed a promotional video for “Grounds for a Better World.” Now, they’re in the process of producing their first major project: “Reserved Grounds.”
The video will focus on funding struggles of national parks due to cuts. “Reserved Grounds” will bring awareness to the lack of funding by increasing attendance and revenue.
After raising funds, the first place on the itinerary is a stop at Michigan’s own Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.
“We plan on working with companies and organizations that use and service national parks,” Wilson said. “By using our creative perspective, we plan to highlight the attractions, beauty, activities and general awareness of what they have to offer. We chose this park because we are based out of Michigan and the expenses will be minimal.”
After producing a short film at Sleeping Bear, the plan is to expand to other state and national parks, ending the summer in Colorado.
The Monumental team has set a minimum goal of $3,000 to launch “Reserved Ground” on Kickstarter.com. The campaign runs through March 7. As of today, the trio has received $2,360 in pledges. For information, or to donate to “Reserved Grounds,” visit: Kickstarter.com and search for “Reserved Grounds.”
“The $3,000 is the minimum of what we need,” Wilson said.
Plans are to use funding to assist with the purchase of a 2.5k resolution Blackmagic Cinema Camera and audio equipment, while also aiding travel expenses. The camera, featuring high dynamic range, will allow the trio to show the beauty of the parks while being able to deal with high contrast outdoor lighting.
When they reach $3,000 on Kickstarter, they will still need additional funds for other adventures. To donate for this, Wilson may be contacted at Monumentalmediamarketing@gmail.com or on their Facebook page under “Monumental Media LLC.”
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