Creativity With A Conscience. We partner with brands and organizations to tell stories that matter while mentoring and training the next generation of creative leaders through real-world experience. We create powerful marketing, branding, and advertising campaigns while generating real social impact through dynamic career-based mentoring and leadership development for high school and college students.
.AFA began as a mentoring program for youth recovering from traumatic life experiences after founder, Jacob Weaver lost his eye to a drive-by shooting in high school, but while Jacob was in graduate school and teaching video production, web design, and music production, a lightbulb went off and AFA evolved into an innovative Career & Technical Education (CTE) organization, where creativity meets opportunity.
The turning point came when Jacob and his students produced a Super Bowl Halftime Doritos commercial. That moment proved what was possible when young people are given real tools, real projects, and real trust. AFA hasn’t looked back since and today, AFA specializes in video storytelling, documentary filmmaking, branding, and integrated marketing campaigns, all while helping students discover their passions and explore career paths through hands-on, real-world experience. Guided by industry experts and award-winning creatives, students build professional skills, portfolios, and resumes—preparing them to get into their dream colleges, enter the workforce, and/or launch their own businesses. We don’t just create campaigns. We create futures!
We partner with a wide variety of industry leaders and take on projects all over the world to give students unique experiences in all elements of the Media Arts, A/V Technology, Design & Communications Pathway from pre-production and creative concepting to post-production and implementing the strategic campaigns utilizing a variety of AI tools. Watch the video above created for The Nature Conservancy and Hamanasi Adventure Dive Resort in Belize, and the video below produced, shot, and edited alongside our students in Vietnam.
These real-world collaborations give students hands-on experience while delivering meaningful stories for mission-driven organizations. These global projects also sparked the creation of an original travel documentary series showcasing the world’s most unique eco-resorts and the visionary leaders, communities, cultures, and organizations behind them. We recently shot the pilot episode in Cambodia, Thailand and the Island of Sumba. Stay tuned for updates and don't hesitate to reach out. This is advertising that gives back!
We met the Teysha Team at the Newport Folk Festival where they traced our feet for our first order of custom boots and "smoking slippers". We were inspired by their mission, so we traveled throughout Guatemala with the founders to tell their story through their artisans and culture. The pictures above are some behind the scene moments of the video we created as part of a branding, marketing & social media advertising campaign.
The video above was one of many that we directed, shot, and edited for Northern Outdoors which is a rustic resort and brewery offering whitewater rafting, snowmobiling, fishing, hiking, mountain biking, four wheeling and much more in northern Maine. They used this particular video for a Branding/Social Media Campaign.
The video above was part of a branding, marketing & social media advertising campaign we designed for LinkMount which tripled sales in the first month of our launch. We are now working on a new product launch with the founder of Linkmount for one of his new companies including product and packaging design, ambassador program, as well as a go-to-market strategy for retail/wholesale & direct to consumer.
Above is one of the many videos we created for the Big Picture Learning (BPL) at their annual conference that we shot and edited in under 12 hours to allow BPL to show them to participants at the conference each following day.
We shot and edited multiple videos for OMstack Jewelry & IMSY Swimwear out on Block Island, RI to be used for social media advertising campaigns and below is a series of videos directed, shot and/or edited by our very talented director/cinematographer/editor, Andrei Zakow.
Below is a series of videos directed, shot and/or edited by our DP/Cinematographer/Editor Rajah Samaroo. We collaborate with and assist our clients with designing and creating meaningful content as well as innovative advertising & marketing campaigns to enhance their brand identity and increase revenue by connecting them with new customers, strategic partners, donors/investors, influencers/brand ambassadors, and much more. We help our clients achieve their goals in the most efficient and cost effective way possible all while giving back and creating positive publicity through our mentoring, leadership development, and community engagement which are core elements of our mission and moral purpose. Our Team of Creative Professionals, Mentors and Advisors consist of Award Winning Directors, Cinematographers, Graphic, Web & Industrial Designers, Photographers & Editors as well as Social Media, Branding, SEO, Retail & Direct-to-Market Specialists. We look forward to working with you!
Below is the first AFA video we ever created for the Doritos Half-Time Superbowl Commercial along with several student mentee projects that were primarily created for mentoring and leadership development purposes.