Protect SNAP

AI Video: Protect SNAP

Client: SecurEATS 

Role: AI Video Creator & Digital Content Specialist

Overview: Produced a powerful 30-second AI-generated advocacy video, "Protect SNAP," to raise public awareness about the human impact of potential budget cuts to the program.

Contributions:

• Developed a compelling narrative and script based on news analysis of the proposed policy changes, sourced from this CBS News article: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/whats-in-trump-big-beautiful-bill-senate-version/

• Crafted a series of four detailed, sequential prompts to generate cinematic visuals using Google's Veo 3.

• Utilized text-to-speech AI to create a consistent, emotionally resonant voiceover for the video's narration.

• Managed the end-to-end post-production in HitFilm Express, including editing, sound design, music integration, and adding final visual effects to enhance the message.

Tools Used for This Project

• AI & Content Generation:

  • Google's Veo 3: Used to generate all cinematic video clips from a series of detailed text prompts.

  • Gemini: Used for brainstorming, script development, and iterative refinement of video prompts.

  • Text-to-Speech AI (ElevenLabs): Used to generate the high-quality, natural-sounding voiceover for the narration.

• Video Production & Editing:

  • HitFilm Express: The primary video editing software used for assembling clips, adding the voiceover, sound design, music, text animations, and final effects.

• Supporting Online Tools:

  • Pixabay Music: Used to source royalty-free cinematic and ambient music tracks.

Creative Strategy & Sound Design: The creative direction for this video was centered on building a powerful emotional arc.

• Music: The first three clips use "Somber Constellations Ambient" music to establish a serious, reflective tone that matches the gravity of the topic. For the final call to action, the music shifts to an "Epic Cinematic (Hollywood Style)" track to create a feeling of importance, urgency, and empowerment, leaving the viewer inspired.

• Visual Effects: A "Heat Distortion" effect was applied to the final text. This serves as a visual metaphor for the pressure vulnerable families are under and the potential instability of the social safety net, reinforcing the urgency of the message.

Challenges & Solutions:

Challenge: AI Voice Consistency. Generating each video clip separately resulted in different narrator voices, creating an inconsistent tone.

• • Solution: I generated the final video clips with no dialogue and used a dedicated text-to-speech program to create a single, unified voiceover track. This was then layered over the visuals in HitFilm Express for a professional and consistent narration.

Challenge: Multi-Platform Aspect Ratios. The video needed to be optimized for both wide-screen (16:9 for YouTube/portfolio) and vertical (9:16 for social media) formats.

• • Solution: I created two separate export versions from a single editing project. For the vertical version, I scaled and reframed each 16:9 clip to ensure the key action remained centered, demonstrating a clear strategy for multi-platform distribution.

Challenge: AI Dialogue Pacing. The initial prompt for the final clip contained dialogue that was too long for the 8-second runtime, causing the AI to cut off the end of the line.

• • Solution: I revised and condensed the prompt, removing unnecessary pauses and words to ensure the AI could deliver the full, impactful line within the time limit.

Challenge: Preserving Text Animation Across Formats. The custom text animation and heat distortion effect on the final call to action were tied to the original aspect ratio and broke when reframed.

• • Solution: I manually re-animated the text and repositioned the visual effects for each aspect ratio to ensure the final message was delivered with the same timing and impact on all platforms.

Challenge:  Inconsistent AI Visual Style. While the prompts requested a cinematic feel, Veo 3 produced a mix of cinematic and standard photorealistic clips.

• Solution: I unified the visual style in post-production by applying consistent color grading and cinematic letterboxing in HitFilm Express, ensuring a cohesive look across all four clips.

Challenge: Incomplete AI Animation. The AI-generated text animation for the final clip was visually strong but incomplete, omitting the last two words of the script.

• Solution: I manually adjusted and extended the animation in HitFilm Express to include the full phrase, ensuring the final call to action was delivered exactly as intended.

Challenge: AI Output Resolution. Veo 3 within the Gemini app is currently limited to a 720p (1280x720) output and does not offer native upscaling.

• Solution: I utilized the advanced scaling algorithms within HitFilm Express to upscale the 720p source footage for the 1080p vertical exports. This demonstrates the crucial role of professional editing software in refining AI-generated content for high-quality, multi-platform delivery.

Note: This project showcases an advanced workflow using Google's Veo 3 for rapid, high-quality video generation for advocacy campaigns. It demonstrates how to translate complex policy issues into an emotional, human-centered story, providing a powerful and cost-effective solution for non-profit outreach.

Result: Delivered a moving and professional-quality video optimized for multi-platform social media distribution. Final assets were provided in two key aspect ratios: standard 16:9 (1280x720) for YouTube and portfolio viewing, and vertical 9:16 (1080x1920) for maximum impact on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube Shorts.