Creating polished interviews to deliver important executive messaging…

The internal team at Xcel Energy reached out to us in 2025 for a flagship project, a high level video that played for all employees during a company-wide event. The goal of the video was to showcase the future of the company, checking in with high level executives to relay this messaging about the goals on the horizon for this national energy company.

We were brought into the mix to help plan, shoot and edit this high level executive messaging. Our first step was to collaborate with the internal Xcel team to scout some locations for the messaging of the Twin Cities executive speaking on camera. Xcel has a substation near St. Anthony Falls in Minneapolis and the consensus was to shoot there. But, before cameras could roll, we had to figure out exactly within that space we were going to shoot. What was going to be in the background? Where could we get power to turn on our lights? Where would the sun be while we were shooting? How would we control the sun? All these questions needed to be answered before our executive made his way to our set.

We found the right location and tackled all the shoot logistics. Because there was no where to run power, we sourced a generator to run all of our equipment, lights, cameras and our huge 19″ teleprompter. We decided to start setup early in the morning so once the executive arrived, none of his time was wasted. Once the shoot started, we had someone from the Xcel Energy team asking questions while I as director gave small bits of feedback and direction to get exactly what we needed from the interview.

After the interview wrapped, our work on the edit could begin. The final deliverable was an anthem video that featured not only the leader we filmed in Minneapolis, but three other regional presidents who all spoke on the future Xcel Energy was progressing towards. We sifted through terabytes of new and old Xcel b-roll, captured from all around the country to help fill out the visuals of this anthem. The prospect of sifting through mountains of visuals can be daunting, but once the footage is organized the variety of visuals plays a huge role in good storytelling. The video played in front of the entire company and was met with a fervor of excitement as the end screen faded to black.

We have continued to partner with Xcel Energy over the years as their team works at capacity, they give us a call to support their team.

Added Element provides the look and feel of a big-time production team, but remains lean and nimble with small start-up energy. Matt and Corey are a powerful 1-2 punch. They bring their technical savvy, creative touch, and innovative approach to every project. But beyond the creative briefs, the shoot day, and the final deliverable, they believe in building trusted relationships and doing things with integrity. You can't put a price on that.