• Documentaries & TV Shows
• City of Rio Rancho Channel 51
• Community Videos
• Video Oral History Inteviews for Community Organizations

DOCUMENTARIES & TV SHOWS

Avista’s documentary work has been aired on television and has had public viewings in local museums. Five of these History/Biography projects have won national Telly Awards.

• A news documentary was created for National Geographic that featured the Washoe Tribe of Lake Tahoe.

• “Old Friends of New Mexico,” a 13-part series of one-half hour episodes about significant, community-minded New Mexicans, aired on PAX-TV’s Albuquerque affiliate in the summer and fall of 1999. One of the episodes, The Lovelace Doctors, was a First Place national Telly Awards winner in the “TV or Cable Program - Program Documentary” category. Follow the link above for a 15-minute excerpt from the first episode (The Generation of Quiet Heroes).

  PLEASE NOTE: For your convenience, this video has been uploaded to YouTube - following the link above will take you to the YouTube page containing the selected video.

  You can also view a commercial for this series on our Video Samples page.

  SPECIAL PROGRAMMING NOTE: The full 13-part Old Friends of New Mexico series will air again beginning Saturday, August 28, 2010 at Noon (and continuing the same time each week) on Channel 26. For your convenience, here is a description of each episode in the series.

  • Episode 1 - The Generation of Quiet Heroes
  • Episode 2 - Hal Olson: An Artist’s Memory of War
  • Episode 3 - Skip Randall: A Dance History
  • Episode 4 - Senior Hall of Fame Video Tributes, 1997 -1998
  • Episode 5 - Senior Hall of Fame Video Tributes, 1999
  • Episode 6 - Fun Family Stories: Teresa Barresi & Alta Marks
  • Episode 7 - AAUW Albuquerque 70 Year History
  • Episode 8 - Francisco Chavez: Family History
  • Episode 9 - Remembering Gina Nierenberg
  • Episode 10 - A Genealogy & History: The Glotzbach Family
  • Episode 11 - From the Ranch to the Roundhouse: Bruce & Alice King
  • Episode 12 - Pioneers in Architecture & Dental Hygiene
  • Episode 13 - Lovelace Doctors of New Mexico

"Lisa Witt approached Lovelace to sponsor Avista’s “Old Friends of New Mexico” TV series. One of the episodes featured The Lovelace Doctors in Modern Medicine. That episode won a national award! We were pleased with the response to “Old Friends” and delighted to be a sponsor."

Marlene Baca, Director, Lovelace Senior Services

• “Candelaria’s Story: The History of the Armijo Family in Old Town Albuquerque,” was produced as an accompaniment to an exhibit of the same name at the Albuquerque Museum.

• “The History of Conchas Dam” and “The History of Santa Rosa Dam” are permanently on view at the Dams’ Visitor Centers. These projects were produced for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

• “The Move of the 2926” was shown to 400 people at a WHEELS Museum fundraiser, and will be displayed at the new WHEELS Museum in downtown Albuquerque when it opens. The documentary focuses on how the Railway and a team of volunteers moved Steam Locomotive No. 2926 from a park to a new home adjacent to the museum. It won a “First Place” Telly Award in the “History-Biography” category.

"Avista has produced several documentaries for The WHEELS Museum that were the highlight of our last two fundraisers. Avista takes great pride in working with our elderly railroad workers to document their stories. We are undertaking several more projects with Avista that we hope to include as exhibits in the Museum when it opens."

Leba Freed, President The WHEELS Museum

• “The Bibos: Native Americans and Jews on the Frontier” was shown at the New Mexico Jewish Historical Society’s annual conference in 1997.
• “Congregation Albert — 100 Years of Community,” chronicling the parallel history and growth of Albuquerque and this Reform Jewish congregation, won a “Finalist” designation from the Telly Awards in the “History/Biography category. It can currently be seen in Congregation Albert’s library.

"Thank you for the great video for Congregation Albert’s 100 Year History! I think it is wonderful to have such an inspiring piece about the temple and our history and heritage. I truly appreciate all the hard work you did to make the video and to make the history day so great…We will certainly be using the video to showcase the temple!."

Karen Kahn, Past President Congregation Albert

• “Jewish Pioneer Oral Video History Archive Project.” Avista owner Lisa Witt is project director for this major endeavor, which is sponsored by the New Mexico Jewish Historical Society in cooperation with the University of New Mexico’s History Department and Center for Regional Studies. The Jewish communities of New Mexico have longstanding and deep connections to this state. Yet, theirs are some of the stories that are rarely told in the larger context of the state’s history. The project will collect and videotape the stories and materials of Jewish life in New Mexico from 1850 to 1920. Avista’s role is to videotape the interviews with descendants of the pioneer families. The tapes and transcribed interviews will be available at the State Archives and Record Center in Santa Fe and at UNM.
• Hal Olsen Interview on WWII Nose Art for the American Air Power Heritage Museum in Midland, TX in June/July 2001.

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CITY OF RIO RANCHO CHANNEL 51

The City of Rio Rancho hired Avista to “jumpstart” its public access and government cable TV station in 1999. Avista left the City well positioned to bring the station’s functions in-house when the contract concluded in 2000. John Ortiz, Channel 51’s manager, also works on the Avista team.

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COMMUNITY VIDEOS

Avista Video Histories takes great pride in helping community organizations honor individuals who have made significant contributions in their field. A Video Tribute can consist of an interview with the honoree discussing their achievements. Alternatively, the tribute can consist of third person tributes by colleagues of the honoree. Another option is to conduct an on-camera interview between a host and the honoree. All Tributes are illustrated by old photos and mementos. Over the years, Avista has had the honor of producing videos that are shown at such Tribute Events as: The New Mexico Sports Hall of Fame, The New Mexico Trial Lawyers Amicus Awards, the Silver Horizons Senior Hall of Fame, the UNM School of Law Distinguished Alumni Event, Martin Luther King Cultural Center Event, among others. Please view some samples of these tributes below.

UNM School of Law Distinguished Alumni Award

Recognized for their contributions to the profession and the school, The UNM School of Law honors alumni each October. Avista produced video tributes of the three honorees in 2009 that consist of three colleagues paying tribute to each honoree through stories, illustrated with images of the honoree in action. Click here for the 2009 Award page that includes links to each of the honoree videos.

Senior Hall of Fame Tribute Videos

Since 1997, Avista Video Histories has produced Tribute Videos for the Silver Horizons New Mexico's inductees into the Senior Hall of Fame. Each year four individuals, age 65 or older, are honored for their significant contributions to their community at a Spring luncheon. Past Board Member Lisa Witt has enjoyed compiling these storyteller video portraits that convey to the audience why each senior was selected for this honor. Click here for the page with the most recent honorees and their videos.

Silver Horizons New Mexico Promotional Videos

Avista produced a promotional video for Silver Horizons New Mexico (formerly the Senior Foundation) to announce its new name and mission.

A Senior Citizen I Know

For several years, Avista was a sponsor of “A Senior Citizen I Know” essay contest for children in grades 1 through 5. We taped each of the 30 child winners reading their winning essay in the presence of the subject of their essay -- their favorite senior.

American Heart Association (AHA) of New Mexico

To highlight the impact that AHA has on the people who receive its services, Avista produced a video for New Mexico’s annual fundraiser in 2002.

New Day Youth & Family Services

We produced a lively, 30-second TV PSA (Public Service Announcement) for New Day to promote their 16th Annual Valentine Charity Ball. The Charity Ball is a major fundraiser for this non-profit organization, which runs a shelter in Albuquerque for at-risk and runaway teenagers.

American Association of University Women - Albuquerque Chapter

To celebrate the 70th anniversary of the chapter, Avista produced a history documenting the accomplishments the chapter has made to life in Albuquerque.

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VIDEO ORAL HISTORY INTERVIEWS FOR COMMUNITY ORGANIZATIONS

Avista has developed a special niche working with community organizations to document their senior storytellers while the stories can still be told. In this regard, Avista has worked with the following organizations to capture their elder members’ stories.

• New Mexico Women’s Forum
• State Bar of New Mexico Senior Lawyers Division
• University of Colorado School of Law
• The Wheels Museum
• New Mexico Jewish Historical Society’s Jewish Pioneer Project

The goal is to interview these senior storytellers, transcribe the interview for maximum distribution and retain the digital video files for use in a future documentary.

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