24 November 2016

Hands Across Canberra: Canberrans helping Canberrans

| Rachel Ziv
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Josh Mulrine

For those of you who don’t know, RiotACT’s very own Josh Mulrine is also a prolific videographer.

As well as his role as Business Manager for RiotACT, Josh runs Digital Content Studios – a video production company. He is widely known in the Canberra business community for being able to tell a business’s story through carefully constructed short videos, and was the first business allowed to film behind the scenes of the budget lock-up at both Treasury and Parliament House. Josh is also a big supporter of small business and has worked with all many businesses across the Capital wanting to update their branding and humanise their business through video.

But it’s one local video for a very special charity that has the community talking this week.

Hands Across Canberra is a non-profit foundation that helps local people support local charities. Instead of donating to a random charity and hoping the money doesn’t get eaten up in admin fees and wind up in another State, Canberrans can donate through Hands Across Canberra and know for sure that the money will go towards making an impact in the Canberra community.

One of these organisations is Canberra City Care, which provides financial help, food, and an array of other support services to Canberrans in need.

“I first met Peter Gordon, CEO of Hands Across Canberra, while shooting a video for the Deakin Charity House Project for the Master Builders Association,” says Josh. “The project raised 2.2 million, and one of the recipients was Hands Across Canberra.

When I spoke with Peter, I immediately fell in love with the organisation. I’m incredibly passionate about Canberra and supporting the people of Canberra, and I wanted to help in any way possible.

Peter mentioned that he would like to use video to help show what the organisation does, rather than just trying to relay it in words. And that’s how the Hands Across Canberra video came about.”

The video was shown at the recently-held Hands Across Canberra luncheon, and helped the organisation raise over $120,000 towards the cause; almost double what was raised at last year’s luncheon.

“Video really helps to tell a story. People often give to a charity and then have no idea where their money goes. Through the video we were able to show the story of a woman named Sheryl, who was a direct recipient of Canberra City Care. Sheryl was a single Mum experiencing financial and emotional hardship, and they basically turned her whole life around, to the point where she now works for a charity helping others.

The charity [Hands Across Canberra] is amazing. There’s a lot of people making really good money in this town, and some of that money should be left on the table and used to support locals who are in desperate need.”

To learn more about Hands Across Canberra, or to make a one-off or ongoing donation, visit Hands Across Canberra.

For more information about Josh and video production, visit Digital Content Studios.

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