How Rare by Design Used Video to Educate, Empower, and Build Support
Rare by Design’s mission centers on awareness, inclusion, representation, and empowerment for individuals living with rare diseases and disabilities. For their 5th Annual event, The Style Show: A Runway to Empower, the videos we partnered on became more than something shown during the evening.
It became a way to help people understand the mission through real people, real experiences, and real stories.
The Challenge: Helping People Understand the Mission
Rare by Design needed to communicate something deeply human.
The goal was not simply to promote an event. The goal was to help people understand the lived experiences of individuals and families impacted by rare diseases and disabilities.
That kind of message can be difficult to communicate through event promotion alone.
Video gave Rare by Design a way to slow the room down, create connection, and make the mission personal.
Why Video Made Sense
For nonprofits, video can help people move from awareness to understanding.
It can introduce the people behind the mission.
It can give supporters a reason to care.
It can help donors, attendees, and community members see why the work matters.
For Rare by Design, the strategy was to create a short documentary that could serve as the emotional centerpiece of the event, along with individual short films that could continue supporting the nonprofit beyond that night.
Our Approach: Real Stories First
Instead of creating one general promotional video, the project focused on five individual stories: Ty, Amanda, Nick, Kendra, and Nellie’s family.
Each interview was designed to highlight the person first, their life, community, challenges, resilience, joy, and perspective.
For example, Ty’s story focused on life after a motorcycle accident, recovery, community support, and the importance of disability representation.
Amanda’s story highlighted her work, creativity, independence, friendships, and deep connection to her community.
Together, along with the others, these stories helped show that inclusion is not an abstract idea. It is personal. It is everyday. It is lived.
Creating Content That Lasts Beyond the Event
The Style Show gave the films a meaningful premiere moment, but the value of the videos did not end there.
The final deliverables included a 5-minute short documentary and individual 1–2 minute stories, with versions created for live event playback, website hosting, and social media use.
That matters because nonprofits often need content that can serve more than one purpose.
A strong video can support:
events
donor outreach
social media
website storytelling
education
fundraising
community awareness
For Rare by Design, the videos helped elevate the event experience while also creating lasting tools to promote the cause, educate audiences, and build continued support.
What This Helped Communicate
The videos helped Rare by Design communicate:
the importance of disability representation
the lived experiences of people with rare diseases and disabilities
the value of inclusion in everyday spaces
the strength of community support
the heart behind the nonprofit’s mission
The goal was not to speak for people but to create space for people to share their own stories.
What Other Nonprofits Can Learn
Nonprofits do not always need a traditional promotional video.
Sometimes the strongest approach is to let the people impacted by the mission tell the story.
When done well, video can help a nonprofit educate its audience, deepen emotional connection, support fundraising, and create content that continues working long after an event is over.
Rare by Design used video to make the mission clear, personal, and lasting.
Looking for Nonprofit Video Production in South Dakota?
If your nonprofit is wondering how to choose the right video production company, look for a team that understands more than cameras. The right partner should help clarify your message, identify the strongest stories, and create content that can support your mission beyond a single event.
605 Video Company helps nonprofits and mission-driven organizations across South Dakota use strategic video to communicate their work with clarity, trust, and momentum.
