As an experienced script writer, editor, and narrator, I love working on video projects from start to finish.
What’s in a Name?
Everyone gets Berkeley Lab’s name wrong, even some of our own employees. To be fair, it is pretty confusing. To help clear things up – and have a little fun – my colleague and I made this video that crams 90 years of history into a few minutes. This video is featured on the Berkeley Lab homepage.
Text, narration, and concept by Aliyah Kovner, editing and animation by Marilyn Sargent.
A video about the collaboration between a Berkeley Lab biotechnology scale-up lab and Bay Area biotechnology company Checkerspot. With help from the ABPDU, Checkerspot has developed a process to culture engineered algae that produce an oily polymer that can serve as a replacement for petroleum-based polymers. The algal polymer is then collected and converted into a variety of products, including high-performance alpine skis.
Text and story by Aliyah Kovner, video shot and edited by Marilyn Sargent
A spoof of the classic poem “Twas the Night Before Christmas,” retooled to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the periodic table of elements.
Poem, narration, and concept by Aliyah Kovner. Video shot, animated, and edited by Marilyn Sargent
This short film was made to highlight the new San Francisco Bird Safety Standards, enacted to help prevent bird collisions with buildings. It was shown at the California Academy of Sciences.
More than 400 species of birds live in the Bay Area year round or stop here on their migratory journeys to the North and South. Where there were once coastal hills, marshes, and sand dunes, these birds must now contend with 49 square miles of densely packed buildings. Hundreds of thousands of birds die each year from collisions, either unable to see the glass or disoriented from reflections and light beams.
Researched and written by Aliyah Kovner, shot and edited by Matthew Baker
A film made for the Golden Gate Audubon Society about the Snowy Plovers of the San Francisco Bay Area. These threatened shorebirds live and nest on the sand dunes, making their eggs and young exposed and vulnerable to other beach visitors. As humans - and our dogs - continue to flock to the water's edge, many of the small population's chicks die when the parents are scared away or the nest is trampled. This short was made to spread awareness of how to avoid disrupting the plovers while enjoying local beaches, and to provide a brief natural history for these charismatic birds.
Researched and written by Aliyah Kovner, shot and edited by Matthew Baker
Seasick
A documentary film to present the devastation of Sea Star Wasting Syndrome, which threatens to permanently alter the marine environment. Filmed in California, featuring experts from UC Santa Cruz, UC Davis, and Stanford.
Written, narrated, and edited by Aliyah Kovner. Documentary coproduced and directed by Aliyah Kovner and Patrick Kennedy.