I know I know…. not a big surprise . David has another project. But this time it’s different. When Sarah Vela approached me in Jan of 2010 about this idea I wanted to say no. Not one more thing on my plate. I had Ridgewood : Ingenious Communications Strategies, Lights. Camera. Help. plus writing the book for Wiley. But the entrepreneur in me kept saying say yes. And I did. I joined HelpAttack! as the COO with Ehren Foss as the CTO and Sarah as our CEO.

And I haven’t looked back since.

HelpAttack is all about turning your actions into social good. Starting with Twitter (but soon Facebook and more) you can pledge an amount of money for each action you take in a social network, and then give it to your favorite nonprofits. Eventually imagine anything that can be counted turning into donations for your favorite causes. Yes we aim to be that big. : )

All the while you are unlocking coins, discovering new nonprofits and causes you might like to support, and helping do everything from planting trees to feeding the homeless.

So why don’t you take it for a test drive while we are in Beta? Let us know what you think on this post and here.

Mmmm doing good while eating good……someone buy that URL! Anyway Z’ Tejas has announced that the LIVESTRONG Childhood Cancer Survivorship Center at Dell Children’s Medical Center is this year’s beneficiary of the Chile Bash!

For each chile-themed entree sold between September 7 and September 26, they will donate $1 to the Survivorship Center. Please tell your friends and family, better yet, take them to Z’ Tejas for chilies!

You may have noticed that we changed our Volunteer Match program to be called Project: Action!. Same great program with a new (and better name). Big thanks to Aaron Bramley for thinking up that name. Project : Action! is an amazing online database that hooks up Nonprofits that need help with Filmmakers. Musicians, and Editors that want to help them.

We had our first official match this week with a great program called Memories for Surviving Kids in Round Rock, TX. Their mission is to encourage the friends and family of deceased parents to write letters for the surviving children. We were able to hook them up with a production company here in Austin called Core Media Entertainment. Now they are in talks and have even set a November deadline for action around the project!

That’s what Lights. Camera. Help. is all about and we are proud to be a part of this match. So interested in learning more? Hop on over to Project : Action! and get signed up today.

Checking this out.  Hiking for the  Hill Country Conservancy.

The HCC “Hike the Half” team is similar to other non-profit charity running teams, the only difference is instead of running, we ask team members to train by hiking around Austin! While HCC is primarily a land and water conservation organization, we are working on the extension of the Barton Creek Greenbelt to Kyle- a 30 mile trail, which will provide public access to conserved lands over the Barton Springs recharge zone! The proposed trail will be a perfect path for training for future half and full marathon hikes!

How to Get Involved?
Step 1: Sign up to Hike the Half on the HCC Marathon Sign-up Webpage More information may be found on the HCC website.
Step 2: Register for the Livestrong Austin Marathon. Please note, HCC is not responsible for registering runners for the race.
Step 3: Register for optional training courses. Ask Cheyenne (Cheyenne@hillcountryconservancy.org) for more details!

Our rocking friends over at the Ronald McDonald House are looking for a video Intern. Here is the job description:

Video Intern:

We are looking for someone who loves to shoot, edit and produce video in a casual environment.  This does not have to be someone who is studying video but does need to be someone who is passionate about creating it.

Please contact Jan Gunter at jgunter@rmhc-austin.org

Skills needed:

1.      Basic editing of raw footage that we would provide

2.      Ability to shoot video with families who are going through challenging circumstances

3.      A creative edge and desire to use video to convey our story and our message

4.      Preferably someone who has their own video editing software as we only have basic software here

5.      Personal video equipment not required but would be a bonus

6.      Desire to work on a collaborative team to help increase the online video presence of our organization

Hey Gang,

I’m trying to assemble a master a list of places to get your nonprofit film distributed after it’s done. Can we brainstorm together? Just last week a local filmmaker named Josh told me all about the Netfilx open submission process. Which is pretty cool, no? There is of course YouTube, Vimeo, Viddler and a host of others. And of course the Lights. Camera. Help. Film Festival as well.

But where else? Where are you putting your films when you finish them? Leave a comment below and I will compile the list.

Whoa. It’s already time to vote for SXSW Panels? As you might know SXSW is the biggest gathering of Geeks, Coders, Nonprofit folks, Biz Folks, Start Ups, Filmmakers and Musicians in the world. I am lucky enough to be on three panels this year and would love your votes!

If I get in it will by sixth year to present at this amazing event!

As you know, to vote you first need to register – its free!  And no spam!  Voting instruction below:

1.  Click on this link : http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/users/register?return=%2Fideas%2Findex%2F7

2.  Register to vote.  SXSW will not use your information to sign you up for the conference or put you on a mailing list.

3. Check your email and follow the steps to vote for my presentations at 2011 SXSW Interactive.

Method Tweeting for Nonprofits
http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/ideas/view/5947

Your Nonprofit goes Mobile
http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/ideas/view/6987

Nonprofits and Free Agents?
http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/ideas/view/5847

Just click the thumbs up button and feel free to leave a comment.   Voting lasts until August 27th.  Tell your friends!

Well I think this video sums it up, no? We had a great turnout this weekend at VideoCAMP Texas and hope to see you at the next one!

If you’re a nonprofit in Central Texas and don’t know the folks from AustinInvolved you should. period. And she’s a natural on video.

Austin Involved volunteer day at Lights. Camera. Help. from Courtney Clark on Vimeo.

http://videocamptexas.eventbrite.com/

Are you coming?

Video For The People

VideoCamp Texas is a FREE one day ad-hoc gathering of video, public relations, new media, and marketing professionals born from the desire for people to learn about best practices in online video production and distribution in an open environment. It is an collaborative event with discussions, demos and interaction from participants who are the main actors of the event.

How To Participate

Share What You Know

Whether you’re a seasoned video producer, search engine marketer or are just learning about YouTube, come out and share what you know, learn new skills, and network with other like-minded professionals.

We invite you to come share and learn about:

* Best Practices in Online Video
* Public Relations and Video
* Shooting for online video
* Vlogging
* Lighting tips and tricks
* Choosing the right audio equipment
* Video SEO
* Non-Linear editing and compression
* Video for non-profits
* Seeding video and distribution
* And whatever else you can dream up.