Video/Action Founder and President Robin Smith is an Emmy Award-winning filmmaker with 30 years of experience. A graduate of Ohio University (BFA '72) and Boston University (MS '78), her first documentary was a story about her MIA father, a Marine Corps pilot shot down over Vietnam. CBS News bought rights to the film and she began her producing career first with Charles Kuralt on CBS Sunday Morning (1978-1985) and later with Roger Mudd and Connie Chung at NBC News on American Almanac and 1986 (1985-1987).
In 1990, Robin established Video/Action as a nonprofit production company to produce educational television and multimedia programs on issues affecting women and at-risk children. Under her direction, Video/Action has completed more than 186 productions. Her work has been featured on CBS, NBC, ABC, PBS, FOX, BET and The Learning Channel. She has been honored with an array of awards, including a CPB Gold Award for Excellence in Documentary Television Programming, Capital Region Emmy Awards, CINE Golden Eagles, Telly Awards, Auroras, Omnis, and ITVA’s Distinguished Achievement Award.
An active member of Women in Film and Video, Robin served as president of the Washington, D.C. chapter and received its prestigious Woman of Vision award. She was named a Distinguished Alum in the School of Fine Arts at Ohio University in 2003 and will be receiving the University’s Medal of Merit this fall.
Robin is married to CBS News White House correspondent, Bill Plante. In 1995, they journeyed into the jungles of Southeast Asia to visit the crash site where Robin lost her father. Their personal odyssey was shared with a national audience on CBS News Eye To Eye and is the subject of a photo essay by Dick Swanson.
Andrea Leoncavallo joined Video/Action in January 2005. As Senior Producer, she has created many of our public awareness videos for the Office for Victims of Crime, U.S. Department of Justice. Recent releases have focused on the special needs of human trafficking victims and innovative collaborations between the faith community and the victim services field.
Andrea received an Aurora Award for Survivors of the Storm: Securing Justice in Post-Katrina America. This short film shines a light on passionate public interest lawyers rallied by Equal Justice Works to not only met the immediate, hurricane-related legal needs for thousands of people affected by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, but are continuing to foster the development of long-term pro bono and legal aid infrastructures.
An active board member of the Washington D.C. chapter of Women in Film and Video, Andrea is involved in professional development and community programming activities, including a media literacy program for fifth graders and the Kids World Film Festival that features short films on issues of tolerance, diversity and conflict resolution.
Andrea received a Bachelor of Science in Communications from the S.I. Newhouse School at Syracuse University. She began her career as the Programming and Production Coordinator at New York City’s WNYETV where she launched an eight-part series, Afterschool, and a thirty-part series, City Smarts for young adults. She has worked on a variety of independent feature films, shorts, and documentary productions including Eat Industry, a film about one family’s journey across America to find out the truth behind the food we eat.
Melanie Star Wilson joined Video/Action in October 2005. As Associate Producer, she was responsible for finding and acquiring rights to use the archival footage and photographs that are a major component of our award-winning documentary, Come Walk in My Shoes.
Melanie has produced numerous training and special events video segments for the Office for Victims of Crime, U.S. Department of Justice. She is our lead producer on productions for NCB Capital Impact, a nationally recognized innovator in community lending that supports projects in low and moderate income neighborhoods.
Melanie received a Bachelor of Arts in Film and Media Arts from Temple University in Philadelphia where she directed a public access show, Poli-Spot, that was broadcast on DUTV and completed Behind the Asylum, a documentary about an abandoned state hospital in Connecticut.
Currently Melanie is combining two loves – documentary filmmaking and scuba diving – into a film called Decompression that will examine the dangerous and competitive subculture of wreck diving.
Lynnette Jackson joined Video/Action in February 2007 and is our Production Manager.
Lynnette began her career in 1993 at Professional Video Services (PVS) in the Accounting Department. Always interested in the day-to-day operations of the company, Lynnette transitioned from staff accountant to a post production project specialist. When PVS closed, she joined Georgetown Post as controller.
Lynnette became a certified make-up artist for TV Tape & Film in 2000 and has done make-up for Tony Brown’s Journal, the longest national public affairs show on public television, as well as a number of satellite media tours and small productions.
Colleen Sieber joined Video/Action in September of 2006. As Associate Producer, she has contributed to many of our productions for the Office for Victims of Crime, U.S. Department of Justice and was a lead producer on a “brand video” for NCB Bank.
Colleen coordinates the Video/Action Media Center at the Washington Jesuit Academy. Thanks to a grant from the Humanities Council of Washington, D.C., she is currently organizing a community screening of Come Walk in My Shoes for high school students.
Colleen came to Video/Action with a background in social justice issues and homeless advocacy and is enjoying the opportunity to develop the skills needed to flourish in the world of documentary filmmaking and writing.
Anthony Harbour joined Video/Action in July 2007. As Production Assistant, he is involved in all of our productions. Prior to joining Video/Action, Anthony worked in several different facets of the entertainment industry including public relations, marketing, advertising, and also network news. But it was his experience with the Public Defenders Service in Washington, D.C. that solidified his purpose and function in life– to share obscure, unknown and compelling stories with the world.