Member Spotlight: PBR Productions

“Corey and Nate produced a video for our fundraising event that told our story in a really compelling way, helping us to raise more money during our mission appeal. They are professional, yet their heart comes through in everything they do,” Candace Clark - Bucks County Chapter of Habitat for Humanity resource development director.

PBR Productions founders Corey Armideo and Nate Hall created their business out of a love for movie making that stretches back to high school.

Short for “Pioneers Beyond Reality” the pair’s business name is a constant reminder of why they do what they do. “It’s every young filmmaker’s dream of making movies,” Armideo explained.

Friends since their high school days at Howard High School of Technology in Wilmington, D.E., they met during television production classes. They were 15 years old.

“We started out doing work in a studio with black curtains, fake ficus trees and a couple of chairs,” Armideo said of those early years of directing, shooting and running audio and producing tv shows for a leased access television channel in Wilmington. “The kind where groups bought air time and came in and made a show,” Armideo said.

Then owned by Suburban cable, a Comcast buy-out produced consolidation and layoffs followed. “We were part of that, and decided we wanted to create our own company rather than work for someone who could [terminate] our jobs,” Armideo said.
Currently based in Quakertown they have worked with a variety of clients - from local non-profits like Habitat for Humanity to mega-news media outlet ABC News.

Honing skills and craft comes with time and experience, one gig at a time.

“Nate and Corey produced a network quality reality show episode for our company TNT Amusements Inc. in Southampton. I was impressed with the care they took with the scripting, music, and editing and ‘keeping me in the loop…,” said Todd N. Tuckey, TNT Amusements president. 

Tuckey said the episode was popular with viewers, created more business awareness and drove sales to the company.

In addition to a planned move late summer from Quakertown to Perkasie to a bigger space, Armideo said offering studio recording time to musicians, as well as other media services, would allow the business to grow and expand organically.

The new, larger location will provide space for clients to create live streaming talk shows and podcasting in a professional TV studio setting.  Think old-school access television station crossed with a YouTube studio, Hall said.

“We will teach people how to create compelling content, coach them on the creative side, while also running the gear and doing the tech side of creating a TV show for the web,” Hall said.

Armideo said a recent collaboration with the Pennridge School District helped bring their television production studio current and on par with Quakertown [Community School District] and Souderton.

Outreach and helping businesses help themselves is the next frontier for PBR, as they roll out education classes, which aim to attract and retain new clients.

“We don’t see this at all as hurting our business, to teach small and mid-sized businesses how to create a quality promo or short video to reach a target audience,” Armideo said.

Two free one-hour sessions will be held July 11 at UBCC’s second floor conference room, at 12 p.m. and 5 p.m. The sessions will last about an hour.

“We want to introduce the concepts and help people understand what they can do with their own equipment to reach a broader audience,” Armideo said.

Additional classes on a fee-based model will be offered to delve deeper into a particular topic like how to choose the best camera angle for a shot, how to create good audio, or how to stage optimal lighting.

The goal is to offer a way for clients interested in DIY models to do their own work better. “For those who don’t want to invest in equipment, or have more complicated projects, that’s where our experience comes in,” Armideo said.

Education and its importance brought Armideo full circle.

He and Hall want to become better teachers to offer classes and share their expertise. Armideo said a technical school education was invaluable in pursuing a career.

“You’d be surprised at what you can do working for a good company that lets you have hands-on experience. I wouldn’t be here today without the [technical school] training I received. You have to keep learning,” Armideo said.

If you go:
What: Free introduction to video making workshop BYO technology
When: Two sessions; 12 p.m. and 5 p.m., July 11.
Where: UBCC Conference Room, 2nd floor 21 N. Main St. Quakertown.
How: Reserve a spot by email to [email protected]​