Make your school
impossible to scroll past.
I'm Michael Merchan — a cinematographer who turns your real students, teachers, and families into films and photography that fill seats, build pride, and outshine every campus down the road. No stock footage. No templates. Every frame shot for your school.
shot like a film.
Your school does remarkable things. Your marketing makes it look ordinary.
Families choose a school in seconds — on a phone, in a feed, next to the campus across town. A blurry gym photo and a clip-art flyer can't compete with footage that looks cinematic.
The fix isn't a bigger budget. It's the right footage and photos — built to stop the scroll and make people remember you. That's the only thing I do.
A look at the kind of frames you'll get.
Drop your strongest stills into these frames to make this page yours before you send it on.
The easiest first project — and it pays for itself.
You don't know me yet, so let's not start with a big production. We start with one low-commitment shoot that earns trust, brings your school real value, and costs you little or nothing.
Graduate & student portraits
I come in for one day and photograph your students. Parents buy the digital files and prints directly, through a private gallery where they enter their own details and shipping. The school pays nothing, handles no money, and never touches a parent's information.
Staff & faculty headshots
Clean, consistent portraits of every teacher and staff member — for your website, and for lanyard photo-IDs that keep real students and real staff visible on campus. One day, your whole team.
Summer camp coverage
Photo and video coverage of your camps that doubles as next year's enrollment ad — and a gallery families happily pay to access. A genuine new revenue line for the school.
Built to keep parents comfortable and you protected.
A stranger with a camera makes any director nervous — and parents even more so. Here's exactly how I remove that risk before it ever becomes a complaint.
No child is photographed or used in marketing without the consent your school already collects. Period.
Families buy through a private gallery and enter their own payment and shipping. I never see or store their data.
Nothing goes public until your team signs off on the selects. You hold final say on every frame.
Discreet on campus, FAA Part 107 certified, insured, and background-check ready. A safe pair of hands.
From one portrait day to your school's signature film.
Once that first project proves what we can do together, here's where it goes. We scope each of these to your goals and budget.
Testimonial hero film
Two days on campus: ~10 interviews with students, teachers, and parents, plus a full day of b-roll. I cut it into one flagship hero video and a library of social clips. Your community tells your story for you.
Brand / commercial film
Full pre-production: we write a script around your values, history, and culture, then shoot highly produced, intentional scenes that bring that narrative to life. Your definitive "this is who we are" piece.
Candid photo library
A day of authentic, in-the-moment photography you can use everywhere — ads, billboards, social, and the website. One shoot, a whole semester of content ready to post.
Athletics & season highlights
Coach and athlete testimonials, game-day coverage, and montages cut for social after each game — plus featured pieces on your standout athletes. Pride your whole community shares.
The options don't stop here — drone, events, recruiting reels, open-house pieces, and more. We'll scope it together.
Delivered ready for every feed.
Every project ships in the aspect ratios each platform rewards — so your team posts to YouTube, Meta, Instagram, and TikTok without re-editing a single frame.
Simple to say yes to.
15 minutes. No pitch deck — just your goals and questions.
Portraits or one shoot to prove the value, low risk.
I handle logistics, consent, and gear. You run your school.
Edited, multi-format, captioned, ready to post everywhere.
Once you see what it does, we build the bigger productions.
A real person, not a vendor.
I'm Michael Merchan — a Puerto Rican storyteller and former track athlete based in Orange County. I came up through discipline, early mornings, and the grind, and I bring that same standard to every shoot. I work on a Canon R5C and I'm FAA Part 107 certified for drone.
When I walk onto your campus, I treat your school like my own story to tell — carefully, respectfully, and with work you'll be proud to put your name on.
"Crafting moments into lasting visuals."
Let's start with one easy project.
The first step is a 15-minute call — no commitment, no hard sell. We'll find the one project that builds trust and shows your community what's possible.
Prefer to just reply to my email? That works too — reach me at michael@merchanfilms.com