Walks With Tony: Diplomatic Security Services
Producer // Director // Editor
A production with the U.S. Department of State
Walks with Tony: Diplomatic Security Services Edition was a series episode I produced, directed, and edited for the U.S. Department of State. In this episode, we followed Secretary of State Tony Blinken as he visited the Diplomatic Security Services (DSS) training center. The goal was to give viewers, especially potential recruits, a behind-the-scenes look at DSS operations while keeping the storytelling natural and engaging.
Since the official visit to the DSS training center was the primary focus, our video production had to run smoothly in the background, without drawing attention away from the event. This meant coordinating with multiple stakeholders—DSS, Global Public Affairs, and the Secretary’s team—to make sure everything went according to plan.
Planning the Story
Here’s the challenge: We wanted the interactions between the Secretary and his host to feel natural and like an authentic conversation. On the other hand, we had specific messaging points to convey at each point in the process, and they had to be delivered at particular times.
It was my job to structure the shoot and story in a way where both of these happened.
I considered multiple options for the order and activities that the secretary would take part in. After visits to the training facility and conversations with stakeholders about messaging, I proposed the following scenes.
Scene 1: Introduction
This scene establishes where we are and who we’re with. We make a promise to the viewers about what they’re about to see.
Scene 2: Activity: Tactical Maze
In this scene, we’ll establish what DSS agents do. We’ll highlight the type of work that agents do when they’re not running protection. This is a high-energy scene, with lots of information.
Scene 3: Transition
Here we’ll have the secretary ask the host why he became an agent. This is a calmer scene, giving the viewer a break from the energy of the previous scene. It’s more introspective and about the host’s personal experience.
Scene 4: Activity: Car Ramming exercise
We’ll address, “What is part of the experience of being a DSS agent?” To answer, we’ll have the secretary participate directly in one of the training exercises that an agent would experience. This is another high-energy scene.
Scene 5: Closing
The closing is an opportunity for the secretary to make any observations from his experience and thank them for their time. We’ll address how one becomes an agent briefly in this section.
A couple of things that I’m doing with this structure:
We’re alternating between high-energy scenes and high-emotion scenes. This provides story contrast and keeps the viewer engaged.
Each scene focuses on a specific goal.
Each scene has a single question attached to it based on the goal. This is the question that I think the audience is going to be most interested in.
Before shooting each scene, I tell both the host and the secretary the goal and the question associated with that scene. You can hear the secretary ask that question on camera in each of the scenes
Because of this planning, the interaction that we capture ends up being both authentic and on target.
Shooting Style
From the beginning, I wanted this to feel like an episode of an HBO docu-series. Each shot should feel high production quality and should give the viewer a sense that they’re a fly on the wall during a private conversation between the Secretary and our host.
This was a new style for our team, so I organized two mock shoots to experiment with ideas. These were opportunities to test ideas that I had, but also lean on the experience and creativity of the DP and crew to test out new approaches and styles.
Based on our tests, we decided on the following:
A Cam: DJI Ronin 4D with a 35mm lens
This allowed us to get smooth, floating shots during the walk-and-talks and key transitions
B and C Cam: Sony FX6 on monopods with 70-200mm lenses
With the long lenses, we could get detail shots and create background separation
D Cam: Sony FX3 handheld with a 24-70mm lens
Having a quick camera to capture additional angles was important during the activity scenes
Audio: Wireless Lavs running into a 32-bit recorder
Up to four lav mics were running at a time
We also had a production assistant to run batteries, set up GoPros, and assist in keeping staff out of the shot.
Directing Approach
At the end of the day, I believe a director is hired for their point of view. By the time we got to shoot day, I had laid the groundwork with the team and stakeholders so they not only understood my vision but were brought in as collaborators. My DP and crew had co-created the shoot plan and style and could react in the movement to achieve it. I spent so much time talking to the stakeholders about logistics and defending my choices that they were able to coordinate with day-of staff to make sure scenes took place like I wanted them to.
The result was that everyone on set was working toward a common vision. Sure, there were issues that popped up (like always). But it wasn’t just me fighting to solve them.
The Edit
The editing process was all about maintaining a clean, documentary feel while making sure the story flowed naturally. Syncing multiple cameras and audio tracks took some time, but keeping everything organized made it easier to focus on crafting the narrative. Each scene was edited with care to balance messaging and viewer engagement, and we made sure the final cut felt seamless and authentic.
For deliverables, we created the full-length video plus two short social media promos to drive traffic to the main piece. These promos were designed to capture attention quickly and funnel viewers to the full video, making sure the content reached a wider audience.
Lessons Learned
Clarify your storytelling
Keeping a strong focus on narrative flow and making sure each scene had a purpose was critical to delivering a compelling video, especially when balancing multiple stakeholder messages.
Pre-production is key
Taking extra time to plan, conduct mock shoots, and define the story arcs upfront made the actual shoot and post-production much smoother.
Creative input from the crew matters
Encouraging the crew to experiment during the mock shoots led to creative breakthroughs, like choosing the Ronin 4D for the smooth, cinematic feel we needed.
Collaboration is crucial
Bringing stakeholders into the process early helped build trust and alignment, making it easier to defend creative decisions and stay on track during the shoot.