Case Study: Civic Consulting Alliance – 40 Years of Getting Big Things Done
Client
Civic Consulting Alliance (CCA) – a nonprofit that has shaped Chicago’s systems and strengthened public institutions for over four decades by building cross-sector partnerships among government, philanthropy, and business.
Challenge
Civic Consulting Alliance approached us to create a five-minute “About Us” film marking their 40th anniversary—one that could inspire funders, partners, and civic leaders while also clarifying what makes CCA unique. Their work, while transformational, is complex: they build systems-level change, not quick wins. Their impact unfolds in policy rooms and community spaces, in data dashboards and neighborhood blocks. The challenge was to translate that nuance into something human, emotional, and easy to understand—without losing credibility or depth.
Our Approach: Deep Listening Before Storytelling
We began not with a storyboard, but with listening. Before writing a single line, we immersed ourselves in the CCA world—reviewing decades of projects, interviewing staff and stakeholders, and hearing from those whose lives were touched by their work.
As part of our process we pre-interviewed all our subjects to create a scripted outline of the film that our client to give us feedback on. This allows them to see the film on paper before cameras start rolling and make adjustments as well as educate us on any brand language tweaks we need to be aware of.
-
Derek Douglas
Derek Douglas is the president of the Commercial Club Of Chicago and the Civic Committee and has a vision for actualizing the ideas of the committee through his work on the Public Safety Task Force and police reform. He spoke about this history of CCA and how the Civic Committee benefits from improved government capacity and directly engages in strategy implementation that supports Civic Committee’s mission to drive growth that benefits the entire Chicago region.
Andrea Sáenz
Andrea Sáenz is the President & CEO of The Chicago Community Trust, one of the nation’s largest and oldest community foundations. She spoke about the importance of collaboration through strategic cross-sector partnerships, sustained capacity, and deep expertise, Civic Consulting Alliance amplifies the impact of every dollar invested to improve lives across the Chicago region. That allows everyone to move hard things forward in ways that are sustainable.
Toni Preckwinkle Shared about her experience undertaking complex reformation work in the city of Chicago and how the Civic Consulting Alliance was instrumental in guiding that work. For nearly a decade, they’ve helped convene and guide the Pretrial Stakeholder Group—bringing together judges, law enforcement, advocates, and others to create a more fair and equitable justice system. That collaborative framework has been used for the Property Tax Reform Working Group and health equity strategies.
Deb Dehass Is a new board member at Civic Consulting Alliance and spoke about the collaboration among firms. When working with CCA, Firms don’t just lend capacity—their staff gain invaluable experience. These partnerships help develop their talent, reinforce purpose-driven work, and often create career-defining opportunities.
Jennifer Steans As Civic Consulting Alliances board president Jennifer spoke about her work on the West Side of Chicago connecting her work at Rush to build employment opportunities. She was passionate about everyone having a role in collective action and seeing the value in lifting that work up in the city. Every company, nonprofit, foundation or partner has a key component that can help solve big issues.
Ayesha Jaco Executive Director of West Side United spoke about how the Civic Consulting Alliance supercharged their work - allowing them to accomplish big systemic changes in shorter amounts of time. Making them the first phone call for any initiative that they want to move forward. Be it cross-sector Covid response during a pandemic or health equity work.
Bob WislowA longtime board member of the Civic Consulting Alliance, Bob spoke with passion about growing up in Chicago and seeing the value of communities. He worked with Mayor Harold Washington and has seen the impact of the Civic Consulting Alliance grow to what it is today. He beamed with pride talking about the accomplishments of over 40 years of work.
Rebekah ScheinfeldAs current president of the Civic Consulting Alliance, she shared her vision for the work and what is required to get big things done. That work is complex to talk about and Rebekah helped us understand how their work is rooted in humility, listening and collaboration across many sectors. We were so inspired by. her leadership and partnership on this project.
-
Big ideas don’t matter if they don’t reach the ground. We developed the theme “From The Board Room To The Block” to illustrate how CCA connects communities across sectors—where civic strategy meets lived experience. We paired this message with the tone of Chicago itself: pragmatic, hopeful, no-nonsense, and deeply local. It was important to the client that we show these collaborators on screen. So we conducted an interview style production and got to work designing a production that allowed us to deliver the talking point that their team wanted in authentic ways.
We do that through thoughtful scripting, pre-interviews and design. On set, we ensure people are comfortable and relatable to our audience - conducting interviews like conversations. We then blend scripting and interviews to deliver a film that hits all the notes the client requested while maintaining the relatability of the brand.
-
We rejected overly polished “institutional” language and leaned into a plainspoken, civic pride—a voice that felt like the city it serves.
The script wove together:
The grit of government work.
The hope of partnership.
The human stories that show how systems work when people do.
Execution
Filmed across neighborhoods and offices, the visual language captured the interconnectedness of CCA’s work—policy meetings intercut with real lives touched by their outcomes. We used pacing to balance gravitas with optimism, grounding every frame in authenticity.
Outcome
““Fig Media helped us bring our vision to life, creating a compelling way to share the complex story of Civic Consulting Alliance, our impact, and the many people across the civic ecosystem it takes to get big things done. This will be a tool we use for years to come.””
The final film premiered at CCA’s 40th Anniversary celebration and has since become a cornerstone of their external communications. It helped audiences encountering CCA for the first time understand what they do and why it matters. It now sits proudly on their website and blends in seamlessly with their updated brand. We are so excited to see this project go from our thoughtfully crafted mood board to the cinema we were able to create within the constructs of the project.
Key Takeaway
When you listen deeply, you don’t just tell a client’s story. You reveal the heartbeat behind the brand. And that’s what turns systems into sidewalks—and ideas into impact. At fig media, we specialize in story-driven video production for Chicago’s businesses, nonprofits, and civic organizations. Our work helps clients like Civic Consulting Alliance turn complex missions into clear, emotionally resonant stories that inspire action. Whether we’re collaborating with committees, corporations, or community groups, our focus is the same—bringing big ideas to life through powerful, human-centered storytelling. From boardrooms to neighborhoods, we create films that connect purpose to people and move missions forward across the Chicago region.
Team Fig: Producers Melissa Fox and Michele Gustin, Write Director: Melissa Fox, DP: Brian Carey and Codi Palm. Editor: Codie Palm