Sixty-five people gathered at Millwork Commons on Thursday, Nov. 5, to watch the Nebraska episode of MADE HERE, a national television series produced by Omaha-based Match/Cut Productions.
The evening brought together people from Nebraska's manufacturing, business and creative communities to celebrate a television project with strong local roots.
Match/Cut Productions traveled across the country to film MADE HERE, documenting American manufacturing and the people behind the work. For the Nebraska episode, the Omaha crew turned its cameras closer to home, taking viewers inside manufacturing operations in its own state.
That local connection became the focus of our public relations strategy when Match/Cut Productions hired Lozafina Marketing & Public Relations to handle its Nebraska launch.
Let’s dig into how the campaign unraveled.
Omaha native Eric Gautschi and filmmaker Nik Fackler co-produced the series through Match/Cut Productions. Fackler also co-created the show, while Justin Brunken brought an industry perspective through Industrial Solutions Network, which developed and presents the series. Rockwell Automation sponsors the production.
A natural fit to host MADE HERE, Chris Luecke brings more than a decade of manufacturing industry experience and a talent for making complex topics accessible. As founder and host of the popular Manufacturing Happy Hour podcast, he has interviewed hundreds of industry leaders about innovation, technology and workforce development. In the series, he takes viewers inside manufacturing facilities across the country to meet the people and explore the processes behind American-made products.
Our team developed the press release, prepared media backgrounders and coordinated interview opportunities. We pitched the Nebraska story to local journalists, emphasizing the collaboration between Omaha's creative industry and the state's manufacturing sector.
A big moment for us was help from our media friends - thank you. The campaign helped secure coverage from the Omaha World-Herald, Midlands Business Journal and WOWT First Alert 6.
On November 2, WOWT's Maria Cade interviewed Gautschi and Fackler about the production and its Nebraska connection.
Watch the WOWT First Alert 6 interview.
Three days later, 65 people gathered at Millwork Commons for a screening of the Nebraska episode.
The watch party brought together industry professionals, business leaders, community members and supporters of the production to see the finished episode and recognize the Nebraska talent involved.
For our team, the evening was an opportunity to see the people behind the project connect with the community they'd spent months documenting.
Public relations often happens behind the scenes, from researching story angles and preparing interviews to connecting reporters with the right sources. Seeing those efforts culminate in media coverage and a well-attended community event made this launch particularly rewarding.
Thank you to Eric, Nik, and Justin for trusting Lozafina with the Nebraska launch, and to everyone who joined us at Millwork Commons.
We're proud to have played a role in helping bring this Nebraska story to a wider audience.
Learn more about MADE HERE | Find the series on RFD-TV
Scenes From the MADE HERE Nebraska Watch Party
Here are a few photos from the November 5 screening at Millwork Commons.
