PKGO Forward

Months after coronavirus first garnered global attention, many Americans are still under lockdown. New York’s temporary ‘Pause’ went into effect in mid-March. At that time, the City of Poughkeepsie could\\\\\\\'ve passed for a ghost town. But that was then. City officials recently announced a soft reopening – whereby a share of businesses can open while observing certain health-related guidelines.

Generations from now, Poughkeepsie families are going to reflect on this period, when the city went dormant and emerged from lockdown. The City of Poughkeepsie wanted to contribute to and set a tone for this moment. They approached Ashworth Creative to produce a two-minute video to usher residents through this transition. We called it “PKGO Forward,” and this is how we did it.

On June 9, City of Poughkeepsie officials unveiled the PKGO Forward Economic Recovery Plan, which allowed restaurants and retail businesses to increase their outdoor seating while following social distancing guidelines. This initiative is designed to help business owners maintain their customer bases.

So much of the Covid-19 pandemic is marked by uncertainty. We wanted to craft a message that reflected the public mood but at the same time wanted to frame a message of hope. Crucial information has to come from the top down, so the video opens with City of Poughkeepsie Mayor Rob Rolison outlining the stakes of this moment: “Poughkeepsie has been going for 333 years, and we’ve never had a year like this.”

While officials are capable of so much, the city’s many business owners, essential workers and residents also play a role. Ashworth Creative took extra care to capture moments of ordinary and extraordinary residents pitching in. It\\\\\\\'s a short, 30-second montage, but the city’s communal spirit is on full display.

There’s an art to wrapping up a video, especially a short one. We trained our camera’s eye on the city itself and found it has so much to offer - world-class medical facilities and physicians, parks and the Walkway Over the Hudson, classic and contemporary neighborhoods, easy access to commuter trains, a budding art scene - and that just scratches the surface.