A Q&A With Metro Productions President Patrick Walsh
1. Could you share a little bit about yourself? We’d love to know more about you, and your role.
My name is Patrick Walsh, President of Metro Productions.
Metro Productions (Metro) is a script-to-screen media production agency based in Virginia. I began my journey with Metro in the late '90s as a grip, collaborating with a talented location production team to produce marketing, recruitment, and training videos for the U.S. Army and Army ROTC. This was the catalyst for my career, as I quickly became captivated by storytelling through video.
The Vacation Channel, Metro’s in-room tourism service, which acted as an independent concierge for guests in hotels and timeshares across the Hampton Roads region. This role allowed me to expand my skills in scriptwriting, producing, directing, and business development. I also served as the on-camera host for several years, which gave me invaluable insight into the experience of both being in front of and behind the camera.
After nearly a decade with The Vacation Channel, I returned to Metro in a business development and project management capacity.
I also briefly worked with our sister company, M2 Pictures, where I was Manager of Development. M2 Pictures focuses on developing true crime docudramas for networks like Investigation Discovery and National Geographic. My role involved scouting unique talent and stories, crafting pitch reels, and presenting them to network executives.
In 2017, I returned to Metro in a business development role, and in 2020, I became President. My role today is dynamic, as I oversee daily operations and strategize Metro’s evolution to remain relevant in an ever-changing landscape. As a small business, everyone at Metro wears many hats, and I remain actively involved in project management for several healthcare, defense, and government clients. I’m deeply passionate about the creative process, and this allows me to remain engaged from concept development to final delivery.
Outside of work, I live in Norfolk, VA, with my wife, our two sons, and our golden retriever.
2. 89% of people say watching a video has convinced them to make a purchase. What are some of your recommendations for product videos when it comes to video marketing?
The first thing that jumps out to me is understanding your audience. If you know who is going buy your product, then you can tailor your product videos to engage with an interested buyer instead of the masses. Your target audience could be females in their mid-40’s with an annual income of $80,000.00 a year or a Chief Information Office that works at a hospital. So once you know that, you can really craft a video with a unique storyline that resonates and evokes a response. I believe when most people think of a product they think of something tangible like shampoo, toys, soda, electronics, etc. That is far from the truth. I believe that your brand is your product as well. So as you are developing a product video you also need to be increasing your brand awareness and brand loyalty.
3. Storytelling and authenticity are more important now than ever before. How do you work with your clients to create short form videos that inspire and create an emotional connection in 30 seconds or less?
Start by understanding the video’s intent—whether it's a commercial to sell a product or a fundraising video to engage donors. Next, our creative team develops several concepts based on the client’s needs, refines one, and moves to scriptwriting and storyboarding. This gives both the team and the client a clear visual roadmap, helping to evoke the desired emotional response. Pre-production is crucial for success, so ensure early creative buy-in through collaboration. This avoids headaches during production and post-production, saving time and resources.
4. Do you use AI tools or effects? Anything new we should know about when it comes to video and AI?
We do use some AI tools in post-production. Our entire editing team works off Adobe Premiere who has been at the forefront of AI technology for video production companies like ours. AI voiceover has been a game-changer for us. Five years ago, we would have had our editors or producers record a scratch track using their voice to drop in on a rough cut while we determined who the actual voiceover actor would be. Now we simply upload the script copy into Adobe and it will generate an AI voiceover. You can go as far as getting AI to generate voiceover in different accents from all over the world or any other demographic you want to portray. It’s frighteningly accurate. It is also making the workflow process faster by speeding up transcriptions, editing, color correction and audio editing. However, with that being said, it is far from perfect and will always need a human touch.
5. We heard the amount of time users spend watching video keeps going up—people watch 17 hours of online video each week, What trends do you see coming in 2025 for video? What should marketers be thinking about for next year when it comes to planning video shoots and campaigns?
I don’t see this trend slowing down. I believe you will see these numbers continue to rise as people consume content at such a high clip. It is just too accessible. Roughly 85% of businesses are using video as part of their marketing strategy. These same marketers report that video helps generate 66% more qualified leads and made revenue 49% faster than businesses not using video. Video isn’t always cheap so it may not always fit into your marketing strategy. It may be something you plan a couple years out. I suggest that businesses who are creating their marketing strategy for the following year or beyond to do some research. Decide what kind of video products you would like to create and reach out to several media production agencies to get an idea what you might need to budget for. Once you are ready to get started, select the agency that will be the best collaborative partner and represent your brand with integrity.