On a week when the Democratic convention was supposed to dominate news cycles, the West team of producer Steve Fluty and video journalists Aron Ranen and Terry Chea delivered impressive video of the raging California wildfires, grabbing AP’s top spots for video downloads. Ranen and Chea captured powerful live shots, including homes ablaze with no firefighters in sight, as well as character-driven pieces about those who had evacuated and some who lost their homes. Fluty produced multiple video edits, spending hours scouring affiliate footage for the best shots, merged with AP’s own footage for compelling pieces that were heavily used by clients.
California wildfire footage tops the field on a heavy news week
Homeowner John Gardiner describes the fire threat to homes in his neighborhood, outside San Francisco, in an Aug. 2020 still image from video.
Still image from AP video