Pinecrest residents Debby and Ken Miller had a vision when they started their own broadcast and professional video sales and rental company in 1984. Their goal: to provide cutting edge technology and unparalleled customer service.

The Millers take time out in Colorado. Pictured l-r are Debby, Jesse, Lindsey, Sara and Ken.

"Miami is a forward thinking city — a great market for production," said Debby Miller, executive vice president at Midtown Video. "People choose Midtown for high end equipment and accessories as well as our unprecedented customer support. We place great value on building a relationship based on trust and confidence with our clients; a dynamic that continues long after the transaction."

Today, more and more producers look to South Florida as a favorable setting for shooting television shows, commercials, film and print projects. Production companies from Germany and Portugal use Miami’s perfect backdrop of palm trees, sunny skies and Art Deco architecture for a South Beach "look" to sell products. One of the biggest boons to the production industry has been from numerous Latin American cable networks, like The Discovery Channel and Telemundo, who have established headquarters in South Florida to help fulfill growing production needs.

Midtown Video, located in Gateway Office Park (near Castelli’s and Shoes to You) has recently expanded in order to accommodate its growing staff and equipment inventory. When you walk in, all the staff greets you with a friendly hello and desire to help. Look up and you’ll see an ongoing video presentation on a large, flat screen monitor that introduces staff and products in an eye-catching, fast-paced format. It was all conceptualized and implemented by the Miller’s son Jesse, who works at Midtown on breaks from University of Michigan and during the summer. Daughter Sara is an Junior at Tulane and Lindsey attends sixth grade at Palmetto Middle School.

Ken and Debby Miller have grown Midtown Video into one of the largest players in the video production arena. Acting as distributors for big names like Sony, Media 100, Hewlett Packard/Transoft Network and Intergraph have earned them top sales accolades, including Sony Broadcast’s National Top 10 Dealer award.

"I feel that we can attribute our company’s success to our knack for staying one step ahead of state-of-the-art," explained Ken Miller.

Midtown clients include every broadcast and cable network in the Southeast, local television stations, production companies, corporate clients and post houses from Key West to Palm Beach. Midtown staff also custom designs production studios and digital and non-linear edit suites for numerous customers, including The Box, The Music Zone, Ryder Systems, Motorola and Paradise Video.

For all their successes, the remarkable thing about the Miller team is that they are some of the kindest, most unassuming people you’d ever meet. Have a problem? (Not necessarily production-related) Ken will sit with you and talk it out for hours. And Debby, a University of Miami graduate, former PTA mom and Miami native handles the public relations and marketing for Midtown. She is honest, fun, and on-the–ball. When Debby gets those gears turning for a specific idea or concept, watch out! You bet she’s going to run with it! And this mode is reflected by the up beat staff who are never too harried to get you a cup of coffee and help you with whatever you may need.

In fact, Midtown and its staff are very community-minded. They donated all necessary production equipment for a high school video AIDS education project called "Waiting" and provided a broadcast camera package for SHOAH Foundation interviews. Every year, they donate equipment for the Orange Bowl Committee’s half-time show and sponsor industry events like WOMPI (Women of Motion Picture Industry) and AICP (Association of Independent Commercial Producers). Also a V.P. of PERA, the national (Production Equipment Rental Association) Debby encourages Midtown’s sales staff to attend the big NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) show every year in order to keep up with Midtown’s "trend-setting" pace and cutting-edge technology.

This year, the Millers are celebrating 15 years of hard work and success with an open house and equipment showcase on Oct. 21, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Clients and customers will have the opportunity to talk with company reps and demonstrate the latest camera equipment, accessories, editing systems and content creation software during this day-long event.

"Our customers are like partners in this rapidly expanding industry," Debby Miller said. "We try to listen to their needs and guide them in the right direction. So far, the results of our efforts seem to be paying off."

Please call 305-669-1117 for more information or visit Midtown’s website: <www.midtownvideo.com>.