A Statewide PSA, Created in Springfield

You might not know it, but the newborn hearing screening PSA airing across Illinois right now was produced in Springfield. Storyteller Studios handled the production. The Ad Council commissioned it from New York. The Illinois Department of Public Health approved it, with the Governor’s office watching.

Here’s how it was made.

New York called

The Ad Council produces some of the most recognizable public service campaigns in American history. Smokey Bear. “Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk.” They reached out in July 2025 with a project for the Illinois Department of Public Health, a 30-second spot called “You Might Not Know It” about the free hearing screenings every baby born in Illinois receives.

People assume this caliber of work only comes from a big-market production company. The Ad Council put that assumption out for bids. The winning bid came from a six-person team in Springfield, totaled six figures for production and post combined, and landed on target.

“In our initial exchanges, it was clear that the Storyteller Studios team was a detail-oriented and thorough team. The Ad Council was looking for a production partner that would approach the project with an experienced eye.”

Rebecca Brower, VP/Exec Producer, Creative Studio, The Ad Council

Their script, our everything else

The Ad Council wrote the concept and the script. That work is theirs. Everything else was ours:

• Production storyboards and a full shot list
• Casting, including a principal newborn and a reserve newborn
• Location sourcing, permits, and set builds
• Two shoot days with all six of us on set, no freelancers
• Voiceover casting, direction, and recording
• Complete post-production, from edit through color, mix, and final delivery

The vision first

The story of the spot hinges on one cut. A newborn’s eyes, closed during a hearing screening. A school kid’s eyes, open. Years pass in a single edit. We storyboarded every frame first, down to the button push that starts the screening.

Casting a newborn

Casting a newborn is its own discipline. You book a principal and a reserve, because newborns don’t take notes and don’t care about the call sheet. You plan the day around feedings and naps. You keep the set warm, quiet, and fast.

The real baby worked only the shots that needed her, with her mom an arm’s length off camera the entire time. A stand-in doll handled blocking, lighting setups, and rehearsals. The industry calls it a prop baby. It was the best-behaved actor on set.

A hospital that wasn’t

The hospital room wasn’t a hospital room. We sourced the location, built the set, and laid vinyl flooring so the room would read as clinical instead of conference room. We found a room in a local church and built the rest. IDPH arranged a real screening device on loan from the manufacturer and had their audiologist on hand to keep the screening accurate. If a nurse watches this spot, nothing should look wrong.

“The Ad Council felt the location choice was a very creative solution that met the needs of the project. Dressing one room like a hospital patient room allowed us to have complete control over the audio, the lighting and holding spaces.”

Rebecca Brower, VP/Exec Producer, Creative Studio, The Ad Council

On air

Chris Costello directed the shoot, shot it, and edited both spots. Post ran the full scope. Editorial for the 30-second and 15-second spots. Broadcast versions in 16×9, plus square and vertical cuts for social. Clean versions without graphics. A full mix with split stems and a broadcast-safe color grade.

The spots began airing statewide on April 1, 2026. Regional broadcast television, social, and digital, in every corner of Illinois.

Same discipline, differently deployed

Storyteller Studios is known for documentary-style films. This was a scripted commercial spot, and it asked for the same things. Preparation that borders on obsessive. A crew that works together every day. A refusal to ship anything we wouldn’t put our name on. The form changes. The approach, the discipline, the commitment to quality and collaboration never do.

“The Storyteller team understood the realities of working for a non-profit and they utilized their internal resources to deliver the highest quality product for the budget.”

Rebecca Brower, VP/Exec Producer, Creative Studio, The Ad Council

We made this one 20 minutes from our office. We’ve made 700+ projects across 23 states. Home is a base, not a boundary.

👉 Work with us

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