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New Duke TV Commercial a Community Effort

The ad to air during sports broadcasts features 136 submissions from 42 people in five countries

The university has created a new national television commercial that crams 24 hours' worth of Duke's dynamism into a 30-second spot.

The "One Day at Duke" TV spot draws on more than a thousand photos, videos and messages that were submitted online by Duke community members worldwide on a single day -- April 19, 2013. Look for it during Blue Devil football and basketball broadcasts.

Facebook Album

Help explain what's going on in the commercial by commenting on this Facebook album and tagging your friends who appear in the ad.

One Day image strip

The commercial comprises 136 video clips, photos and Twitter messages from 42 people in five countries. More than 150 Duke students, faculty, alumni and partners appear on screen.

(Tag yourself or your friends who appear in the video in this Facebook album.)

"We wanted this snapshot of Duke to be authentic and engaging, which is why we turned to social media and the wider Duke community," said Michael Schoenfeld, Duke's vice president for public affairs and government relations. "Duke is about momentum and action, something the One Day at Duke project captured better than any script could have done."

All of the video, photos and social media messages in the commercial are from Friday, April 19, 2013. On that day, Duke students, faculty, staff and alumni were invited to submit materials for the spot on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and other social media platforms using the tag #OneDayAtDuke. Submissions ranged from a photo of a wild horse near Duke's Marine Lab in Beaufort, N.C., to a snapshot of doctors meeting in Rwanda to a Twitter message from a Duke doctor saying, "students from Kazakhstan present their projects."

Denise Haviland, executive director of the Office of Marketing and Strategic Communications at Duke, was the executive producer of the spot. James Todd, video manager in Duke's Office of News and Communications, produced the ad. It was edited by Carson Mataxis, senior visual media producer in University Development and News and Communications. Freelance videographers Stephen Garrett and Tyler Northrup joined Todd and Mataxis in capturing key shots.

Promotion of the #OneDayAtDuke online campaign was led by Cara Rousseau, social media manager in Admissions and News and Communications.

The music in the commercial is from the Durham-based band LiLa and was recorded live by Julian Jacobson '13 and the Duke student record label Small Town Records.

Numerous Duke staff, faculty and students helped facilitate the production of the video.