Alex Epstein, who got his video start at a tiny Alaska TV station, has brought his 20 years of television programming experience to Del Hall Video. As executive producer for development, he is positioning the 25-year old company for a major surge in future growth.
“That includes beefing up our multimedia and DVD authoring services and creating TV shows that use our core abilities of established postproduction, field and studio videography services,” he said.
With Epstein aboard, DHV’s plan is to expand capacity by producing proprietary shows with wide appeal on reasonable budgets, about which Epstein has a world of knowledge.
During his five years at the now-defunct Orbis Broadcasting, he was executive producer responsible for all video programming. He co-created two nationally syndicated shows: “Ron Hazelton’s House Calls” for Hearst, and “Better Homes and Gardens” for Eyemark. He also created a daily health Webcast for HealthAnswers.com, the Texas company that bought Orbis from its three original owners.
A New York native and Bennington graduate, Epstein obtained an MBA from Yale with the intention of going to into public administration or service and had some jobs in that arena. “I wasn’t sure that was my calling. I wanted to be in the news business, equating that with the public good,” he said.
While living in Seattle, Epstein was reading a newspaper in the library when he found a want ad for a TV station in Fairbanks, Alaska. “After bugging the station manager for months, he finally sent me a one-way ticket. In January. I measured my time in Alaska by the winters. Five in all. The station was the smallest CBS affiliate, so I got to write, produce, and direct news, shows and commercials.”
In Fairbanks Epstein met CBS correspondent Terry Drinkwater, who casually said, “,look me up if you ever want to leave Alaska, although I don’t why you would,'” Epstein recalled. He shot his resume off to Drinkwater and waited while it tunneled through CBS. Eventually he was hired as a news producer for CBS’ Sacramento station.
Moving to L.A., where he met his wife, a native Chicagoan, he was hired by Disney outlet KCAL-TV as senior producer/special projects. There he wrote and produced syndicated shows, series, specials, and mini-docs. One of the shows was “USA Today,” a national show with daily deadlines.
Another help wanted ad brought Epstein to Chicago. Orbis partner Jeff Bohnson had posted an ad “looking for someone who could improve their production. Jeff responded, and I flew to Chicago for an interview on a memorable day?my wife’s due date?and I got the job.”
After Orbis was sold to Texas-based Health Answers, Epstein went to Mind Sight for 18 months “where I basically worked on new client development.”
Del Hall, co-owner with wife Ginger, is himself a CBS veteran, a news cameraman of great repute. The Halls started their company with Del shooting and editing and Ginger working sound; they now employ 15.
When they bought and renovated their River West studio, the Halls expanded into editing, motion graphics, animation services and production. For the past four years they produced the Park District cable series “Come Out and Play,” hosted by Bill Kurtis.
Del Hall Video is at 1240 W. Jackson. Call 312/733-6500 or see www.dhv.tv.
