With four years of rapport under our belt, Human Centric Media turned this multi-day energy industry conference into a suite of evergreen storytelling assets — encouraging registrations and attracting sponsors with a narrative campaign focused on warm connections and fruitful relationships.
We’ve been collaborating with the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA) for many years now. Helping them achieve their goals is about more than just checking boxes — we rely on our intimate knowledge of their history, values and personnel to tell stories that connect on a deeper level.
EFX 2026 brought NEEA’s staff and their partners together in Boise, Idaho. Across two sunny spring days, they gathered to exchange insights and reconnect with their colleagues.
The energy industry is evolving rapidly. All across the Pacific Northwest, houses are being retrofitted with heat pumps, utility companies are incentivizing the adoption of energy efficient appliances, and policymakers are scrambling to respond to conflicting priorities and rising prices.
Media that Invites You In
NEEA’s partners flock to EFX every single year not just to exchange important knowledge — it’s the richness of their relationships that keeps the alliance strong, and its momentum growing.
Human Centric Media centers relationship-building in its work, from the discovery process all the way up to campaign deployment, because we know the power of this rapport. You can see it in the eyes of our subjects, the way they look at each other and at our cameras. That’s what communicates impact.
Skillful media production understands business objectives and designs strategic narrative infrastructure to meet those needs. In the case of EFX, it was imperative that we produce campaign assets that speak clearly about why people attend the annual conference: the opportunity to connect with trusted peers.
Every single frame of photography tells audiences a complete story — about the sort of connections they’ll find when they attend, and the innovative knowledge that each professional is carrying with them.
Capturing Scale by Zooming In
It can be tempting, when trying to document the scale of a conference like EFX, to zoom all the way out. Other media agencies might deploy drones, sweeping vistas and flowery mission statements to tell the story of NEEA’s work, and its impact on the Pacific Northwest’s energy ecosystem.
But this approach completely misunderstands what modern audiences connect with. They crave grounded, relatable narratives. Characters who speak and live authentically. It’s aspirational.
When we photograph a speaker on a panel, we’re carrying the weight of their appearance: the opportunities it creates in their careers, and the imagination their presentation might spark in others.
When we photograph two colleagues embracing after a year apart, we know that expression means something — it’s the warmth that keeps these professionals pushing, creating and growing as individuals.
Telling stories that people can relate to isn’t rocket science, but it requires intention. It starts with the questions we ask in the discovery process. Throughout the two days of EFX, we come to know attendees by name, and learn about what motivates them to do their best work.
That knowledge is the spark behind every frame. It’s what makes the assets sticky, and powerful.
Oriented Around Impact
At our core, human beings want to leave their mark. We strive to see more of the world, improve our families’ lives, and leave the world a slightly better place.
A large conference like EFX is a collection of people trying to make an impact: caterers feeding hungry brains, keynote speakers reflecting on their journey in the industry, panelists sharing their passion.
Human Centric Media builds campaigns that last and reverberate by centering this impact. We don’t have to manufacture it! We just stay ever-curious, and make room for it to blossom.
What keeps you motivated in your work? We’ll help you tell that story.
