Lorraine Summers-Newby has been writing for most of her life, but over the last few years she’s taken her passion to new heights. Through her company, Transformation Media LLC, Lorraine writes and produces conscious projects designed to make a positive impact. She’s worked with rural libraries and mental health organizations, and she’s written a book about positive thinking – and those projects are just the beginning for Lorraine and Transformation Media.

Lorraine’s interest in writing sparked at a young age – she received a diary as a birthday gift and started journaling about the people, places, and emotions she encountered. As an adult, she continued journaling and wrote poetry and songs. Lorraine also worked as a professional singer and traveled with the Department of Defense to perform in USO shows overseas; she even had a publishing deal with LS Records. She wound up living in California with her husband, raised her family there for 25 years, and eventually moved to Nebraska to be near her son while he played college football for the Cornhuskers.

Lorraine kept her writing dreams alive by completing online undergraduate studies in creative writing and earning a master’s degree in New Media Journalism from Full Sail. Her education gave her the foundation she needed to start her own production company, Transformation Media LLC.

Transformation Media creates videos for organizations in and around Nebraska. Lorraine has already directed and produced videos about bringing fiber internet to rural libraries for the Nebraska Library Commission. She’s currently working on a video project for a private mental health agency called Integrated Behavioral Health Services (IBHS).

“The name of [the video] is Hidden Battles: De-Stigmatizing Mental Illness. [We’re working] with IBHS, which serves severe cases. [They provide] treatment, workshops, classes, they feed [patients] during the day. And there's been tremendous success stories from this, and that's what we're recording. We're going behind the scenes into some of the patient's homes, talking with their families, understanding their diagnoses. We’re trying to shed a light on it and show that these people do care, they are humans, they are compassionate, they want to be accepted. Yes, they're dealing with trauma, and they're working through that. So, we're trying to de-stigmatize mental illness with this video,” Lorraine explains.

Working on projects that make a positive impact is essential for Transformation Media. Lorraine is thoughtful about every video she creates, and she makes it a priority to choose productions that will help other people.

“That's the foundation of Transformation Media. We're not going to take on every project; it has to be conscious projects,” Lorraine says. “Meaning it can impact individuals’ lives in a positive way, it can transform perspectives, and it can enlighten society. It could be subjects that people don't want to talk about, and we shed a light on it. Those are the type of projects we take on. And I'm not counting out [other projects] totally. The opportunities that come my way, I have to evaluate it to see, who is it going to impact? Is it going to make a difference? Or am I doing this just for the money?”

Lorraine not only takes an active role in choosing projects, she’s also hands-on during the production process. She tackles research, interviews, and script writing, then puts a crew together, makes call sheets, and organizes contracts. Seeing a story come together in real time is her favorite part of her job.

“I love the writing, but even more, I love onset producing, working with the talent. You have your theme, you have your subject, you have your story, and to watch that manifest is what I really enjoy,” she shares.

Lorraine still has plenty of professional goals she’d like to meet. She’s currently pursuing a PhD in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix, and Transformation Media is promoting her book, The Art of Positive Thinking. Her big goal is to one day collaborate with filmmaker Ava DuVernay (Selma, A Wrinkle in Time). In the meantime, Lorraine is stoking the fires of her dreams and continuing to look for conscious projects.

“I would suggest to someone who's wanting to produce, or direct, or to write is to start doing that. And if you don't have the income to do it full time, just start where you are. Continue working your job and work your dream on the side, but you have to start working on your dream.”