Only Today is an Emmy award-winning filmmaking duo based in Portland. When I first heard about Ray and Joyce Tsang, I was excited to learn about such an accomplished team based in my city. Why haven’t I come across them sooner? Well, their work takes them to places around the world more often than not. But they are now ready to invest themselves deeper into the scene they call home. So, I sat down with them to hear all about their journey and how it shapes their goal to give back to their community. They answered the following questions in tandem via email. 

Who are you and what do you do?

Ray and Joyce Tsang are a husband and wife couple, filmmakers for the last 15 years, and also run their own video production company, Only Today. Only Today is based in the Pacific Northwest but its full-time staff is located across multiple cities and states; including Portland, Oregon.

Only Today collaborates with small businesses, nonprofits, and Fortune 500 companies to tell compelling stories through commercials, documentaries, and brand films. Over the past decade, this work has garnered multiple Emmy Awards, not only for Ray and Joyce but also for their talented team of producers and directors. Two came this year, for two videos tied to the 2024 Super Bowl: the opening tease for CBS Sports, My Way, and the short feature Al Davis — Just Win Baby!

Could you tell us more about your journey from being self-taught to where you are now?

Ray responded: My background was in finance and Joyce was a mechanical engineer out of college. After four years of working in our respective industries, we decided on our honeymoon that we didn’t absolutely love the work we were doing. We wanted to focus on something that could have more of an impact on the world. Right then and there we decided to quit our jobs and become storytellers; using filmmaking as a tool to share those stories.

Back in 2009, the availability of educational content was still limited on YouTube, so we took all the money we had saved up to buy a house and purchased equipment, editing software, and flew out to in-person workshops in order to learn how to operate a camera, edit videos, and craft together a powerful story.

We started off filming weddings to pay the bills but quickly got picked up to film games for the NFL, commercials for international brands like Canon and Apple, and eventually working on a feature-length documentary, A Game of Honor, for Showtime.

Transitioning from weddings to shooting a Showtime documentary might seem unlikely, but it highlights the trust we’ve cultivated with both our clients and industry peers. This is a team sport, after all!

We spent the last 10 years building Only Today and have been fortunate enough to produce the opening tease to a few Super Bowls, film in over 40 countries, work with industry titans like John Malkovich, and be awarded 10 Emmys in the process.

Only Today’s 2024 Emmy Award-winning video “Al Davis — Just Win Baby!“

Tell us about My Way and Al Davis — Just Win Baby. Where can people watch them?

Leading up to Super Bowl LVIII in 2024, CBS Sports reached out to Only Today to be involved in two headlining pieces set to air during Super Bowl Sunday. 

The first piece, Just Win Baby, gives the audience a glimpse into Al Davis’s role and impact as the former owner of the Oakland Raiders; now the Las Vegas Raiders. This was relevant since Las Vegas hosted the Super Bowl in 2024.

The second piece, My Way, is a “tease” scheduled to air right before kickoff. While the players themselves receive a lot of attention, the Creative Director from CBS Sports wanted to shine a spotlight on the families behind each player while also celebrating the game in a big visual way. Hence, bringing in an orchestra to perform inside the Las Vegas Sphere with footage of the family, players, and sports highlights playing around them!

Both pieces can be found on YouTube — My Way here, and Just Win Baby here. 

What was the journey of becoming a B Corp* and what does it mean to you?

For us, the certification process was a chance to formalize much of the work that we were already doing. Through a year-long process, we documented and transferred our informal practices into formal policies. The certification gave us a framework to organize our efforts, track progress, and set goals for continuous improvement. The B Impact Assessment helped us recognize areas where we could grow and highlighted our strengths, allowing us to measure and share our impact in a meaningful way!

The process of obtaining B Corp Certified was not just about meeting requirements, but building a structure that supports ongoing growth and transparency. It reminded us that the work of a purpose-driven company is never truly “finished,” and that the certification serves both as a milestone and a motivation to keep striving for positive change.

It also has given us an opportunity to join a larger community of like-minded organizations. After certification, we used the opportunity to connect with our local B Corp chapter, and offer our company’s studio as a free meeting space for communities, such as local BIPoC and LGBTQ+ affinity groups. As a women-led, minority-owned company, we’re proud to be part of a global movement of businesses dedicated to social and environmental impact.

• (B Corp, or benefit corporation, status, according to the B Corp website, “allows corporations to opt-out of shareholder primacy and opt-into stakeholder governance. With stakeholder governance, a company is required to take into consideration anyone that is materially affected by that company’s decision-making, like workers, customers, local communities, wider society and the environment.”

Why did you move to Portland from L.A.? What do you love about being here?

Despite growing up in Los Angeles and spending a few years in San Francisco, most of our time was spent traveling and filming projects out of state. On one fateful morning in 2012, we found ourselves filming a music video for a local band near Laurelhurst Park in Northeast Portland. We immediately fell in love with the culture, the people, and obviously the food! Within a year we found ourselves shipping all our belongings to Portland and have made the Pacific Northwest our home ever since.

What do you wish Portlanders knew about you?

As directors, producers, cinematographers, writers, and editors, we are united by our passion for creating authentic stories that amplify good in the world. We’ve done big commercial productions, Super Bowl spots, and we’ve won Emmys for our work – but our view on success is a bit different. We are most proud of our ethos, how we work, and why we operate the way we do through our commitments to our community, governance, and the environment. 

We are based in the Pacific Northwest but have traveled to and produced films in over 40 different countries. Our work is fueled by a deep love for people — and we are honored to be entrusted with sharing their stories. Each project is an opportunity to capture the essence of human connection, challenge the status quo, and leave a lasting impact on those who experience it — on both sides of the camera. 

How and why are you trying to connect with local businesses?

While most of our clients are out of state and fly us around the world to film on their behalf, we want to direct more of that work to Portland-based businesses. Small businesses here not only produce incredible products and services, many of them also have incredible stories that the local community doesn’t know about. 

And while Only Today is not always the right video production company for them to hire, we have opened up our studio for local businesses, nonprofits, and artists to use in order to support their growth; at minimal or no charge. Our Portland studio has been used for company holiday parties, fundraising events, artist installations, etc. 

How do you think film impacts people?

Well-told stories can educate us, create empathy, and shape our view of the world. Often, those stories are used to influence purchasing decisions, raise money for social causes, or even help someone decide on how they’re going to vote.

We hope that by putting stories out there that our team personally cares about, it’ll also  spark curiosity, create conversation between strangers,  and inspire action for social actions beyond the digital world.

What messages do you want your work to convey to its viewers? 

Powerful stories can come from unexpected people and places. 

What advice do you have for Portlanders trying to make a living in film? What do you wish you knew 10 years ago?

A sustainable career in film — or any creative field —requires an appreciation for the business side of the industry. While you don’t need to be a financial expert, mastering some key basics can make a big difference. This includes understanding how to read a balance sheet, developing strong communication skills, and recognizing the importance of exceptional customer service. These business fundamentals are just as essential as your creative talents in building a lasting and successful career.

What projects are you working on now?

Most of our ongoing projects are under NDA! [non-disclosure agreements]

How can people stay up to date with you?

Follow us on Instagram for updates, behind-the-scenes glimpses, and project highlights! If you’re interested in connecting, do not hesitate to reach out — you can email us at info@onlytodaytv.com. 

You can also visit our website to learn more about our team and past projects at onlytoday.tv. We love to connect with people, and no project is too big or too small. We’re excited to work with those who want to tell genuine, impactful stories!