Alanna Kopania

Alanna Delfino-Kopania is a professional visual storyteller and editor based in the Baltimore/Washington D.C. region. She’s a Baltimore nave who is passionate about telling stories involving her community. She is the lead instructor for the University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism’s News Videography courses. She’s a proud mentor to many students and is the faculty advisor for UMD’s Video Club. In the Fall of 2024, Alanna will develop and teach an intermediate level film course called "Documentary Video Production and Cinematography," this will be a required course in Merrill's new documentary Masters program. Alanna’s work is nationally and locally recognized. She’s the NPPA’s 2017 and 2018 East Top Photographer of the Year and a top five finalist for their prestigious National Television News Ernie Crisp Photographer of the Year. She’s earned 13 regional Emmy awards from the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and is the Chesapeake AP Broadcasters Association's 2020 Outstanding News Photographer. Alanna helped co-produce a full-length documentary called “Queen of the Capital,” which appeared at the 2020 Slamdance Film Festival and was eventually bought by Starz. Currently, she is a producer and cinematographer for another full-length documentary covering the creation and growth of The Baltimore Banner. The documentary is set to air by the end of 2025. Alanna launched her career at WJLA ABC7 in 2015 as a news editor in the nation's capital. She bounced back to Baltimore when she was offered an opportunity as a visual storyteller at WBFF. There, she quickly climbed the ladder earning Emmys along the way and gaining attention from national news outlets. In 2020, she made the leap into national news as a multimedia photojournalist for Tegna’s National Verifyteam. For the team, Alanna produced powerful stories on topics like crime, education, health, politics, societal concerns, and sports daily. She also produced long-form data-driven stories and was responsible for videos for Tegna's daily fact-checking content. She and her colleagues produced an award-winning short documentary called “After Shock: Inside a Year of Violence” in 2018. That same year, Alanna traveled to Puerto Rico, where she captured stories from the town of Yabucoa one year after the deadly Hurricane Maria. She was able to document stories of survivors as they received a new water infiltration system, which gave their entire neighborhood fresh water. Alanna was part of Sinclair’s Full Measure team which produced stories in remembrance of the Vietnam War. While there, she witnessed Vietnam's turning over to the U.S. the remains of servicemen who had been missing in action for over 50 years. Alanna is a passionate speaker, a supportive team leader, and a mentor to storytellers across the country. She is a leader and faculty member of the News workshop in Norman, Oklahoma. She has been invited to speak at other events and organizations such as NPPA’s Educational Committee, NATAS National Capital Chesapeake Bay Chapter, Kentucky News Photographers Association, NPPA’s Women in Visual Journalism Conference, Sound of Life Conference, RTDNA’s National Conference and the Society of Professional Journalists FaceTime with the Pros. Alanna can thrive in any environment. She has – and continues to – produced stories with strong natural sounds and powerful visuals that give voice to communities. She does this work passionately whether she is working for local or national outlets, whether she is working as a solo journalist or with a team, or whether she is mentoring the next generation of journalists on the same path to excellence.