Behind-The-Scenes for 1023 Forest Avenue

By David Tobener

When the stunning Queen Anne Victorian home at 1023 Forest Avenue in Palo Alto presented itself to us, we knew that a standard video shoot just wasn’t going to be enough to do it justice. Designated as a Landmark Property by Palo Alto Stanford Heritage (PAST) and a winner of the PAST Preservation Award in 2002, this circa 1896 home called for something special. Anthony Halawa, DeLeon Realty’s Creative Director, came up with an idea that would both honor the home’s amazing heritage while also showcasing its fabulous modern amenities. Inspired by films such as The Age of Innocence, Anthony brought our standard video shoot back in time to turn-of-the-century Palo Alto. 

Having procured period costumes from the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, we went about filming a video meant to both inform and entertain. DeLeon CEO Michael Repka, along with DeLeon Team members Gene Wilkins, Kimmy Vigil, and Crystal Garcia, transformed into sophisticated socialites enjoying a fabulous dinner party on the grounds of 1023 Forest Avenue. The end result is a video that not only tells potential buyers of the home about its wonderful features, as all DeLeon videos do, but also gives them a sense of the property’s historic past. We had a tremendous amount of fun both writing and filming this video, and we hope it provides yet another example of what makes DeLeon Realty the best in the business.