Alumnus Lights Up the Sky with His Drone and Fireworks Business
By Kenna Caprio
Photos: Bill Blanchard
July 1, 2024 — August Santore, BS’91 (Flor), wants people to look up at the sky in awe as they watch fireworks and drones light up the night.
For 134 years, Santore’s family has been in the fireworks business. They own Garden State Fireworks. In 2015, Santore started his own fireworks company, expanding into drones in 2020 with Amazing Drone Shows. He has also practiced law in Berkeley Heights, N.J., since 1996.
He describes his work with drones and fireworks as a “relentless pursuit of perfection.”
His company designed the fireworks for President Biden’s inauguration.
“What I see in my brain is what I should see in the sky. We want to give people what they expect — and that takes tremendous effort. We work really hard.”
To put on a drone show, Santore and his team must be licensed and receive special waivers with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The licensed pilots and technicians cooperate with local jurisdictions and fly their drones at 400 feet.
Santore customizes each show, starting by establishing a client’s goals, theme and budget. Then the computer coding of the drones begins. He and his team determine which image requires the most drones, and build backwards from there to execute images, logos and text.
Recently, Santore returned to campus to put on an end-of-semester drone light show. He and his team rendered images of the Devils mascot, the University shield, a diploma and more.
“My nephew is studying at FDU. We had some discussions through my brother and the school to set up the show,” says Santore. “For me personally, I hadn’t been on campus in many years. So, getting a chance to be back and to have the opportunity to integrate the mascot and other images on a huge scale in the sky made it a great night.”