Community Producers Program is Thriving!
A few months ago Media Make Change partnered with the Beyond the Bricks Project to create a comprehensive media literacy program that serves young Black males. The Community Producers Program is a four-month course that invites young Black males to interrogate media images and subsequently create their own stories using digital media technology. We're elated to report that the program, now in it's second month, is thriving. Take a look at the new campaign video featuring several young men currently enrolled in the program at Teachers College, Columbia University--a sponsoring university.
We encourage you to donate to the summer fellowship program, an extension of the Community Producers Program, so the young men can continue to produce awe-inspiring work. If you are unable to donate, then please consider spreading the word to your various networks and encourage family, friends, and co-workers to contribute to this project.
On behalf of Media Make Change, I want to thank all of those involved in creating this program from the ground up, including Derek Koen, Ouida Washington, Dana Salter, Nisaa Ali, Bianca Baldridge, and Jose Vilson. I'm overjoyed and proud to have been a part of this project with all of you.
Interested in working with and/or contributing to Media Make Change? Contact us directly at mediamakechange [at] gmail [dot] com.
MMC Partners with Harlem Scholars for 1-Day Workshop!
Harlem Scholars Program at The City College of New York
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NEW YORK CITY - Media Make Change will host a 1-day workshop this Saturday March 31st at City College with high school students from Frederick Douglass Academy. MMC is excited to collaborate with the Harlem Scholars Saturday Institute and their college readiness program. We will work with students and guide them on how to use social media and blogging tools to spread awareness about topics relating college prep. Students will produce media according to the following college readiness topics:
- Increase cost of attending college
- Minority faculty/professors on college campuses
- Retention and graduation rates of minority students
- Student services and career development
- Campus organizations
- Relationship between school and school athletics
- College ties with the community
As part of an interactive workshop, students will be invited to post teams blog here on Media Speaks! about one of college readiness topics above. MMC has hosted interactive workshops in the past. In 2009 our team went to Detroit and presented an interactive workshop on Social Media for Social Justice (you can check out the photos from Allied '09 on our Facebook page).
We encourage our online community to get involved. If you'll be on Twitter this Saturday morning from 9AM to 11AM, follow us at @mediamakechange and use the hashtag #MMCHarlemscholars for up-to-date tweets from the event. Students will also be using their smart phones and computers to live-tweet projects as they post to Media Speaks! We also encourage HBCUs that are on Twitter to be involved in the conversation. Some of these students might be headed toward an HBCU very soon, and what better way to engage them while they're researching colleges than through Twitter!
See you on Saturday!
Keep Watching Vo. 2: Police Pepper Spray Protesters
Police officers pepper spray UC Davis students with countless digital recording devices capturing the event. Digital counter surveillance--namely what we see happening as protesters become citizen journalists by turning digital cameras on the system that is meant to protect them, can arguably be seen as a tactic of the #OWS movement. Time will only tell if, in fact, these are tactics of the movement that can work to transform policies in the long run. In the meantime, keep watching.
"A police officer uses pepper spray on an Occupy Portland protester at Pioneer Courthouse Square, Oregon" (via The Guardian).
Video of UC Davis students being pepper sprayed by the police.
Youth Uses Online Animation Platform to Tell Story
DAVIE, FL. - Thirteen-year-old Anthony Conley is one of many digitally connected youth using free web-based multi-platform programs, like Pivot, to tell stories through animation. Online consumer-based animation programs are on the rise for youth populations, a demographic group of which 93% use the Internet (91% boys; 87% 'Black'). Pivot is relatively easy to install and use on PC operating systems (Stykz is its sister program for Macintosh operating systems). Pivot and Stykz may have positive implications for educators who are thinking about engaging ways to incorporate basic animation and design methods into the classroom. Media Make Change has made Pivot and Stykz part of the Beyond the Bricks curriculum in order to broaden the ways in which community producers can create and tell stories using digital media. Check out the interview below as Anthony talks about using Pivot.
In your own words, what is Pivot?
Pivot is an animation program that expresses who you are, like for me, if you're someone who likes Dragon Ball Z [an Japanese animated manga series].
Why do you use Pivot?
I have a very creative mind so Pivot allows me to convert my creative ideas into an animation.
What are your favorite objects or stories to create using Pivot?
Well, I usually create my own versions of Naruto and Dragon ball Z, but anything goes with me.
How does Pivot help you illustrate & tell a story?
Each scene brings new ideas. A scene could start off with a guy drinking coffee and then he might end up seeing something going on outside his window. [Pivot] brings a wide range of ideas into play.
Would you recommend Pivot to anyone?
Yes and no. I say no because it takes time and effort. You can get frustrated easily because the animation doesn't come out the way you think it should.
Do you plan on doing anything with animation or graphic design in college or as a career?
Maybe, I'm really good at it!
What other animation software do you create with?
I'm starting to use flash animation, but the rest are too complicated.
Do you create using other software technology besides animation? If so, can you list and describe them?
I use this program called Google SketchUp. It's like making a blue print for something you want to build. It's self-explanatory really. Lol.
Here's an advanced video example of Pivot animation:
Special thanks to Anthony Conley for being interviewed for this article.
Media Make Change Wants to Partner with YOU!
Media Make Change is currently seeking to partner with community and non-profit organizations to provide media literacy and technology training services to underserved and youth communities. Some of the key highlights of our curriculum include:
- Social Media for Social Justice (See past workshop outline for Allied Media Conference).
- Media Literacy Training based on media education scholarship from Teachers College, Columbia University and Temple University.
- Video and Film Production lead by documentary media maker and founder of Media Make Change, tara l. conley. See more of conley's work on Vimeo.
- Photography lead by local photographers and artists in the NYC metro area.
- Computer Literacy Training lead by founder tara l. conley whose work experience with child and adult learners spans over several years.
Media Make Change wants to build a culture of learning through media and technology. As we transition into a new season Media Make Change will focus on partnering with organizations that believe media are effective tools for advocacy, creativity, and learning.
If you are an organization seeking to expand your services and outreach to the community through media and technology, please contact us at tara (at) mediamakechange (dot) org.
See more of our work at Media Speaks!