FYI everyone, we also have an educator's guide to using the movie: http://wsisyouth.takingitglobal.org/movie/lvgv_educators_guide.pdf
This DVD cost us a lot more to make (about double) than we expected when we went to get funding for it. Things like the videographer getting arrested, sick in cheaper hotels, missing flights, etc. cost many thousands of dollars beyond budgeted amounts! So if you're interested, we'd love for you to buy it. I think if we sold around 1,500 copies we might break even :) wishful thinking... We added a direct Paypal purchase link on the page: http://wsisyouth.takingitglobal.org/movie/ -- Michael Michael Furdyk Co-founder and Director of Technology, TakingITGlobal.org -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Lars Hasselblad Torres Sent: Friday, March 25, 2005 10:26 AM To: The Digital Divide Network discussion group Subject: Re: [DDN] Movie Review: Local Voices, Global Visions Andy, your idea about getting the TIG DVD into schools sounds like a great idea for the Omidyar Network $25k challenge. Why not draft a one page precis? Perhaps pull together a few reading resources as well...? I guess I should check the website to get my copy, eh? Safe travels -- Acela is fun -- almost makes you think we have modern rail transport in the US ;P Lars -- devarts.org Connecting visual artists to create a better world On 3/24/05 12:02 PM, "Andy Carvin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Movie Review: Local Voices, Global Visions > > I'm riding on an Amtrak Acela train through snowbound Connecticut right > now on my way to the National Model United Nations Conference, where > I'll be addressing a group of 500 youth delegates who are conducting a > mock World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). To psych myself up > for the talk, I brought along a DVD of TakingITGlobal's new documentary, > Local Voices, Global Visions. I got the DVD in the mail just before I > left for India a few weeks ago, so this was my first chance to see it. > > If I could snap my fingers and burn 100,000 DVDs in a flash, I would > send a copy of this documentary to every K-12 school in the United > States, then snap my fingers some more until they turned raw so schools > and youth groups around the world could have a copy as well. This > 45-minute documentary, produced entirely by young people, does an > astounding job at capturing what's at stake with WSIS, which will have > its second summit this November in Tunisia. And it demonstrates the > vital role that youth can play in policymaking, whether related to the > digital divide or other important policy goals. > > The video profiles groups of young people from around the world -- > Sierra Leone, Nigeria, India, the Philippines, Canada and Tunisia -- as > they organize national youth campaigns to mobilize young people into the > WSIS policymaking process. The documentary is broken down into segments, > each one profiling youth activists and their work in their home country. > We get to know Andrew Benson Greene and his colleagues in IEARN Sierra > Leone as they teach their peers to use digital technology and create > music as part of their country's post-civil war healing process. In > Nigeria, 'Gbenga Sesan leads a national campaign to educate youth about > the importance of participating in digital divide policymaking. In > India, we meet a young woman who has opened up her home to a local > orphanage so she can teach children computer skills. And in Tunisia, we > learn about Marouen Mrahi, Rim Nour and their fellow engineering > students as they galvanize Tunisian youth to participate in the next > WSIS summit, which will take place in their home town of Tunis. > > The documentary reaches its climax in Geneva during the first WSIS > summit in December 2003. The young people profiled in the video, along > with hundreds of other youth activists, organize seminars, participate > in summit plenaries, and demonstrate ICT projects to government > ministers. The summit is the culmination of more than a year of > activities around the world, but it's quite clear that these young > people have no plans of wrapping up their activities once they go home. > For one thing, they've got another WSIS summit ahead of them in November > 2005, but beyond that, you get to see how these young people are laying > the groundwork for long-term initiatives to bridge the digital divide in > their home countries. > > I've met many of the young people profiled in this documentary in > person, so it's great getting to see them in the spotlight, but it's not > just because I know them personally. (Full disclosure -- TakingITGlobal > is a strategic partner of the Digital Divide Network, and I donated some > photos from the Geneva summit for the documentary.) Watching them speak, > organize local campaigns and take action, I couldn't help but think > these young people are truly the leaders of tomorrow. In all > seriousness, I wouldn't be at all shocked if one of them - or even more > - end up becoming heads of state in their home countries. They have > charisma, leadership skills, articulateness and a profound grasp of > policy issues. Not only does this video document the role of youth in > WSIS, it documents national leaders in the making. > > Beyond the amazing people profiled in the video, there's the high > production quality as well. TakingITGlobal produced it on a Mac laptop > running Final Cut Pro editing software (I note with some pride, as these > tools are my own documentary weapons of choice), with all the work done > by young people. Twenty-one-year-old Jarra McGrath traveled the world > shooting the film, with TakingITGlobal's Nick Moraitis collaborating as > co-editor and as narrator. Even the music is produced by youth, most > notably the songs recorded by IEARN Sierra Leone. The documentary is a > perfect example of how young people can be producers of high-quality > content, from video editing to interstitial animations to the > Hollywood-quality DVD jewel box packaging. > > I do have one complaint, though; the documentary is not available > online. If you go to the video's website > (http://www.wsisyouth.org/movie), there's a short clip, but otherwise > only contact information for purchasing copies. That's a real shame -- > it would be an enormous public service to make the documentary, or at > least more clips, available for noncommercial and educational use. > > Otherwise, I can't say enough about this documentary. I am so inspired. > It's reinforcing the creative buzz I felt during my recent trip to > India, where I produced two documentary shorts on my laptop. My mind is > racing with ideas, locations, editing tricks: I'm just dying to get out > in the field and make more documentaries now. > > But my short-term goal may have backfired. I intended to watch this > video to get psyched for my speech later today, yet I may have to scrap > my entire presentation for the conference. I'm almost - almost - tempted > to shut up and let this documentary do the talking. With Local Voices, > Global Visions, the youth of TakingITGlobal articulate the importance of > WSIS better than I ever could with just an old-fashioned speech.... -andy > _______________________________________________ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message. _______________________________________________ DIGITALDIVIDE mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.edc.org/mailman/listinfo/digitaldivide To unsubscribe, send a message to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of the message.
