What’s Next for Creative Expression in Iran?

March 2, 2011

AS PART OF THEIR TRIBUTE TO IMPRISONED FILMMAKER JAFAR PANAHI, The Asia Society is holding a panel discussion about creative expression in Iran and on the director’s work today.

Considering both Panahi’s recent detention, and the sweeping changes taking place in the Middle East, this couldn’t be timelier. Even better, you can take part in the discussion through the free, live webcast.

Panahi was sentenced to six years in prison and forbidden from making films for twenty years. Filmmakers around the world condemned the move and immediately began advocating for Panahi’s freedom.

Activists and ordinary citizens never know if their petitions and protests will bring about positive change. A panel discussion on an imprisoned filmmaker may sound (literally) academic, but adding yet more voices does help.

Panahi and another detained filmmaker, Mohammad Rasoulof, are currently out on bail, awaiting word on their appeal. There’s reports now that the outpouring of support for the filmmakers may be helping their case.

Tune in and participate in the free, live webcast on Wednesday, March 2, from 6:45 to 8:15 pm ET at AsiaSociety.org/Live to learn more and help support these filmmakers.

Read this blog for a wide-ranging blogathon on Iranian film.

Filed under Activists, film, Human Rights, multimedia, News Tagged with , , , , ,

Haiti: The Feminization of Poverty

February 28, 2011

THE ECONOMIC PRESSURES FACING HAITIAN WOMEN is not a new story, but last year’s earthquake brought their situation into everyone’s view. A documentary, Poto Mitan, profiles five women who face these challenges every day.

In this part of Poto Mitan we met Thérèse, who talks about working conditions in Haiti’s factories.

Visit the Poto Mitan website to learn more and take action to support Haitian women. More here and here about life in post-Earthquake Haiti.

Filed under Activists, film, women's rights Tagged with , ,

The Truth About Australia’s Aboriginal Struggle

February 22, 2011 3 Comments

THERE’S AN ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM in Australian society, and it is the continued violation of the human rights of the Aboriginal population. As in the United States, Australia has yet to deal with its history of a European-led, organized colonizing force that committed cultural genocide against the native population.

In February of 2008, Australia’s government formally apologized for its assimilation policies and in particular to the Aboriginal population’s stolen generations.

For some Aborigines, who immediately filed suit to receive compensations, apologies are one thing; real-world action and actionable policies are another.

Three years later, Australian PM Julia Gillard issued the government’s annual report on the Aboriginal population, and put the responsibility of improving conditions in their communities squarely on Aboriginal shoulders.

The film “Our Generation” explores the unresolved issues facing Australian society and looks at the movement advocating for the rights of the Indigenous in Australia.

Watch the trailer and find out what you can do at the official site:

More about this story:

Read an interview with the producers of the film

Filed under Activists, film Tagged with ,

Will This Chinese Village Get Justice?

February 16, 2011

QIUGANG IS A TINY HAMLET IN CHINA’S INDUSTRIAL HEARTLAND, a community living with the pollution produced by a chemical plant that is literally in their backyards. The Jiucailuo Chemical plant, a producer of pesticides and dyes, engaged in runaway pollution that poisoned Qiugang’s farmland, water supply, and sickened residents. In 2007, the villagers decided to fight back.

The Warriors of Qiugang is a 2011 Oscar-nominated documentary short chronicling the community’s struggle against corruption and government indifference. It’s also the story of Zhang Gongli, the farmer-turned-activist who emerges as Qiugang’s leader in the fight to get environmental justice.

When we meet Gongli, a man of limited means and education, he’s already filed two lawsuits against the chemical plant (and lost both). He and his fellow villagers soon realize it will take relentless action for change to come. The townspeople organize and eventually confront factory officials, who threaten and attack the villagers.

Even in the face of violence, the villagers refuse to back down, and Gongli takes the fight all the way to the higher-ups in Beijing.

This absorbing documentary is an incisive look at local politics, as well an inspiring story about the nascent environmental movement in China. Here’s where you can watch the full documentary.

Filed under Activists, China, Environment, film Tagged with , ,

How The Navajo Nation Earned Environmental Justice

February 15, 2011 1 Comment

IT WAS AN ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH MYSTERY without an answer that in retrospect, should have been more obvious to everyone. Why were so many in Elsie Mae Begay’s family getting sick?

Their home, like so many in the Navajo Nation and Monument Valley, sat on land contaminated by nearby uranium mines.

The Navajo Nation area holds the largest uranium deposits in the United States and suffers from the highest cancer rates in the Southwest region. Over 175,000 people live in the area.

A film about the Begay family, The Return of Navajo Boy, went on to become an award-winning documentary as well as a successful outreach tool for environmental justice.

They’ve met with success and hope for more: late last year, the EPA has finally earmarked funds to clean up the contaminated area near the Begay home.

The film recently celebrated its tenth anniversary, but the filmmakers and community continue working to building awareness today. You can see the results of their work in specially-produced web series: watch the latest webisodes at the official site, and visit the action center to learn more about how to help affected Navajo families.

Filed under Activists, film Tagged with , , , , , ,

One Day On Earth: The Other Crowdsourced Documentary

February 2, 2011

CAN ALL OF HUMAN EXPERIENCE BE CAPTURED ON VIDEO in one 24-hour period? Last week Sundance featured the splashy premiere of Life in a Day, the crowdsourced, collaborative documentary that aimed to capture everything happening on July 24, 2010. Spearheaded by Kevin MacDonald and Ridley Scott, the film was broadcast live on YouTube and met with rapturous reviews.

But there’s another crowdsourced documentary out there with a little less Hollywood and much more of a social media slant: One Day on Earth.

One Day on Earth also documents a 24 hour period and took place last October, on the numerically auspicious 10.10.10. Unlike Macdonald’s and Scott’s project, One Day on Earth aims to create and support a global community of filmmakers: professional, grassroots, and everything in-between.

The video archive of all the clips submitted are now online.

Filed under film, multimedia, News Tagged with , , , , , ,

How A Video App Can Save Imprisoned Filmmakers

January 28, 2011 2 Comments

White Meadows, dir: Mohammad Rasoulof / ed. Jafar Panahi/

WHITE MEADOWS IS A VIDEO APP CREATED BY FILMMAKERS TO SUPPORT HUMAN RIGHTS and call attention to imprisoned Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi. Last month Panahi was sentenced to six years in prison and banned from filmmaking for 20 years.

The app, named for the film directed by Rasoulof and edited by Panahi, is meant as a tool of direct action and free speech: you can record a statement calling for Panahi and Rasoulof’s release, share a comment on human rights in Iran or globally, or share your experience.

The app offers a black screen and voice distortion to protect anyone who might be in danger while exercising their free speech rights.

White Meadows was conceived by Cine Foundation International, a nonprofit film company and human rights NGO founded in December 2010. In addition to the video campaign, CFI will launch a series of six commissioned feature-length films and 20 short films about human rights in support of Panahi and Rasoulof.

Record your own message here. More about Iran’s artists and the Green Movement.

Filed under Activists, film, Human Rights, multimedia Tagged with , , ,

Using Video To Inspire Social Movements

January 26, 2011

Image from Granito. Director: Pamela Yates

MAKE A FILM, CHANGE THE WORLD? That’s the mission of San Francisco-based Bay Area Video Coalition (BAVC, pronounced “Bay-vac”), a nonprofit media arts center that trains filmmakers to use video storytelling for advocacy and social change.

The group recently received a MacArthur Foundation grant and Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, recognizing organizations that “deal with the hardest problems humanity faces.”

BAVC’s series “The Stream” asks how art and technology—including text messaging, Second Life, mobile games, data and interactive maps—can make an impact in communities around the world. Watch these films now on BAVC’s site:

“Always in Season“: Can a virtual world help us heal the legacy of racial violence in America?

“Bridge the Gulf“: Who are the real people restoring the Gulf Coast?

“Budrus“: How can we use technology to bring peace to the Middle East?

“Granito“: Can a film tip the scales of justice in Guatemala?

“Hela, Hello“: Can a game create community between Americans and Iraqis?

“Power Poetry“: What if kids used cell phones to write poetry?

“Revolutionary Optimists“: What if children led the public health campaigns in India?

“Finding Sacred Grounds“: Can augmented reality help protect endangered lands?

Follow BAVC on Twitter.

Filed under Activists, film, Human Rights, multimedia Tagged with , , ,

Reel Politics: The Films of Jean-Gabriel Périot

January 13, 2011

JEAN-GABRIEL PÉRIOT IS AN AGITAGOR: his short films confront and comment on current politics, historical events like WWII and Hiroshima, and socio-economic issues, including unemployment and gay rights.

While not exactly documentaries, the films use archival footage and images from the news. Périot edits the images together to create a story-montage, but it’s still up to the viewer to draw her own conclusions about the ultimate meaning.

Despite this, Périot’s voice and intent comes through clearly: he wants a reaction from the viewer.

His latest work, “The Barbarians,” (2010), begins with a slow montage of photo-op portraits of world leaders and other public figures, the kind of static images we’re used to seeing after a summit or conference. One image replaces the other, then adding in another layer to include ordinary citizens, shots from weddings and school events. It speeds up until you can’t quite keep up with each image.

Eventually the images slow down, to reveal the individual, in action, striking against society and its structures: police, buildings, vehicles.

The questions arise: how do I feel about the demonstators? What is the connection between the group and the individual?

Watch all Périot’s short films at his official website.

Here is an article about the exhibition of Periot’s work currently on view in Jakarta.

Filed under film, Human Rights, Photojournalism, Politics Tagged with , ,

A Story of Pilgrimage and Solidarity

January 6, 2011

PILGRIMAGE IS A FILM about a World War II internment camp reclaimed by the Japanese American community and transformed into a symbol for solidarity. The Manzanar War Relocation Center is the starting point of self-discovery and definition for one community. It becomes much more.

The documentary initially tells the story of how a trip to Manzanar by Japanese Americans, including former internees, was the catalyst for a growing sense of activism. What begins as a movement for one group takes on a broader vision, a way for people of all ethnicities to learn from history and join in solidarity, especially in a culture defined by post 9-11 politics.

Filmmaker Tadashi Nakamura is a fourth generation Japanese American who comes from a family tradition of documentarians. Pilgrimage is part of his trilogy on the Asian American Movement. He recently completed the third installment, “A Song for Ourselves,” a film about musician/activist Chris Iijima.

Watch “Pilgrimage” here:

Filed under Activists, film, Human Rights Tagged with , , , ,

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