October 2020

Jackson Wild Virtual Summit 2020 Highlights 

CEF faculty, students, and alum had a strong presence at the 2020 Jackson Wild Summit this year. Two alum were fellows in the highly competitive Jackson Wild Media Lab. AU/CEF graduate Robert Boyd is currently a post-grad fellow with AU’s Investigative Reporting Workshop and hopes to use his skills in filmmaking to create documentaries that highlight the intersection between human society and microscopic life, ranging from insects to viruses.
AU alumna Katie Bryden is the senior digital producer at Conservation International and focuses on a variety of conservation impact projects, spanning work across governments and public audiences. Her participatory filmmaking approach is breaking new ground.

Alum Sylvia Johnson’s film, “Mermaids Against Plastic,” won the Best Changing Planet Film - Short Form category at the awards summit. This short film follows an incredible woman in her quest to protect the ocean she loves from marine plastic pollution. 

CEF Executive Director Maggie Burnette Stogner interviewed the finalists for the Impact Campaign Award for three outstanding films: “The Elephant Queen,” “Sea of Shadows,” and “Peng Yu Sai” for the Impact Campaign Case Studies program. She was a panelist for the live program: “Action Coalition Forum: Impact Campaign Development,” a lively discussion on the challenges and opportunities to achieving media impact.

Maggie rolled out her latest research project, an extensive look at how we can change hearts, minds, behaviors, and create visionary change through media: “Impact Media Report: Creative, Collaborative, and Outreach Strategies for Nature, Environmental, and Science Films.” Funded by HHMI/Tangled Bank Studios, this research launches a conversation for innovative, holistic, and equitable media models. Special thanks to Marjee Chmiel at HHMI and to CEF graduate assistant researchers and co-authors Nicole Wackerly and Carlos Macher, as well as to report designer Kylos Brannon. We encourage you to contact us with your feedback. 

CEF Associate Director Larry Engel was a panelist for the live program “Action Coalition Forum: Stay Healthy, Be Green.” The forum highlighted existing industry trends and a variety of international practices for greening production to create shared standards specific to documentary and nature filmmaking with opportunities for incentivized collaboration with institutions and associations affiliated with media production and distribution. Larry is a leading instructor for the CEF program Classroom in the Wild and authored the “Code of Best Practices in Sustainable Filmmaking,” a guide written to ensure filmmakers are adopting pro-environmental practices throughout their production process. 

Fulbright-National Geographic Storytelling Fellowship
The Fulbright-National Geographic Storytelling Fellowship is a component of the Fulbright US Student Program and provides opportunities for selected Fulbright US Student/Study Research grantees to participate in an academic year of storytelling on a globally significant theme. Utilizing a variety of storytelling media, Storytellers have the opportunity to share their stories, and the stories of those they meet, through National Geographic and social media platforms. The application is due Tuesday, October 13, 2020 at 5pm ET. 

Ford Foundation Release of “Beyond Inclusion” Resource
The Ford Foundation is dedicated to promoting international cooperation and strengthening democratic values to achieve reduction in poverty and injustice worldwide. The foundation’s new research study, “Beyond Inclusion: The Critical Role of People of Color in the US Documentary Ecosystem,” explores how documentary film is used by artists and advocates to advance social change, and how individuals within communities often subject to inequality are used by the industry. The report provides a critical overview of the work and influence of nonfiction organizations led by and serving People of Color in the US. “Beyond Inclusion” calls for a generational investment in POC documentary infrastructure in order to amplify the authorship, analysis, and leadership of communities of color, to advance documentary as a medium of social change, and to build a more inclusive and ethically-grounded sector. 

Her Wild Vision Initiative
A new initiative launched with a focus on uplifting female-identifying photographers, filmmakers, and conservationists worldwide. The directory built through this initiative focuses on professionals working specifically in editorial and other storytelling markets covering issues of conservation, natural sciences, and the environment. The directory is keyword searchable, making finding an underwater photographer located in Southeast Asia or a drone operator in Kenya efficient. Learn more about Her Wild Vision Initiative here. 

Center for Media and Social Impact Book Release
Executive Director for CMSI Caty Chattoo recently launched her book “Story Movements: How Documentaries Empower People and Inspire Social Change,” discussing the function of documentary in democracy with stories of motivations behind major documentary films. The Center for Media and Social Impact at American University is an innovation lab and research center that creates, studies, and showcases media for social impact. CMSI produces resources for the field and academic research, convenes conferences and events, and works collaboratively to understand and design media that matter. More information about Chattoo’s recent book and other publications can be found here.