FESTIVAL NEWS
April: Presentation of Still Standing before the Maxine Greene Foundation
In April, two of the youth filmmakers responsible for Still Standing, the winner of the Seventh Annual Media That Matters' Jury Award, addressed world renowned philosopher Dr. Maxine Greene's salon. They presented their documentary to a room full of educators and participated in a discussion about teaching injustice with a tone of hope and possibility. The film seeks to highlight the different challenges facing evacuees and New Orleans citizens in the months following Hurricane Katrina. It does so by intimately portraying and contrasting the experiences of survivors still living in New Orleans with those living in temporary housing in Queens, New York. In the process, Still Standing discusses broader issues which have plagued urban American communities for many years. These issues include: the neglect of poor and minority neighborhoods, the inadequacy of public assistance to provide long-term solutions, and the struggles necessary to spark positive change. This event, which occurred in the face of recent reports that American schools are yet again failing low income students of color, provides a piece of positive news about the youth of EVC and offers a consequent degree of hope. These filmmakers, graduates of the Educational Video Center's Youth Organizer's Television Program (YO-TV), have been extremely active since the Seventh Annual Media That Matters Film Festival. In particular, Ines Morales has joined Arts Engine in talking to youth about Still Standing and the work that she has done since. She was also a member of the Jury for this year's Eighth Annual Media That Matters Film Festival.
By Christina Capatides
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