We opened our 2nd day of camp with a presentation from Daniela Capistrano. The LAMPers immediately lit up when she told them she worked for MTV News. She was gracious enough to answer some questions about their favorite shows, celebrities and musicians – and even a tough question (“How and why do they come up with all the spin-off shows?”). She spent the majority of her presentation telling our LAMPers about other great organizations in New York City (Ghetto Film School, Starting Artists, and The Point) that allow youth to explore their creative aspirations in media careers.

Many hands went up when she asked who would like to have a job working in the various media. Thanks so much, Daniela, for your presentation and your help throughout LAMPcamp.

We then broke back up into our Girls and Boys camps, allowing us to pursue some very incredible dialogue about issues that impact their respective gender and how the various media they encounter reinforce, define and propogate these issues.

I was with the boys, so i can only report on what it was we did. Our main male LAMPcamp counselor put together an incredible media montage of various video and images that really got the discussion rolling. Images of Mike Tyson contrasted with Michael Jackson, or Christopher Reeves in his ‘Superman’ uniform with images of him in his wheelchair after his accident, or Wesley Snipes all muscled out as the main character in the movie “Blade” next to an image of Mr. Snipes in drag in the movie “To Wong Foo”.

We asked our boys “What makes a man?” And a fantastic discussion grew from there, as they talked about their own experiences and opinions and openly addressed topics that in other circumstances wouldn’t be comfortable to tackle (i.e. boys who want to dress up like girls). Some of it was received with laughter, some of it with some very serious tones – but all of it was simply a thrill to be a part of as afterward the LAMPers declared how much fun and educational that was.

We then broke out into our smaller groups and started working again on our group media topics. These projects are really going to be fantastic as we can see how the discussion on gender really is going to play out in them.

Some of the more profound moments from the 2nd day:
- It was declared that most of the boys weren’t comfortable with seeing two guys kiss (that it somehow made them less of a man), but thought there was an incredible double-standard that it seems so socially acceptable if two girls were to embrace (which had no impact on how they were viewed as women).

- After just shooting two takes of one shot for their “Thriller” tribute video, the LAMPers declared “Man, if it takes this long just to do two shots for a 5 minute video, no wonder movies take so long to get made and are so expensive.”

- Going through some camera tricks to show them how they can get some cool effects, one LAMPer said,”You’re gonna ruin all the illusions of movies for me.”

Tomorrow, we’re going to chat about their mobile devices, their digital lives and the best practices for how to have a positive online, digital experience. We hope to go into more detail about the private social network we created for LAMPcamp and how we want this to go beyond the completion of LAMPcamp at the end of the week.

NEW YORK, NY: Pure Digital Technologies, Inc., the makers of America’s best-selling camcorder, Flip Video, have invited The LAMP (Learning About Multimedia Project) to participate in the Flip Video Spotlight Program. The program, announced at the Clinton Global Initiative in September 2007, aims to put one million Flip Video Camcorders into the hands of qualified non-profit organizations over five years. Flip Video Spotlight works directly with non-profit organizations through a matching program: for every 60 minute Ultra camcorder the non-profit purchases, Flip Video Spotlight will donate one to the organization. Each kit costs $150. As part of the matching program, The LAMP joins other prominent organizations such as Kiva, American Red Cross, PBS, National Wildlife Federation and Livestrong.

“This is an incredible opportunity for The LAMP because our most popular and engaging media education workshops require video cameras,” says D.C. Vito, Executive Director of the LAMP. “Initiatives like the Flip Video Spotlight Program enable us to continue bringing basic media education training for free to young people, parents and teachers throughout New York City. We’re so proud to have Pure Digital support our efforts to help people make smart choices in a media-saturated world.” LAMP students use video to make their own news broadcasts, commercials, family video albums, documentaries and more. By creating and editing their own material, students explore how and why different media messages are constructed. They also gain workforce development skills to help them join the modern marketplace, which is increasingly dependent upon technology.

With over 1200 approved partners to date, Flip Video Spotlight is steadily expanding its support of non-profit organizations such as The LAMP. “We want to make sure that all qualified non-profit and charitable organizations have affordable access to video equipment and the means to tell their story. We feel that the small size, low price point, high quality, and onboard sharing software make it the ideal companion to any organization’s communications strategy,” says Basho Mosko, the Flip Video Spotlight Program Manager.

Companies, foundations or individuals are also encouraged to participate and can find out more at the Flip Video Spotlight website, www.flipvideospotlight.com.

Groups or individuals interested in sponsoring Flip Video Spotlight Kits should contact The LAMP at info@thelampnyc.org. More information about The LAMP is available online at http://www.thelampnyc.org.

About The LAMP:
The LAMP (Learning About Multimedia Project), founded in 2007, is a certified non-profit organization which strives to provide critical media literacy skills to the inter-related groups of youths, their parents and educators throughout New York City. Media literacy workshops offered by The LAMP demystify the constant flow of media these three groups encounter, bridge the gap between generations, and provide workforce development skills.

Contact:

Basho Mosko, Program Manager
Flip Video Spotlight
inquiries@flipvideospotlight.com

Emily Long, Communications Director
The LAMP
718-789-8170
info@thelampnyc.org
http://www.thelampnyc.org

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Click here to donate online.

Happy Holidays from the LAMP!

Dates: October 6th, 13th, 20th, 27th; November 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th

Time: 3-6pm

Ages: Families of all ages

Cost: FREE!

The whole family comes together to make a video memory book! Shoot and edit a video of parents and children interviewing each other, sharing favorite memories and stories while creating a lasting record to be enjoyed now and forever.

Skills learned include:

• Group collaboration
• Exploring representations of family in commercial media
• Using visuals, words and sound to create a family narrative
• Video editing

To register, call us at 718-789-8170 or send us an email.

Dates: November 5th, 12th, 19th and 26th (possible addition: Dec. 3)

Time: 4:00-5:30pm

Ages: 8-10 years

Cost: FREE!

Explore how different editing techniques are used for sounds and images when you make a video poem! Use your original artwork and writing to learn how different elements come together to make a piece of multimedia art.

Skills learned include:

• Group collaboration
• Exploring poetry using visuals, words and sounds
• Videocamera use
• Video editing

To register, call us at 718-789-8170 or send us an email.

Dates: October 1st, 8th and 22nd

Time: 4:00-5:30pm

Ages: 8-10 years

Cost: FREE!

Using a subject of your choice, write and shoot your own documentary video! Explore the different ways that documentaries can be used, along with basic editing techniques.

Skills learned include:

• Group collaboration
• Critically exploring the languages of visual documentary
• Directing with a videocamera
• Interviewing techniques
• Structuring a point of view using words, visuals and sounds
• Video editing

To register, call us at 718-789-8170 or send us an email.

Alisa Miller from PRI did a video report on the way news is reported in the US. To say the least, it is illuminating. I encourage all of you to visit the link and watch. I know I plan on going back and rewatching it as soon as I post this.

The video can be found here.

Part of what’s wonderful about Ms. Hilton’s response is in the way she sends up political campaigning.  Her video is all about her public image, which is of key importance in any campaign.  She sends a clear message about the type of President she would be, speaks with conviction about her energy policy, invokes her love of the color pink, does her signature, “That’s hot,”and she also just happens to be caught sunbathing in a bathing suit and heels.  Barack Obama and John McCain have both suffered from identity crises during the campaign, but Paris is clear. We know who she is.

More than that, her response loudly points out how ridiculous John McCain is for trying to draw a comparison Barack Obama and herself.  In spoofing his ad, she shows it for exactly what it is: a really weak attempt to smear someone for being famous.  And let’s consider this for a second.  When you’re campaigning for President, aren’t you supposed to try to get yourself out in public as much as possible?  Don’t you want masses of people to like you?  I welcome Paris Hilton’s comic relief in all the media exhaustion that accompanies a Presidential election.  Maybe we should give some thought to that pink White House after all.

Do you think grass-fed beef is tastier? Or healthier?

Have you gushed about how good cage-free eggs are?

Or perhaps, someone just told you that commercially available milk is produced by cows that are fed beef?

The Animal Rights movement is not new. So is the campaign to switch to sustainable food. We’ve read about the issue, seen footage from hidden cameras, seen photographs of animals in meat factories. The movement is part of advertisements, celebrity endorsements, even a community on your social networking website. We’ve seen it all. Almost.

Documentary films? The idea may not be very original. After all, a documentary film is just a collection of clippings, you might say. But Earthlings (2005) is, arguably, the most compelling film ever to be made on the exploitation of the animal world by us humans not only for food, but also for clothing, entertainment, scientific research and to serve as pets. (The film is in segments: Part I, Part II, Part III.) Adding a celebrity touch is the narration by Joaquin Phoenix and the music by Moby.  Undercover investigations exploring this issue are not new, but never before has such footage been compiled into such a comprehensive commentary. Isawearthlings.com calls the film ‘thought provoking,’ but it’s much more than that. It is heart-wrenching. It makes you feel the pain of the animals. By juxtaposing images of the second World War, the Holocaust and the KKK with equally, if not more, unpleasant images of miserable, tortured animals, the film aims to show a parallel between racism and the ’speciesim’ human beings are guilty of when they subjugate other inhabitants of the planet.

These are images that will stay with you long after you watch the film, as they did with me. I can’t think of too many people who will want to watch it again–that is, if they are able to finish watching it the first time. Earthlings is proof of our  collective guilt and human beings don’t like to be told they are monsters. We are kind and gentle, aren’t we? We are fair and merciful. The guilt is overpowering for some. For others, the images are too gross to digest. Feeling gross inspires quite a different set of reactions, one of which may be to stop watching the film. The film may have aimed for sadness, for a feeling that some injustice is being meted out, a feeling of a burdened conscience. However, if you feel sick, you will feel just that and nothing else. Consequently, after the grossness has passed, you will slather your factory produced sausages with ketchup.

And now on to some humor and some animation. The Meatrix series is a spoof on the extremely popular Matrix series (of course!). The protagonist is the pig Leo who joins the trench coat clad cow, Moopheus and the stylish hen, Chickity, in a mission to abolish factory farming and revive the good old family farm. Each of the three films in the series (The Meatrix, The Meatrix 2, The Meatrix 2.5) is a funny Flash animation about 4 minutes long (well under the 95 minute run time of Earthlings).

The Meatrix is about an issue that Earthlings also touches upon: Factory farming. Factory farming treats animals as commodities to be exploited and results not only in unimaginable animal cruelty, but also in grave health risks for people who consume mass produced animal products and in irreparable environmental pollution. The message of these films is loud and clear: Factory farming is bad. Switch to sustainable food. Support family farms. The film also clearly enumerates the ‘Whys’: Why have humans turned to factory farming? Why is factory farming bad? Why should we go back to family farms? The films are humorous. They’re short.  They’re educational sans the blood and bones, and they’re also kid friendly.

While Earthlings focuses on the animals and the their systematic torture by human beings, The Meatrix’s focus is primarily on how factory farming is bad for people and how we can eat and live healthy by supporting family farms. Earthlings is definitely the more poignant and moving of the two, but The Meatrix is certainly more pleasant and less guilt inducing. Which explains why many people I know liked it better. Earthlings is probably the adult version of The Meatrix. While both the films are about similar issues, the approach, like the focus is quite different. Earthlings goes for your heart. The Meatrix goes straight for your brain. Some would says ‘appeals to emotions’ Vs. ‘appeals to logic’. And some would take that to mean ‘appeals to women’ Vs. ‘appeals to men’. But I am not going there!

Earthlings and The Meatrix are wonderful examples of the fact that the media can and often do serve as the call to action on many issues. Or not. It might work with some and utterly fail with others, but it cannot be denied that the films are of tremendous potential and value. You might choose to watch Earthlings or The Meatrix, or both, or neither. You might be moved to act or not. But you certainly can’t help feeling a twinge of something: concern for the earthlings or concern for yourself.

And that is a sign that these media matter.

–Radhika Ramesh