Today: Trayvon Martin Infuses 2014 Chicago Youth Film Festival

Today: Trayvon Martin Infuses 2014 Chicago Youth Film Festival

Teens Release Violence "Intervention" Films At Youth Film Festival, "A Reel Look At Their Neighborhoods"

CHICAGO, May 12, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --


WHAT: As Trayvon Martin's father calls for a renewed civil
rights movement leading up to the one year anniversary
of the trial that acquitted George Zimmerman, Chicago
high school students are using film as a platform to
galvanize the nation's languishing civil rights
progress. In this year's entries in the 7th annual
Chicago Youth Community Film Festival, "Reel Look,"
more than 350 youth from 12 Chicago alternative high
schools tackle hard-hitting issues to provide
alternatives to the violence occurring in their
neighborhoods and communities.


In light of the heightened awareness of social justice
issues brought about by the racially charged Martin
case, student films examine how the lessons learned can
be turned into interventions:

"Know Your Rights, But...!" - Concerned that "knowing
your rights" in an arrest situation could lead to
attitudinal problems, filmmakers teach how to
communicate with law officers without being perceived
as a threat.
"Putting the Cent$ In Senseless Violence"
- An unabashed, rarely seen look at issues below the
surface of African-American communities that
contribute to violence and incarceration.
"School-to-
Prison Pipeline" - Through man-on-the-street
interviews, this news segment will test awareness as
well as apathy toward the issue and seek solutions to
the vicious school-to-prison cycle.

Alumni of the Film Festival were part of a recent study
to assess the influence of media programs on
participants into their adulthood. The study "Life
After Youth Media," presented by the Chicago Youth
Voices Network on April 29, 2014 and prepared by the
Social IMPACT Research Center for The Robert R.
McCormick Foundation, found that youth media programs
provide positive influence into adulthood by teaching
foundational life skills, transferable career skills,
and the importance of being informed about and engaged
in the world around them.


WHO: 2014 Chicago Youth Community Film Festival Judges:

Nelson Carvajal - Filmmaker; Content Creator; Writer for
indieWIRE, Fandor & RogerEbert.com
Dr. Susan Doll -
Professor of Film & Art History, Ringling College of
Art & Design; Official Blogger, Turner Classic Movies

Dr. Vinni Hall - Board Secretary, Illinois State Board
of Education
Jeff Harder - Filmmaker, Associate
Professor of Communications at Loyola University of
Chicago
Phillip Koch - Screenwriter, Director, Producer
of Film Police! & "Chicagoland" on CNN
John Petrakis -
Film Critic, Christian Century; Adjunct Prof., School
of The Art Institute of Chicago; Lecturer, University
of Chicago
Zak Piper - Independent Producer; Sound
Recordist; Director, Kartemquin Films; Co-Producer,
"The Interrupters"
Ines Sommer - Filmmaker & Executive
Director, Percolator Films & Sommer Filmworks

Chicago Youth Community Film Festival Participants:

Opening Presentation by Betsey Grais, Deputy Director &
Rich Moskal, Director, Chicago Film Office
Guest
Emcees and Performance by Kuumba Lynx

WHEN: Monday, May 12, 2014

4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m. Reception and Awards Program
(Invitation Only)

6:00 p.m. - 7:00 p.m. Premiere Screening of 2014
Festival Reel (Free & Open To The Public)


WHERE: Claudia Cassidy Theatre, Chicago Cultural Center

78 E. Washington St, Chicago, IL


WHY: In its seven-year history, the Chicago Youth Community
Film Festival "Reel Look" has equipped 2,350 at-risk
youth for the 21st Century workforce by integrating
media and technology literacy into classroom curriculum
to motivate students to stay in school and graduate.
The Film Festival engages a range of teens, many of
whom have been disconnected and face extraordinary
obstacles in their everyday lives, and empowers them
not only to have a voice, but also to intervene and
take action on civic issues affecting their
neighborhoods and their individual lives.


The Chicago Youth Community Film Festival is co-sponsored by
Community TV Network (CTVN) and the Alternative Schools Network.
All of the films were created for broadcast and webcast and
featured on CTVN's cable access TV show, "Hard Cover- Voices and
Visions of Chicago's Youth," and on the YouTube channel,
hardcoverchicago.
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SOURCE Alternative Schools Network

Alternative Schools Network

CONTACT: Laurie R. Glenn, 773-704-7246, lrglenn@thinkincstrategy.com

Web Site: http://www.asnchicago.org


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