Doors Opening

The kid's involvement with various video projects has opened all sorts of doors that could lead to potential projects in the future, and some of which are happening in the here and now. It seemed like there was a flurry of video activity this winter and several movies got made. In succession the kids made a documentary, a music video, and then entered into the 48 Hour Film Slam, which they had not wanted to enter in the first place. Either way, they won some awards and plenty of recognition in the process.

Their documentary was entered in the CSPAN contest and didn't win anything even though I thought it was better than some of the entries that did, but what do I know? It did, however win a special recognition award at the Vermont Freedom and Unity Awards. Then their music video, which for the record kicked some serious butt, won the music video contest in her age bracket, and her 48 Hour Film entry won the grand prize at the White River Independent Film Festival, which floored me because that really took me by surprise. It was a pretty exciting stretch for the kids and parents alike.

This is where things got interesting. One of the organizers of the Film Festival, ST, took a liking to A and she introduced her to a professor at Dartmouth who works with incarcerated women, helping them express themselves through written words. They have a regular meeting in conjunction with Dartmouth students where they tell their stories or read poetry. This professor, PH, asked A to help her film one of her classes, and hinted at future opportunities for A to be involved. I'm not sure what will come of it, maybe nothing, but it's been an interesting experience for A to see firsthand what some people go through in life and to take part in the process of documentary filmmaking.

It was hard work and a little stressful for her because it was a fair amount of responsibility and she had to take charge of the situation - nobody else knew how to operate the camera besides her brother, and he was too young to be allowed into the detention center. Despite the challenges, she did a stand up job, impressing everyone involved, even me, and I wasn't there. I love when that happens.

Until the next time, thanks for reading, and thanks to HHH Honey for the pic.