Last week in New York City, the Independent Filmmaker Project, the United Nations Department of Public Information, and the Ford Foundation presented Envision 2012: Stories for a Sustainable Future. The two day event featured screenings of sustainability-focused documentaries (including Jessica Yu and Participant Media’s new Last Call at the Oasis), keynote addresses from Don Cheadle and Alexandra Cousteau, and panel discussions that included social issue advocates and established filmmakers. And, while the discussions this year did focus on the issue of sustainability, there was still plenty of universal wisdom dispensed that social issue filmmakers – no matter their chosen subject […]
by Jane Schoenbrun on Apr 24, 2012Envision 2012, a program presented by IFP, the United Nations and the Ford Foundation exploring the subject of “Stories for a Sustainable Future,” will be streamed live tomorrow on the Envision website. Launching this evening and continuing Tuesday, the Envision sessions are filled with talks concerning the role documentary film can have in shaping discussion and action on pressing global issues. Filmmakers Jessica Yu, Rachel Grady, Alexandra Cousteau, and Lixin Fan, among others, will be presenting, and special guests include Don Cheadle and Michael Franti. Tune in tomorrow beginning at 9:30 AM for this thoughtful and engaging event. A complete […]
by Scott Macaulay on Apr 16, 2012This past weekend, the documentary as a tool for change was discussed at “Envision: Addressing Global Issues Through Documentary,” a forum co-sponsored by the IFP in partnership with the United Nations Department of Public Information. In her introductory remarks, Joana Vicente, IFP’s executive director, said that the goal of the event was to unite the “filmmaking community with the activist [community].” It was a sentiment echoed by Kiyo Akasaka, the Under-Secretary-General for Communications at the UN who encouraged the activists and filmmakers in the attendance to partner with each other “to envision a better world” and “meet the needs of […]
by Mary Anderson Casavant on Apr 11, 2011This weekend the documentarian as activist was discussed at “Envision: Addressing Global Issues Through Documentaries,” an event presented by the IFP and UN and hosted by The New York Times at The Times Center. In her introductory remarks, IFP Executive Director Joanna Vicente pledged that the program, now in its second year, would continue to use the UN’s Millennium Development Goals as its focal point and praised the program for attempting to “envision a better world for all and achieving that through media.” It was a sentiment echoed by Kiyoa Akasaka, the United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, who professed […]
by Mary Anderson Casavant on Jul 13, 2010Presented by the IFP and UN, Envision is a daylong program dealing with the addressing of global issues through documentary. It takes place Saturday, July 10, and you can learn more here. Jennifer Arnold’s A Small Act is one of two features that will be screened at the event. As an impoverished boy in Kenya, Chris Mburu received the fortune of one person’s small donation. When WWII-survivor Hilde Back anonymously sponsored an African child’s education, Chris not only went through school but also became a Harvard-educated human rights lawyer for the UN, all unbeknownst to Hilde. So inspired, Chris and […]
by Mike Plante on Jul 8, 2010