news

TIPS FOR HOSTING A SCREENING OF THE FOURTH ANNUAL MEDIA THAT MATTERS FILM FESTIVAL

By
Posted on June 24, 2004

(For a short 5-step guide to hosting a screening check out Do It Yourself: Host a Screening)

THE MEDIA THAT MATTERS FILM FESTIVAL (MTMFF) is a compilation of short films (1-8 minutes) and new media projects by over 16 documentary, narrative and experimental media makers. All of the titles on the DVD compilation tell stories of individuals overcoming injustice, standing up to oppression, and cracking open systems of the status quo. These independent shorts speak in compelling, persuasive and personal ways vividly illustrating the struggles and triumphs of our lives.

We invite community-based and nonprofit organizations, media arts centers, libraries, schools, colleges and universities, activist groups, and social justice allies to use the festival to counter the mainstream media's narrow points of view. We invite you to connect these stories to your own work for social justice. Collaborate with local nonprofit allies to bring these films and new media projects to audiences that might not otherwise have access to computers or DVD players.

I Promise Africa, a short film on AIDS in Africa

The following outline offers some guidelines for hosting a MTMFF event or screening a "how to" on bringing these stories to your local community. Be creative!

Note: When planning your screening of The Media That Matters Film Festival, you are legally prohibited from charging an admission fee unless a portion of profits is paid to MediaRights so that filmmakers can be compensated. The festival is a project of MediaRights, a nonprofit organization, and the festival DVD is being distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 license. If you are a nonprofit, you may ask for (but not require) donations to supplement the costs of your event. If you are interested in charging for admission, contact David Jacobs, Director of Technology and Distribution.

OVERALL TASK LIST: You need to identify tasks and roles for yourself and your allies and partner organizations. Create a task list that include the following:

Get the DVD!
Find a venue and check their audio/visual facilities (see "Space and Tech Check" below).
Secure equipment at minimum, you will need a TV/screen and a DVD player (many laptops feature this function and can be connected to a TV). You may also want a projector, and a computer with high-speed Internet connection to supplement the screening.
Confirm speakers including community leaders and potentially filmmakers (see "Filmmakers" below).
Confirm your partners, detailing their role and participation (see "Partners" below).
Get the word out to your audience through membership and general community mass mailings, flyer postings, community calendar postings, newsletters, newspapers and radio public service announcements.
Organize press relations, including preparing a press release and securing contacts in the press (see "Promotion" below).
Make a plan for hosting the reception and for your sign-in table.
Document the event by taking pictures and recording stories of attendees or speakers, etc. (see "Document Your Event" below).

Most importantly, you need to set up the agenda for the event: Will there be filmmakers present? Who will speak first and for how long? Will there be a panel of "experts?" Who will they be, and will they represent a diversity of opinions/interests? Will there be community announcements? Who is going to ask audience members to support the local struggle? This type of call to action changes the typically passive experience of just watching media into an interactive event in which your audience members are encouraged to take immediate direct actions. Strategic consideration of what happens when the lights come up may be your most crucial decision.

Put together a Take Action Table where audience members can sign petitions and become members of MediaRights

The Take Action links on the Festival Web sites offer direct actions on the issues addressed in these films. Consider supplementing your film screening or event with computers available before and after so that audience members can take action on the issues. Supplement these online actions with local direct actions; check with your allies to see what folks can do about the local fight!

GETTING STARTED: Since there are a number of short films in this collection, you will need to decide the program. The film titles together will run approximately 90 minutes. You are welcome to screen the whole collection or a mix of titles or only one.

YOUTH ACTIVISM could be one collection focused on young people's struggles for justice. This suggested compilation, about 27 minutes long, could include Lean on Me; Books Not Bars; The Children of Birmingham; Struggling to Survive; and Novela, Novela.

Please refer to the end of this article for further recommendations for screening line-ups.

You will also need to research where to hold your event. If you'd like to ask local speakers/participants, ask them far in advance. Evaluate whether you'd like to have a panel discussion before or after the screening. Decide who will participate: community nonprofits, activists, politicians, educators, decision-makers, etc.

PARTNERS: MediaRights is about partnerships linking media makers and resources to social justice organizations and nonprofits. All of the titles in this festival are connected to struggles for justice, often against overwhelming odds. And all of these struggles are supported by nonprofits and community-based activist organizations. The festival offers you a unique opportunity to either highlight your own work or to collaborate with these social justice allies, linking the Media That Matters Festival to grounded and intentional organizing. A partnership with local organizations will focus your event, split the workload and increase the number and diversity of attendees.

Find allies in your area through MediaRights's organizational database.

FILMMAKERS: Many of the filmmakers from this collection are interested in appearing at your local event. For their contact information, please refer to the Festival Web site. Contact them, but be prepared to offer an honorarium and to cover their travel expenses. Don't forget, independent filmmakers are working artists.

The Meatrix, a short film on factory farming

PROMOTION: Decide what types of press you want to contact to advertise the screening and highlight your local struggle. Consider all reporters, not just entertainment or film/video reviewers. Options include health reporters, city beat reporters, lifestyle reporters, political reporters and columnists, and of course film/arts reporters. Another option is to ask for a meeting with your local editorial board to explain the local connection.

MediaRights can help you to promote your event. Contact us at festival@mediarights.org.

SPACE AND TECH CHECK: If you have never been in the space, check it out before making a commitment. You will need a good DVD player (many laptops offer this function) and a large screen TV or a video projector with computer input. Ask the venue to do a test run; check both image quality and sound. Check for lights or windows that may bleed light onto the screen, check for reflections if using a large TV screen. You should meet with the in-house tech folks at the same time you preview the space as this will allow you to ask them about the in-house projection and sound equipment, and to arrange for outside equipment if needed. Discuss who will oversee all technical issues the date of the event, and confirm that all projection equipment and sound systems work properly. Play the festival DVD to make sure that it works. Remember to check for accessibility to the screening room and bathrooms for people with disabilities.

DOCUMENT YOUR EVENT: Take pictures, write down stories you hear from attendees, survey attendees about how they liked the event and what they'd like to see next, document which press attended and who printed or aired stories, and save your print stories. We can feature a story about your event on MediaRights, and we have evaluation forms that will help you access your success. Please let us know how your screening goes and share press or audience responses with us.

Your screening can be part of the Media That Matters Traveling Festival!

We hope that these tips are a helpful resource in the planning of your local screening. Remember, the most important thing is to get people to come together, be engaged by the Media That Matters films and new media projects and take part in constructive discussions and actions around the issues. By planning things in advance, collaborating with other organizations and taking care of any technical concerns, you will be able to ensure a smooth-running event that will hopefully lead to positive change in your community. If you have any other questions or would like to be placed in contact with other people who have held successful screenings, please send an email to festival@mediarights.org. Good luck!

MORE IDEAS FOR SCREENING LINE-UPS:

THE ENVIRONMENT - The Meatrix, Seeds of Hope: South Africa

CIVIL LIBERTIES/ CRIMINAL JUSTICE Books Not Bars, The Children of Birmingham, Day of Remembrance

ABOUT YOUTH - Books Not Bars, The Children of Birmingham, Lean on Me, Dedicated to My Family, Laugh at the Fat Kid, Novela, Novela

YOUTH-PRODUCED - Lean on Me, The Children of Birmingham, Dedicated to My Family, Struggling to Survive MEDIA - Novela, Novela, Bush for Peace, Spring in Awe, POPaganda: The Art & Subversion of Ron English

HIV/AIDS - iThemba, I Promise Africa

IMMIGRATION - The Sixth Section, Day of Remembrance

WAR/CONFLICT - Bush for Peace, Spring in Awe, Day of Remembrance

About the organization that produced this guide: WORKING FILMS, co-founded by veteran film festival curator and media educator Robert West and Peabody Award-winning filmmaker and organizer Judith Helfand, is a partner of MediaRights. They are a nationally recognized activist-driven bridge between high quality documentary filmmaking and serious grassroots organizing. Now in their fourth year, their work supports efforts for social, economic, environmental and civil justice. Working Films has fine-tuned an evolving process that respects and balances the narrative needs of filmmaking with the strategic needs of organizing initiatives. They believe that social justice docs can be as resonant and effective as they are engaging and entertaining. Contact them to find out more about their work and to see social justice media in action: Robert West, (910) 342-9000