Archive for the ‘News’ Category

Off to my next SXSW Adventure

Friday, March 11th, 2011

It’s Banker here. I’m getting ready to head out the door to Austin and I am very excited…so I am here to share some thoughts with our WeOwnTV friends and family.

Banker with Nature Filming the SXSW 2008 Adventures.

Banker with Nature Filming the SXSW 2006 Adventures.

SXSW has always held a special place in my heart. In 2006, we screened Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars and in the same year our website was nominated for an Interactive Festival Award and the Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars band played on the world music main stage. I remember city-wide excitement, as if the whole city was celebrating the festival together—from official festival events and venues to local bars, restaurants and busking musicians on 6th Street.

Check out the memories captured via video: Sierra Leone – Refugee All Stars- Fame via SXSW 2008 Austin Texas

SXSW 2011 will be my first trip back since the 2006 festival and a lot has changed. The festival was a new beginning for the band and their first record contract came out of that experience. They have been touring internationally since and are about to release their third album which was recorded in Brooklyn this past January.

SXSW 2008, SLRAS with Zach Niles (L) and Chris Velan (bottom right).

SXSW 2006, SLRAS with Zach Niles (L) and Chris Velan (bottom right).

For Sierra Leone, they elected a new president in September 2007, Ernest Bai Koroma and the country has seen progress, peace and development in the years since. 2011 also marks their 50th Anniversary of Independence and there is a lot to celebrate.

In 2008, we received a grant from grant from Creative Capital , for a new project called “WeOwnTV.” A collaborative film-making project that has launched a three-year collaboration, and it still feels like the beginning.

Maybe SXSW will again work its magic with us and send us into new realms of possibility.

I’m excited to report that SXSW Interactive has scheduled WeOwnTV as a core conversation called “This is Our Generation: WeOwnTV Sierra Leone.” We will be sharing curriculum highlights from our workshops and getting into some of the very exciting work that the group in Sierra Leone is doing now. I couldn’t be more proud of the group. In just three years we have grown a rough and tumble group with no media training, but with something to say, to a highly productive and talented production entity, producing a weekly hour for the national TV station, as well as numerous other ambitious narrative and documentary work. Truth be told, I have learned a lot from them….

If you are in Austin this Monday attending SXSW, please join us at our Core Conversation.

Posted in Backstory, From Banker White, News, Updates |

Production news from Freetown: Hello Good People of the World

Sunday, February 27th, 2011

This is Arthur Pratt reporting to you from the WeOwnTV: Sierra Leone Media Center in Freetown.

2011 is a big year for Sierra Leone. Here at WeOwnTV, we have code-named it ‘the Year of Manifestation’ and have dedicated our efforts to telling important stories about our country. Throughout the year, I will report on the production of these stories.

Barmmy Boy behind the camera shooting scene for 'The Resisted.'

Barmmy Boy behind the camera shooting scene for 'The Resisted.'

At this moment, it is my pleasure to inform you that the team has just returned from a successful shoot for the film ‘They Resisted.’ The project is the most ambitious film we have attempted so far. We planned production during February as our way to celebrate Black History Month. Our history as Sierra Leoneans is tied to the Atlantic Slave trade in many ways; notably our nation’s capitol city, Freetown, was named after the new colony and settlement of freed African American slaves established in 1792.

Historically the accounts of the slave trade have not been just to many us. They portray early Africa as a continent of people that were uncivilized and without interests of their own, incapable of protesting when treated unjustly. We want the world to know that WE RESISTED.

Many know the famous story of the Amistad in which a heroic Sierra Leonean, Mende slave named Sengbe Pieh (Joseph Cinque) led a revolt upon a slave Spanish vessel named La Amistad. This happened in 1839 in the later the years of the slave trade.

We believe that there were countless stories of resistance and revolt in the three centuries of the earlier Atlantic slave trade. ‘They Resisted’ is set during that period of the slave trade and is dedicated to those untold stories.

Rehearsing for 'They Resisted.'

Rehearsing for 'They Resisted.'

For months, we have been working as a team researching and planning for film production. All costumes and objects in the film reflect the cultural traditions of the times. The story is about a small; seaside village that resisted and fought back. We shot the film in Kent village and its chief was very helpful and supportive of the project.

In addition to producing the film we shot in parallel a documentary that explores the specific history of Kent Village as it relates to the slave trade. Stay tuned for more information about how you can see ‘They Resisted’ and other projects we are producing throughout the year.

Shooting 'They Resisted'

Scene from 'They Resisted.'

To see more behind the scenes photos of the ‘They Resisted’ shoot check out the photo album.

Note from WeOwnTV: We are looking for financial support for the WeOwnTV productions in Sierra Leone. There are big plans for the near future, be a part of them a reality and DONATE TODAY!

Posted in From Sierra Leone, From the Desk of Arthur Pratt, News |

Banker is Smiling: Spreading the Good Word of WeOwnTV

Friday, December 17th, 2010

It’s Friday, December 17 and I just hung-up a Skype call to the Media Center in Freetown with Arthur Pratt. I am smiling.

Smiling as I acknowledge it has been only four months since we opened the Media Center but so much has happened…smiling, because Arthur just gave me a rundown of what they are up to and the group’s excitement is contagious…smiling, because November and December have also been exciting outside of Sierra Leone with WeOwnTV short films being featured at film festivals here in the US and abroad.

Here’s a little recap:

* In November, Zach Niles attended the Camden International film festival. Representing WeOwnTV, he screened a short film before Rebecca Richman Cohen’s fascinating feature documentary about the Sierra Leone International War Crimes Tribunal, War Don Don.

Film still from HUSLTER which screened at Cine Experimental de Madrid.

Film still from HUSLTER which screened at Cine Experimental de Madrid.

* The Experimental Film of Madrid event (Cine Experimental de Madrid) dedicated an entire program to WeOwnTV short films, and I spent an amazing week in Madrid as a festival juror while representing WeOwnTV — Hablás Español?

* The team in Sierra Leone is gaining recognition as a significant contributor to local arts and media. Our program ‘Meet Sweet Salone’–Celebrating and Documenting Sierra Leone’s 50 Years of Independence has been honored by the 50th Anniversary Committee in Sierra Leone. They have pledged to support the development of WeOwnTV film and video projects to share stories of the Sierra Leone of today with national and global audiences as the country celebrates its Golden Anniversary in 2011. We are currently in the funding phase of this milestone programming; please consider supporting ‘Meet Sweet Salone’ with a donation.

* We are developing a weekly TV show that has drawn interest from SLBC, Sierra Leone’s national television station. The program would highlight current issues impacting the country from the youth perspective and also feature content from ‘Meet Sweet Salone’ initiative; in-depth human interest stories, in-studio interviews, audience submissions, narrative short films and historical reflections.

* The group continues to produce and develop new projects. In December, they began production on ‘They Resisted,’ a short-narrative film about a slave-era revolution. In parallel, they are researching a complimentary documentary piece about Bounce Island, an area with strong historical significance tied to the slave-trade.

* Last but not least I think it’s worth mentioning we reached our social-media goal for getting the word out, by reaching 500 fans on our Facebook page. Thanks for honoring us with your “Like.”

We plan to ride the momentum of the last several months into 2011 and are looking forward to achieving many great milestones with the group in Sierra Leone in the coming year. Thank you for your continued support and encouragement…may you be smiling with us.

Posted in From Banker White, From Sierra Leone, Fundraising, News, Updates |

WeOwnTV: Making Art Make a Difference in Sierra Leone (CCA News)

Wednesday, December 8th, 2010

Our own Banker White sits down with Jason Engelund of California College of the the Arts (his alma mater) to share the work WeOwnTV is doing in Sierra Leone.

Banker White with WeOwnTV at work in Sierra Leone

Banker White with WeOwnTV at work in Sierra Leone

Excerpt from the article: CCA alumnus Banker White (MFA 2000) is a documentary filmmaker. You may know him as the director of Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars, about a group of Sierra Leonean musicians who gained international renown and landed a record deal.

These days White is busy as the head of WeOwnTV. Headquartered in San Francisco, the innovative nonprofit works with young adults in Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone in West Africa, teaching them how to record their lives and stories using documentary and narrative film. White crafted the program with a former refugee and child soldier, Alhaji Jeffrey Kamara (aka Black Nature).

To read more of the article, click here.

Posted in News, Uncategorized |

Thanksgiving 2010 — We are thankful!

Thursday, November 25th, 2010

From all of us at the WeOwnTV family, from the youth filmmakers and staff in Sierra Leone to the administrative staff and faculty in the United States, we give thanks to our board of advisors, our partners, our donors and to our enthusiastic cheerleaders.

It is with your support during the last two years that we have accomplished so very much. Together, most recently, we opened a Media Center in central Freetown that offers a safe place for the youth filmmakers to create and explore their stories. This month alone they plan to complete three short films.

In addition, we have added several new filmmakers to our “team” in Sierra Leone and we will introduce them to you shortly, as we are currently putting the final touches on their intro videos.

In the meantime if you haven’t had a chance to “meet” our two fearless leaders in Sierra Leone, please take a moment to watch videos introducing Arthur Pratt and Lansana Mansaray (aka Barmmy Boy).

Meet Arthur Pratt

Meet Barmmy Boy

It is under their leadership that daily operations of the media center thrive and that WeOwnTV has already been hired to work on multiple film and video projects for NGOs, advertising agencies, hotels and other businesses.

There is so much more to share and we will soon. For now, know that the entire team appreciates all you have done for WeOwnTV…together we have accomplished so much and the best is yet to come.

With gratitude, Team WeOwnTV

Posted in Backstory, News |

Launch Day is Here – Five Ways to Celebrate

Thursday, July 15th, 2010

Welcome to the new website: www.weowntv.org. Partnering with Zaudhaus, our fearless design team, we wanted to create a site that individually introduces the filmmakers in Sierra Leone while bringing forward the film and video work being done by each. In addition, the site highlights the collaborative work being done with the young filmmakers together with the staff of WeOwnTV.

In celebration of this day we propose five ways you can help us celebrate (try one – try them all):

  1. Watch & Comment: The young filmmakers in Sierra Leone want to hear what you think. Please register today, watch a couple of videos and comment—let them know you’ve virtually met them and our looking forward to their future works. Your voice matters too.
  2. Donate to Opening the Media Center in Freetown: To establish and operate the WeOwnTV: Sierra Leone Media Center for one-year, the budget is $40,000. Thanks to a generous individual donation of $15,000, we are more than half way to our goal. You can help get us there with a donation—no amount is too small, it all counts toward our goal. To join us in the launch of the Media Center in Freetown, make a tax-deductible donation TODAY (with support of our fiscal sponsor BAVC).
  3. Follow Us, Like Us, Share Us: Take a moment if you haven’t already and “Like” us on Facebook; “Follow” us on Twitter and share us with family, friends, colleagues, Digg – we love it all.
  4. Give Equipment: We are looking to setup the Media Center with Mac laptops; cameras; tripods; boom poles; mics and other filmmaking equipment. If you have leads on equipment, please contact Banker White: banker@weowntv.org to discuss.
  5. Sponsor a Young Filmmaker: Participation in this summer’s media center orientation cost approximately $500 per student. This includes transportation to and from Freetown, one week of food and lodging, an official WeOwnTV press pass photo ID and the further development of skills focusing on new website functionality, leveraging social media and script development.

Posted in Fundraising, News, Updates |

New look, new site, new Media Center in Freetown

Saturday, July 3rd, 2010

Notice anything different? Of course you do…WeOwnTV has a new look and that’s only the beginning. With the success of last fall’s workshop, the WeOwnTV team has been busy planning for the next phase of our work in Sierra Leone and we are excited to share this news with you.

New Website to Go with Our the New Logo
In July, we are re-launching www.weowntv.org (as of this “updated” post – we are launched). One of the main goals of WeOwnTV is to develop a digital platform to exhibit the work completed by the young filmmakers in Sierra Leone and the new site is built with this focus. Once launched fans of WeOwnTV will converse with the young filmmakers, view new work and learn more about how the project is growing thanks to your contributions and support.

Big News: WeOwnTV to Establish a Media Center in Freetown
In two weeks, the team is headed to Sierra Leone to open the doors of a Media Center for its faculty and young collaborators in Freetown.

The WeOwnTV Media Center will offer classes in film and television production, computer skills, social networking, journalism and scriptwriting. Once course work is completed, qualifying students and graduates gain access to production and post-production equipment and studio space. WeOwnTV graduates will have a place to continue producing their own documentaries, fiction films, music videos and public service announcements—having a positive impact on themselves, their community and the world audience.

We Need Your Help: The WeOwnTV Media Center will serve as an important educational and creative hub in the heart of Freetown, Sierra Leone. However, we need your help to make this a reality. To establish and operate the center for one-year, the budget is $40,000. We are thrilled to have recently been awarded the prestigious “Freedom to Create Grant” and $10,000 has been allocated towards our goal; which means WeOwnTV is now hard at work to raise the additional $30,000 this summer.

We have truly appreciated your continued support and encouragement to date and ask that if you are able, that you consider a donation to the establishment of the Media Center—every donation counts toward raising our goal of $30,000 this summer. To join us in the launch of the Media Center in Freetown,  make a tax-deductible donation TODAY (with support of our fiscal sponsor BAVC).

Got equipment? We are looking to setup the Media Center with Mac laptops; cameras; tripods; boom poles; mics and other filmmaking equipment. If you have leads on equipment, please contact Banker White: banker@weowntv.org to discuss.

The team looks forward to sharing with you news of the Media Center’s opening and the launch of the new website www.weowntv.org very soon.

Posted in Fundraising, News, Updates |

WeOwnTV and TakePart: Great Article by Gina Piccalo

Saturday, March 20th, 2010

Our very own Banker White and ArTakePart Articlethur Pratt were interviewed by Gina Piccalo for TakePart. The article, ‘WeOwnTV: Video Heals the War Kids of Sierra Leone” is a great introduction to the work we are doing in Sierra Leone and how we got started. Check it out – Share it out.

Posted in From Sierra Leone, News |

WeOwnTV participates in global Anti-Corruption Youth Voices Campaign

Tuesday, February 2nd, 2010

WeOwnTV and Blessed Sons teamed up to produce anti-corruption anthem and music video in partnership with Jeunesses Musicales International (JMI) and the World Bank Institute for their global campaign: Fair Play – Anti-Corruption Youth Voices Campaign. LOVE IT! Great work Blessed Sons, Arthur, Barmmy and Jah Son! Check out the video here.

Corruption affects you and me. It ruins individual lives affects entire communities. We need to stand together, to step up and make our voices heard. Fair Play – Anti-Corruption Youth Voices is a global music competition organized in partnership by Jeunesses Musicales International and the World Bank Institute.

Posted in From Sierra Leone, Music Video, News |

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