Wow! I had an incredible experience as an instructor for the first Keio Academy Summer Japanese-English Digital Media Creation Camp in Purchase, NY. It was co-sponsored by DCTV’s youth media program, Pro-TV. For two weeks, with the help of translators, I had a group of five Japanese students and taught them to envision, shoot, and edit a short video. There was a team of 10 instructors total, each with their own group of 5-7 students. The assortment of videos at the end, were pretty phenomenal, especially considering the time, language and cultural barriers that we all faced to various degrees.

It was quite humbling for me to realize the extent of how different our cultures really are. Yes, I love sushi and Japanese animation and even practice a Buddhist discipline born in Japanese. That does not make me a Japanophile, even by dilettantish standards. So my enthusiasm and passion for the students, their ideas and the craft of making media was often received as very aggressive, intimidating, and even rude. I realize that even with the best of intentions, and as we try in earnest to build cultural bridges and meet halfway, it actually only reaches a quarter of the way on both sides. There is still a huge chasm to fill. And the only way to fill it is to openly acknowledge what you do not know and try to understand, listen, and learn.  You have to give it time, patience and compassion.  And ou have to give it to yourself as much as to the other and try not to take things too seriously. It’s Basic Diplomacy and Being a Human Being 101, a lesson reinforced from my experience with my students. In the end, we turned the camera onto ourselves to examine and discuss our misunderstandings and perceptions, and made a beautiful short video of their thoughts and experience of being Japanese and being American.

http://www.lohud.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080803/NEWS02/808030334/1220/NEWS020
http://business.rutgers.edu/default.aspx?id=1523

WATERSLIDE
music video - HD
TRT 3′26

I had the pleasure early summer of working as a production assistant on the music video “Waterslide“, directed by Véronique Doumbé of Ndolo Films, and music artist Scottie Gage. The video is a runner up in Shooting People’s Grand Watch Film competition.

Informal celebratory screening and discussion with Rutgers-Newark University Class of 2008 profile graduate Robin Laverne Wilson. Enjoy her diversity of documentary, experimental and other videos with her family, who couldn’t be prouder! Popcorn and light movie snacks will be served.

EMERGE: NEW GROWTH MEDIA
Honors Thesis Screening

Monday, May 19, 2008
2:00 - 4:00 pm

Paul Robeson Gallery
Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
Newark Campus
350 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Blvd.
First Floor
Newark, NJ 07102
973 353 1610
http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/artgallery

Map:

Public Transportation:
Rail from Harrison, Jersey City, Hoboken, NYC:
PATH to Penn Station, Newark, AMTRAK (1-800-872-7245; www.amtrak.com) and New Jersey Transit (1-800-772-2222; www.nj.com/njtransit). Trains also stop at Newark Penn Station.

From Penn station-Newark to campus: You may take a $6 taxi ride to campus or take the City Subway (entrance is by McDonald’s) to Washington Street (2nd stop) for 65 cents.

For driving directions, please see gallery website for directions.

http://lovenewark.wordpress.com

As part of my final group project in my Creativity in Business Decisions seminar with Professor dt ogilvie [lowercase required], I helped shoot and edit a team video to promote the City of Newark experience.

Newark is in a momentous renaissance of development, arts, small business and grassroots communities. I’ve gotten fairly acquainted with the city over the years as a student and filmmaker. As a team, we all agreed that its diversity of people and activities have been overshadowed by its volatile season in the 60’s and urban decay up to the 90’s.

So our team of six people photographed and videotaped what we considered Newark’s treasures, and collaborated on a script that celebrates what we find unique and exciting. And we propose that the residents and fans of Newark should do the same — become ambassadors for the City of Newark and promote what you love about it.

A third profile on me and New Growth Media was also published by the New Brunswick Media Relations Department.

http://news.rutgers.edu/medrel/news-releases/2008/archivefolder.2008-02-11.2860899469/rutgers-class-of-200-20080509

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