FilmAid International: projecting hope and changing lives through the power of film

FilmAid has proudly been awarded a grant from the Hollywood Foreign Press Association. The grant will support the HFPA Kakuma Peace and Reconciliation Series for Sudanese refugees in the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya and the Participatory Video Project for refugee youth. Read More

FilmAid has also been chosen to be the recipient of a grant from Glamour Reel Moments to go towards improving the lives of women and girls in East Africa. Glamour Reel Moments is an award-winning short film series inspired by Glamour readers’ real life stories. Directorial alumni include Jennifer Aniston, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Kirsten Dunst. glamalert.com/reelmoments/

The Academy Foundation has awarded FilmAid an institutional grant for our evening screenings in Kenya. One of the Academy’s fundamental purposes is to foster educational activities between the public and the film industry, and to encourage an appreciation of the motion picture as an art form and a vocation. oscars.org/foundation/

Additionally, FilmAid has received a grant from the M•A•C AIDS Fund that will go towards HIV education and awareness in the refugee camps where FilmAid works. Established in 1994 by M•A•C Cosmetics, the M•A•C AIDS Fund supports men, women and children affected by HIV/AIDS globally. macaidsfund.org

On June 20th, FilmAid co-hosted a reception with UNHCR-NY and The Aperture Foundation to commemorate World Refugee Day. At this event, internationally renowned photographer and former Afghan refugee, Zalmaï, shared his experiences as a refugee and presented select photographs from his upcoming book, Silent Exodus: Portraits of Iraqi Refugees in Exile (Aperture/UNHCR, October 2008) at the gallery of the Aperture Foundation in New York.

Abraham Awolich, was one of the guest speakers and is one of the “lost boys” of Sudan. The “lost boys” refers to the more than 27,000 young men and boys who were displaced and/or orphaned during the two decades long war in South Sudan. Mr. Awolich shared his powerful story and talked about his work as an activist for the New Sudan Education Initiative (NESEI).

Media presentations were made by UNHCR and FilmAid on the global efforts being made to protect and support refugees. FilmAid would like to thank all of the members of the art, photography, film, and humanitarian aid fields that came out to support this event!

On June 20th, FilmAid was pleased to present a series of short films as part of the 3rd Annual Refugee Film Festival in Tokyo, Japan. The series was titled “Kakuma Camp Films.” The films are a by-product of FilmAid’s Participatory Video Program.

The theme of this year’s festival was “Refugees – the Human Side.” It focused on the complex issues in Africa, and the ongoing conflict in Iraq. The Refugee Film Festival is part of UNHCR’s year-round commitment to raising awareness of the plight of the world’s ever-increasing 33 million refugees. The festival aims to give a voice to seldom-heard stories of hope, despair, and courage, and to inspire involvement and encourage activism to make a difference. refugeefilm.org

FilmAid is proud to announce the completion of a series of films about proper hygiene practices and the prevention of cholera. These films were created as part of FilmAid’s Community-Based Video Productions. They were filmed and produced locally and feature the refugee community in Dadaab Camp, where the movies were filmed.

The films address the health issues plaguing the predominately Somali community in Dadaab Refugee Camp in western Kenya. The films were made in a culturally sensitive manner in the local Somali language, ensuring that religious beliefs, social mores and ways of life are portrayed accurately. The films are currently being screened to the Dadaab refugee communities. The short films highlight proper health practices and the simple steps that need to be taken to prevent these life threatening diseases.

On July 7th, members of the FilmAid staff presented at a conference for Presbyterian youth, sponsored by the Presbyterian United Nations Office. The presentation dealt with how FilmAid’s work fits in with the Millennium Development Goals.

The Millennium Development Goals are a set of eight goals set forth by all of the countries of the world to help the world’s poor and disenfranchised. They have a target date of 2015 and range from halving extreme poverty to halting the spread of HIV/AIDS.

The staff members focused on goal 3 (promote gender equality and empower women), goal 5 (improve maternal health), and goal 6 (combat HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases).

FilmAid would like to thank Alexandra Buck from the Presbyterian United Nations Office for coordinating the event, and Ryan Smith from Caritas Internationalis for connecting FilmAid International to the Presbyterian United Nations Office. pcusa.org/peacemaking/un

On July 22nd, FilmAid-UK, in partnership with the Canadian High Commission, presented the UK premiere of the Canadian film, SHAKE HANDS WITH THE DEVIL at Canada House in Trafalgar Square. Director Roger Spottiswoode attended the event and introduced the film.

“Shake Hands with the Devil” is a dramatic Canadian feature film about Romeo Dallaire, based on his book, Shake Hands with the Devil: The Failure of Humanity in Rwanda (read more). The film recounts Dallaire's harrowing personal journey during the 1994 Rwandan Genocide and the UN's failure to heed Dallaire's desperate pleas for help. shakehandswiththedevilthemovie.com

In early July, FilmAid partnered with Open Air Cinema and the filmmakers and producers of WAR DANCE to bring this documentary back to the people of the Patongo refugee camp in war-torn Northern Uganda where the film was created.

Charles Otieno, FilmAid’s Kenya Country Manager traveled to Uganda and was on-hand to help facilitate the screening. The documentary follows the courageous efforts of Patongo’s students as they pour their hearts into winning Uganda’s National Music Competition. This film screening was the first time the Patongo refugee community – many of them the stars of the film – were seeing the movie.

openaircinema.us

wardancethemovie.com

FilmAid Board, Staff & Friends along with Valentino Achak Deng were on hand on April 9th to ring NASDAQ’s Closing Bell in celebration of FilmAid’s 2nd Annual Power of Film Gala that evening.

Valentino Achak Deng is one of the Sudanese “Lost Boys” and is the subject of the new bestselling Dave Egger’s novel, What is the What. Valentino was honored by FilmAid later that evening at the Benefit/Gala.

On April 9th, FilmAid International celebrated it’s second annual Power of Film Gala at Capitale in New York City. The event was a huge success. Over 300 people joined Caroline Baron, Founder & Co-Chair of FilmAid International and presenter and supporter, Christy Turlington to celebrate FilmAid’s achievements of using the power of film to educate, entertain and inspire the world’s most vulnerable people.

Our distinguished honorees that evening included Valentino Achak Deng, the Sudanese “lost boy” who is the subject of the new Dave Eggers book, What is the What; actor, producer and activist, Danny Glover; journalist and special correspondent for the Oprah Show and National Geographic Channel, Lisa Ling; and Sean Fine, Andrea Nix Fine & Shine Global, filmmakers and producers of WAR DANCE.

Thank you to all of our friends and contributors who made our 2nd Annual Power of Film Gala such a positive and memorable evening. We are proud to be where we are positioned today: educating and brightening the lives of over 1 million displaced people living in refugee camps and communities left out of the information age – and poised to reach many, many more. View the Gallery

FilmAid is proud to be partnering with the Human Rights Watch Film Festival 2008. FilmAid is co-presenting THE DICTATOR HUNTER at this years festival which takes place in New York City from June 12th – 26th.

Recognizing the extraordinary power of film to inspire and educate, the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival, now in its 17th year, promotes dialogue and activism through the screening of distinguished documentary and dramatic films. Screening schedule for THE DICTATOR HUNTER coming soon.

FilmAid is pleased to partner with and support Arts Engine and their Media That Matters Film Festival that premieres in New York City from May 28th – 30th. The Media That Matters Film Festival is the premier showcase for short films on the most important topics of the day. Local and global, online and in communities around the world, Media That Matters engages diverse audiences and inspires them to take action. Learn more

We are proud to partner with Pangea Day, UNHCR and Nokia to bring to life the stories of some of our beneficiaries in the PVP (Participatory Video Program) in Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya. The PVP is FilmAid’s refugee filmmaking program and with the guidance of FilmAid facilitators, volunteer members of our PV Program created 2-minute films for Pangea Day. These short films showcase the refugees’ interpretation of topics such as hope, love, laughter, sorrow and forgiveness among others.

Log onto their website to watch the event www.pangeaday.org.

Our deepest thanks to our friends at Bernard Hodes Ad Agency for donating their talents, time and resources to FilmAid for this project. The designers at Bernard Hodes worked with FilmAid staff and with feedback from the refugee filmmakers to design the inspiring new logo and tagline.

FilmAid International is proud to announce a new partnership with FilmCatcher.com.

FilmCatcher.com is a new premiere destination website for discovering, viewing and discussing independent films. FilmCatcher.com offers a carefully curated collection of classic and contemporary art house titles for purchase on DVD and will feature a similar collection for download. FilmCatcher.com has made FilmAid their primary charity partner and will be donating 5% of selected sales to FilmAid. We’re excited to have entered into this partnership and we’ll be working closely with FilmCatcher.com to help spread our mission of projecting hope and changing lives through the power of film.

In celebration of the partnership, FilmCatcher.com invited FilmAid to join them this year at FilmCatcher’s official launch party at the Sundance Film Festival ‘08. FilmAid was at the party in support of our FilmCatcher friends as well as in representing our organization at the event. You can visit the FilmCatchers at www.FilmCatcher.com.

On December 7, 2007, FilmAid International held its second annual refugee youth film festival in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya.

The film festival is the only festival in the world taking place in a refugee camp, where films are made by refugee youth, and where the only live audience is the refugee community within the camp. The day-long festival features a program of 13 short films made by young refugees. (read more)

Phil Engelhorn & Mike Raisler from Cinereach teach a filmmaking workshop to the PVP during the festival