On the shelves! Creative Narrations co-director Natasha Freidus has a chapter in a new compilation of social change storytelling initiatives, Telling Stories to Change the World (eds. Solinger, Fox, and Irani). Her essay, “Our Stories, Their Decisions: a lesson in voter education” discusses how digital stories can be a powerful voter engagement tool. View the stories, read the chapter, and order your copy at Powells or Amazon.

Tufts University brings together public service and digital storytelling.
In January of 2006, Creative Narrations led a train the trainer workshop for the Tufts University College for Citizenship and Public Service (UCCPS). UCCPS was interested in using digital storytelling as a way for students to reflect upon and document their experiences in the realm of public service. Staff and faculty collaborated to bring digital storytelling into the classroom, where students have created effective multimedia pieces to explore perceptions of race and class. Read article and view story.

What the Water Gave Me, produced by Maya Castillo in a Creative Narrations workshop, has been accepted into The Boyle Heights Latina Film Festival in Los Angeles. Maya produced this piece as part of a train the trainer workshop at the University of Arizona's College of Public Health this past summer. View Maya's story here!

Stories produced in Creative Narrations workshops featured at
Media that Matters Film Festival two years in a row!

Bad Choices, by Aderian Fair, was recently selected to be part of this years' Festival and declared winner of the Youth Voice Award. In "Bad Choices", Aderian describes how his need for attention led to an arrest for bank robbery. He offers advice to his peers, telling them, "It's just not worth the attention." Aderian's story made the front page in the Spartanburg, South Carolina paper, Go Upstate. In May, Aderian left South Carolina for the first time to be honored at the HBO headquarters in New York. Aderian receives award from Bob McChesney of Free Press * Read article announcing Aderian's win! * Read article about the awards ceremony! *View story at the Media that Matters Festival

Lean on Me", written, directed, and edited by Harold Clinton, age 13 of Springfield,MA, and co-produced by Creative Narrations and the Center for Reflective Community Practice at MIT,won the Youth Digital Story Award at the 2004 Media that Matters National Film Festival. The Media That Matters Film Festival celebrates films, videos, and new media that inspire people to speak out and take action for social change. This award was sponsored by the Waitt Family Foundation.

In “Lean on Me”, first-time writer, director, and editor, Harold Clinton, weaves together still images, song, and his own voice in an inspiring drama of youth coming together to beat the odds. Shot on-site in Springfield, Massachusetts, and featuring music by well-known singer and community activist, Jane Sapp, Harold’s first person drama explores the potential of young people to identify problems and explore solutions in their neighborhoods.

“Lean on Me” was produced as part of a one-day (ONE DAY!) digital storytelling workshop at the annual Martin Luther King Day youth event, Shake up the World at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Sponsored by MIT’s Center for Reflective Community Practice, Shake up the World focused on the culture of young people that allows them to find their voice and use it. Participants from youth organizations, schools, and community centers from Western Massachusetts and the Boston area came together for a series of interactive workshops, speakers, and performances.

View "Lean on Me", by Harold Clinton
Visit the Media that Matters Film Festival!