Good Pitch Up Close

We’ve had a great year of Good Pitches so far! From DC to the UK and most recently San Francisco, we’ve been covering ground and helping generate exciting partnerships among filmmakers, NGOs, funders and brands. Are you wondering what happens at these pitches? Fear not! Rachel Seifert (of the film Not on the Label) gives insight on what it’s like to be up on the pitcher’s mound. Last week I pitched at the BritDoc Good Pitch –my first ever pitching session! I was pretty nervous. Despite having interviewed a number…

Reel Power: Films Fueling the Energy Revolution!

Don’t you think a movement needs more than one good movie? We are excited to announce a new collaboration with ten groundbreaking filmmakers – Reel Power: Films Fueling the Energy Revolution! The Reel Power film series tells the many stories of our energy crisis, and most importantly, community opportunities for sustainable growth. The series launches on November 23rd with the film Deep Down which premiers that night on PBS’s Independent Lens. Here’s how you can join the excitement: 1. Spread the word! Help us make our campaign go viral by…

Take Action with Speaking in Tongues!

Act Now! Join the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Language to encourage your decision makers to support HR 6036. HR 6036, the Excellence and Innovation in Language Learning Act, was proposed by Congressional Representatives Rush Holt (D-NJ) and Paul Tonko (D-NY) on August 1, 2010. This legislation would allow every young American to become proficient in English and a second language within a generation. Learn more about the bill from the Asia Society.

The Good Pitch @ SOCAP10

Working Films, in collaboration with The Channel 4 BRITDOC Foundation and Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program, is delighted to announce the first West Coast edition of the Good Pitch, hosted by the SOCAP10 conference at the Fort Mason Center in San Francisco on October 3, 2010 12:00pm – 6:00pm. The Social Capital Markets Conference (SOCAP) is the world’s premiere social capital markets event. The conference highlights the growing field of social capital: people investing to create social change. SOCAP10’s goal is to make connections, to generate partnerships and to increase…

European Social Documentary (ESoDoc)

On October 2 – 8th, I will be in Catania, Italy for the third session of the European Social Documentary training, commonly called ESoDoc, an initiative offered by ZeLIG School for Documentary and supported by the European Union’s MEDIA Program. ESoDoc explores wholly new terrain for EU filmmakers and brings together the demands of different players now involved in documentary film production and distribution, including directors and producers, non-government and non profit-making organizations (NGOs and NPOs), television broadcasters and the growing range of New Media professionals creating both web-documentaries and…

Reel Power at Appalachia Rising

Reel Power, a new collaboration of films on energy and natural resource extraction developed from our Reel Engagement residency, will be part of Appalachia Rising, a mass mobilization calling for the end of mountaintop removal mining to be held in Washington, DC, on September 25-27, 2010. We will co-host a resource booth with a number of other remarkable filmmakers, participate in a media workshop on Saturday, and host a Working Films workshop on how to use the collection of Reel Power films to engage communities in ways that lead audiences…

Get Engaged with Reel Engagement!

Are you interested in developing skills to effectively manage film campaigns on social justice issues? If so, you should apply to our latest Reel Engagement workshop, Managing Social Issue Film Campaigns, which we designed with the Fledgling Fund. This 4 day hands-on workshop is designed for individuals who are interested in developing the skills necessary to be Engagement Coordinators; designing and managing creative and impactful audience and community engagement campaigns for independent social issue documentary films or media projects. Read more and apply now! Deadline is October 22, 2010

Film Screening of Speaking in Tongues Sept 12th

What would it be like if you put your children in a school where the teacher spoke a foreign language? Speaking in Tongues follows the experience of 4 kids in language immersion grade schools. Come watch this award winning film and support Californians Together, a statewide coalition of parents, teachers, education advocates and civil rights groups committed to securing equal access to quality education for all children. $4 from each ticket sold will be donated to their “Seal of Biliteracy” campaign. September 12th 3:00pm – 5:00pm @ Aero Theatre (1328…

Dirty Business in Kansas

There is a debate heating up in Kansas about the proposed expansion of the Holcomb Station coal-fired power plant. Proponents of Sunflower Electric Power’s plant expansion cite the need to meet the growing load requirement in the region. Opponents argue that Kansas has the nation’s second-best wind resource and that in the long run, renewable energy can meet energy requirements at lower cost to rate payers and to the environment. The Kansas Department of Health & Environment’s (KDHE) has hosted three public hearings this week to listen to the voices…

Guest Blog: Jeremy Levine's "Good Fortune"

Five summers ago, I arrived in the Wilmington firehouse for my first day of work as a summer intern at Working Films. Three days later, I got appendicitis and was rushed into surgery. And one week ago, I watched Good Fortune, a feature documentary I produced and edited, air on POV on PBS. All of these events feel connected to me, I’m just not sure how exactly. Perhaps it’s the surreal feeling to it all—arriving to work the first day confused to find a firehouse in place of a standard…