The Tragedy Unfolds is comprised of a video which the ultimate goal is to create a trans media physical and virtual space that explores police brutality and its impact on Black youth, families and communities through the lens of Newark, NJ and Ferguson Missouri.

The project outcome will comprise two components:

1. A physical exhibit and film screening to be held on Rutgers- Newark and Essex County College campuses in February 2016.

2. A web-based exhibit and crowdsourced portal to the black lives matter movement and movement to end police brutality.

The Ferguson project is directed by Essex County College graduate and Rutgers-Newark student Barbara Cummings. Advisors include Professor Jennifer Wager and Dr. Margaret Stephens.

The footage of the Mike Brown/ferguson incident will be displayed through two stages. There will be footage of Newark riots to show a parallel of images of incidents regarding black lives matter movement. This documentary with show how St Louis county, Missouri became the focus of national attention in the shooting death of Mike Brown. This will display a summary of the persistent problem of policing and racial violence  of unarmed black men.  The end result of this  project is to influence the audience and my colleagues that curation is creative  approach to display  factual information to an audience through a documentary.  This film is a great marketing strategy as a presentation for a future feature film. The chronicle above has  professional opinions of community activist, students and the common man interview of the Ferguson encounter.

This film has a clear picture of a specific event, while at the same time a mother’s wit, while at the same time a story from a student's perspective. You will see in this documentary from beginning to end how, we made an honest attempt to capture truth through our eyes vs other versions of edited stories that was given through the various media outlets. I felt this was a major responsibility as producer to capture the audience rare emotion through a lens. It brings  on a great amount of emotion to just edit and see these clips and know that somehow there is not justice in this case and many others.

We took on a strategy to take a bit out of crime through curation, in hopes through this film it would  motivate others to join in on the  black live matter movement. We hope the picture will help one to  take a stance to stop police brutality, and racial profiling. I displayed  how the Ferguson tragedy was indeed one of the leading forces in the good, bad indifferent, true as well as controversy issues in our communities. The process of this project did display a diverse coalitions coming together to speak out against  police brutality, racism. We in summary will continue through film to resolution to fight for laws against officers and confront the reality  that policing against black communities has not changed. But yet in time we hope there will be. We did manual research, viewing, reviewing, interviews  and vetting(making critical examination of footage). Overall the goal is for all viewers of film screening a better understanding of police brutality, black lives matter movement from the Mike Ferguson incident. Let us not Forget!

Works Cited

Drehle, David Von, et al. "The Tragedy Of Ferguson. (Cover Story)." Time 184.8 (2014): 22. MAS Ultra - School Edition. Web. 31 Oct. 2015.

(Modern Language Assoc.) Works Cited "The Cop." New Yorker 91.23 (2015): 44-1. Literary Reference Center. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.

(Modern Language Assoc.)Works Cited Lydia, Smith. "Mike Brown Shooting: US Journalists Ryan Reilly and Wesley Lowery Tweet and Film Arrest in Ferguson McDonalds." International Business Times: United Kingdom Edition (UK) 14 Aug. 2014: NewsBank. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.  

(Modern Language Assoc.) Works Cited Kathleen Caulderwood @kcaulderwood, k.caulderwood@i. "Mike Brown Update: Ferguson Shooting Protesters March, National Guard Close By." International Business Times (USA) 18 Aug. 2014: NewsBank. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.

actual building burdened during riot

protestor where Mike Brown was shot

                      

      

https://youtu.be/hQ0vclMS0yc

Omotade Fatiregun - America's Mirror

My Final project, "America's Mirror", is built on the premise that the Mass Media is a mirror into the lives of everyday Americans. It is said that America's biggest export is media/entertainment,with this in mind i embarked on a project that would be critical of the accuracy of this "mirror". It has long been an issue of concern that the creators and gate keepers of our various entertainment industries do represent a specific demographic as posed to reflecting the vastness of the American population. In other words, the people who own the companies and have the biggest influences over what we see are White Males. The purpose of my project is to start a dialogue amongst todays creators on how to change that. My project would consist of two components.

The first component is history. In order to create have proper dialogue, one must have a grasp of context. I decided to focus in on a specific demographic, according to history the first non-white demo to be depicted in american media, the african american community.  I decided to create a blog on the popular site Tumblr. On this blog i attempt to give the history of the depictions and quality of representation African Americans have had in american media. I intend for it to serve as sort of a timeline to lead to where today's creators have to build from.

The second component is a documentary that would target creators directly, especially those working in a visual medium. I based the documentary on two young African American photographers, on male and one female, currently working on a joint endeavor called, "The Melanin Project". The premise of the project is to photograph black, male and female subjects in the nude in order to celebrate the beauty of melanin. I wanted to document the journey they go on as they put this project together. While acting as a fly on the wall as a good documentarian should, I attempt to find out how America's Mirror has affected them as consumers as well as creators of media. Armed with a knowledge of this countries history of portraying melanated peoples, how do they plan on effecting change if intact the believe change is necessary.    

Below is a short teaser of the documentary. Due to schedules of both of the photographers and the difficulty involved in finding subjects that will pose nude, i have not gotten as far as i would have liked. I plan to continue documenting them on their journey as they work on what could be a defining project in both of their careers. 

America's Mirror Blog: http://americasmirror.tumblr.com/

Bibliography

1. Bogle, Donald. Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies, and Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films. New York: Continuum, 2001. Print
2. "The Minstrel Show." The Minstrel Show. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
3. " Jezebel Stereotype." JCM: Jezebel Stereotype. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
4. "History of Minstrel Shows: Reconstruction - 4." History of Minstrel Shows: Reconstruction. N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
5. Burton, Nsenga. "100 Years of Black Cinema: Oscar Micheaux, Melvin Van Peebles, Spike Lee, Kasi Lemmons." N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
6. "Racism in Animation." The Museum Of UnCut Funk. N.p., 02 Feb. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
7. "From Blackface to Blaxploitation: Representations of African Americans in Film." Duke University Libraries, n.d. Web.
8. Smith, Marquita R. "Afro Thunder! Sexual Politics and Gender Inequity in the Liberation Struggles of the Black Militant Woman." Ann Arbor, MI: MPublishing, University of Michigan Library, n.d. Web.

Final Project: "The Social Fight Pit" Short Film (Ali Ismail)

I'll keep the summary brief as the film is approximately 15 minutes in length altogether.

       As I've stated throughout the course of planning this project, the topic my project is about is Internet Anonymity and how it makes us act when we have it. We are in an age where we can be connected to many people, but we all do so with a second identity that we mold ourselves for the sake of using the Internet. Actions can hold less consequences across the Internet making people care less about how they treat others and what they actually say.

       I wanted to tackle this project from a more creative aspect. I didn't want to make a boring informative piece on the subject, nor did I want to take the easy path and just say that Internet Anonymity is bad. Through my research, there actually is quite a benefit to having this identity. I mean just imagine as one of the main characters Apa brings up in her argument, imagine if every time you made a post online all of your information was there for the world to see. I wanted to push my craft and make something I could be proud of outside of just doing something for a class, but I didn't want to just make a straightforward editorial or documentary. So realizing that I'm a glutton for punishment and straight up masochist, I decided to take this on as a Narrative Project made in the timespan of approximately one month, when the Narrative Production Class gives you a total of 3-4 months to make a short film. A Narrative Film serves my purpose best as I can create my own world to deliver a message. What I value greatly is the ability to view both perspectives in order to reach the best possible conclusion. The month has been grueling and tough, but I'm proud to present with the help of wonderful people such as David from the class, The Social Fight Pit!!!

Title Card for the Short Film.
Drawn by my lovely and supportive girlfriend <3

       This film's intended audience is for the general public; primarily people that spend a lot of time browsing the Internet through Youtube and much more. Even people who aren't active Internet browsers can relate to this experience, so I wanted to keep the film fun, humorful, and direct enough so that people can understand the message and have a takeaway from it, rather than be confused by a more experimental abstract film. What's that message? Ahh you'll have to watch the film to find out

Sly Obama wink

Without further ado I present to you the result of 8% blood,  80% sweat, and 12% tears; My Short Narrative Film The Social Fight Pit!!!

Final: It's A Living

Strong Language Warning
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8s6h6DKpzhI&feature=youtu.be

 An abridged version of the full video


It's A Living is a project to help the voice of people on the low end of the economic totem pole to be heard by the masses. In this video, I interview Moses Leiva, a Bayonne resident with a sailor's mouth working as a janitor, and his experiences. Spending most of his life close to the thresh hold of poverty, Moses has spent the last year living with his fiancee's family after being evicted from his home.

Though my original plan for this project was to make a single video featuring many interviewees I soon realized a single video is very limiting. I felt the project would be better realized as a continued series, talking to people in the vein of a portrait documentary short covering the subjects I brought up in my project proposal , such as minimum wage, poverty and welfare.

Since each video would be focused on one person, it would allow more flexibility to interact with them and allow them to speak. Taking this further, the production values could expand, such as following the subjects in their day to day life(something I wanted to do with Moses but his employer refused to let me record him at his work) and a use of After Effect to make more dynamic video presentations along the lines of a video you would find on Buzzfeed(I have no access to After Effect so that's off the table for now).

Having a specific goal in mind with the series also allows me to really focus in on a social problem and using convergence culture to spread the knowledge. Moses was a great first subject for the project because of how knowledgeable on the subject he is(I had no idea there were so many PhDs in poverty, for example) while he also knew about a lot of the sources I brought up below. I believe there is a lot of room for this project to grow from here, to spread awareness of economic problems from the perspective of people who are not always heard.

http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/files/2015/12/ST_2015-12-09_middle-class-05.png

Reich, Robert. "The Morality of a $15 Minimum." Robert Reich (). N.p., 19 Oct. 2015. Web. 17 Dec. 2015. <http://robertreich.org/post/131476708345>.

"UC Davis Center for Poverty Research." Who Are the Working Poor? -. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2015. <http://poverty.ucdavis.edu/faq/who-are-working-poor>.

Parlapiano, Alicia, Robert Gebeloff, and Shan Carter. "The Shrinking American Middle Class." The New York Times. The New York Times, 24 Jan. 2015. Web. 17 Dec. 2015. <http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/01/25/upshot/shrinking-middle-class.html?_r=0>.

"Minimum Wage since 1938." CNNMoney. Cable News Network, n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2015. <http://money.cnn.com/interactive/economy/minimum-wage-since-1938/>.

"Minimum Wage Mythbusters." - U.S. Department of Labor. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2015. <http://www.dol.gov/minwage/mythbuster.htm>.

"Living Wage NYC." Living Wage NYC. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Dec. 2015. <http://www.livingwagenyc.org/pagedetail.php?id=3>.

"The American Middle Class Is Losing Ground." Pew Research Centers Social Demographic Trends Project RSS. N.p., 09 Dec. 2015. Web. 17 Dec. 2015. <http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2015/12/09/the-american-middle-class-is-losing-ground/>.

I Define Me: Asian American Representation in Media (Final)

I Define Me Website 

Margaret Cho as North Korean General at the Golden Globes (2015)

          It is a topic that needs to be shared in conversation. Although the population of Asian Americans has grown substantially throughout the years, there is still an issue of representation of Asian Americans in the media. My project focuses specifically on the issues of representations for Asian American women. In my research, I was enlightened of the issues Asian American women have dealt with and still deal with representation and in the media industry. While dealing with the lack of representation, Asian American women also have to see their cultures be simplified and categorized into unhealthy and unrealistic representation. With all this said, I think it is time for people represented in such a way to take control of their own narratives. If the media cannot correctly represent Asian American women, the audience should take it to themselves to spread the word of this injustice. We must define ourselves.

          My final project in Convergence focuses on Asian American women and their representation in the media. For this social issue, I decided to create a website that shares information on the issues on representation for Asian American women. It talks about the different stereotypes, the lack of representation, and what some people in the media business have to say about the whole issue. Even though the website is not fully finished, I have big plans for it to be used as a platform where audiences can read more into the issue, see different stories and videos that talk more about the issue, promote Asian American women in media, and even communicate more about it through this website.

Actress Anna May Wong

         The first part of the website will be a blog that constantly updates news and additional websites that add to the conversation on Asian American representation. The second part will focus more on the history on Asian American representation, the faults in the stereotypes and lack of, and even the faults in whitewashing and appropriation of Asian American culture. The website will also provide recommended movies and television shows as well as other media and people in media to follow. With this said, the site will work as a kind of promotion that is more needed for Asian American women in media.

          The last part of my website will be more social. In this part of the site, people can share stories and communicate with others through forums on the subject.

           Even though the website is not done yet, I plan to bring awareness to this issue in the media and how people should start the conversation more on how a community should and should not be represented. And if the media cannot successfully define me, then this website shows that as a community, we must define ourselves in a new, positive way.

Actress Lucy Liu on her experience with Asian women representation in her career

Resource List:

Websites:
- "Representation of Asian American Women in Media." Storify. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.

- "Asian Women Aren't Your Oriental, Submissive, China Dolls." Groupthink. 14 Nov. 2013. Web. 2   Nov. 2015.

- "Restrictive Portrayals of Asians in the Media and How to Balance Them." MANAA. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.

- Wo, Emily. "Beyond the Color Line: Asian American Representations in the Media." 2012. Web. 1 Nov. 2015.

- Haque, Zahra. "Representation of Asian Americans in Film Limited." WSN. 5 Dec. 2014. Web. 2 Nov. 2015.

- Qiang, Ashley. "When Asian Americans Appear On TV, It's Usually As One Of These Racist Stereotypes." Slant. 22 Aug. 2015. Web. 1 Nov. 2015.

Books:

- Kim, Youna. Women and the Media in Asia: The Precarious Self. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012. Print.

- Nam, Vickie. Yell-oh Girls!: Emerging Voices Explore Culture, Identity, and Growing up Asian American. New York: Quill, 2001. Print.

- Ono, Kent A., and Vincent N. Pham. Asian Americans and the Media. Cambridge: Polity, 2009. Print.

Videos:

- "Asian American Women in Hollywood and Beyond" Panel." YouTube. YouTube, 26 Jan. 2012. Web. 01 Nov. 2015.

- Slaying the Dragon: Reloaded. Dir. Elaine H. Kim. Asian Women United of California, 2011. Film.