By Darrell Vanterpool

Twelve years ago, Ghetto Film School was “nothing more than an old storefront on Longwood Avenue in the South Bronx.” says James Calinda, an alumni of the program. “We worked with consumer hand-held cameras like the kinds you’d see at your aunt’s wedding.”

Today, Ghetto Film School houses two Avid editing suites and is the only post-production house in the Bronx. The 15-month program begins with students learning the barebones of filmmaking and culminates in them shooting a short film in a foreign country. I was the camera operator for my class’ thesis film, which we shot in Shanghai. You can view the film here. These kinds of unique opportunities are what the film school prides itself on creating for students.

The New York City mayorship is by nature a lightning rod position. For one man to govern a vibrant and diverse city of nearly eight million, there is bound to be some dissent. In my lifetime, the city been stewarded by Ed Koch (59^th St. Bridge guy!), David Dinkins (gutless panderer!), Rudy Giuliani (bigoted militant!) and our current leader, Mike Bloomberg (soda-hater!). Though an independent, Bloomberg and his legislation – particularly regarding the regulation of cigarettes and sugary drinks – has elicited some very pointed opinions from both sides of the aisle. One initiative all should admire, however, is his attempts to “digitize” the city.

ESCAPE FIRE: THE FIGHT TO RESCUE AMERICAN HEALTHCARE, directed by Matthew Heineman and Susan Froemke, has been announced as the winner of the coveted React to Film Award. The award is given to a ”well-crafted and compelling documentary on a critical social issue that has the greatest potential…to have an impact on that issue through reaching the broadest audience, particularly young people.” The React to Film award supports the directors’ mission to utilize Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare as a vehicle to inform and to spark conversation. Only through awareness and understanding of the complex issues can Americans work to remedy our healthcare system.

It was announced today that The Horizons Project has been shortlisted at the 59th Cannes Lions in the newly created Branded Content & Entertainment “division.” OgilvyEntertainment created the ongoing effort for DuPont. The campaign centers on a long-form, thought-provoking TV series called Horizons. The program and its accompanying website were developed independently by BBC World News and sponsored by DuPont. To support Horizons, Ogilvy commissioned broadcast television company TwoFour to produce a series of 2-minute documentary-style commercial films showcasing DuPont stories of collaboration, and staged a series of debates on important global issues. All elements came together to answer three crucial questions: As our world’s population continues to grow, how will we feed every mouth? How will we decrease our dependency on fossil fuels? How will we protect people and the environment?’

By Andrew McDonald from C21 Media

New technology has created a “fundamental shift” in the media landscape and will bring about “the end of TV as we know it,” according to Ogilvy Entertainment president Doug Scott.