Shine Global Mourns the Loss of Don Melnick

Shine Global Mourns the Loss of Don Melnick

Blog
Shine Global Mourns the Loss of Don Melnick

Shine Global mourns the loss of our longtime Board member and former Chair, Don Melnick. His service to humanity was reflected in many ways, including his leadership and commitment to using the power of film to tell the stories of children and families facing life’s greatest challenges. His unique vision will be deeply missed.

From the obituary in the New York Times:

MELNICK–Dr. Don J., the Thomas Hunt Morgan Professor of Conservation Biology at Columbia University, was an extraordinary man whose passing is a great loss to his family, friends, colleagues and students. A groundbreaking scientist, educator and leader in conservation biology and evolutionary genetics, Don was also a deeply loved and loving husband and father, delighted grandfather, devoted sibling, friend and teacher. His deep humanity and love of the natural world touched all who had the good fortune to know him. He loved nothing more than time with family, a long trek in a deep forest and to walk with his dog on the beach in Cape Cod. Don is survived by his wife, Mary C. Pearl, his son Seth Melnick, his daughter Meredith Melnick, son-in-law James Breitinger and grandson Ezra Breitinger; his brothers Michael, Ralph, and William Melnick, sister Barbara Melnick White and their spouses along with many nieces and nephews. His family will receive visitors on April 21-23, 2019 from 2pm to 7pm at their home. A memorial service will be held on May 8, 2019 at 2:30pm at the Riverside Memorial Chapel in New York City. In lieu of flowers, please consider donations to Macaulay Honors College, CUNY and to Shine Global.

Read a tribute to Don Melnick from Columbia University here and from the Wildlife Conservation Society here.

You can also read his op-ed published in the New York Times last year on wildfires and climate change here.

Lastly, Don himself wrote in 2017 about why he had joined the board of directors of Shine Global and how his expertise fit in with our work.

Director André Robert Lee on Why He’s Making Virtually Free

Director André Robert Lee on Why He’s Making Virtually Free

Blog
 

Director André Robert Lee on Why He’s Making Virtually Free

By André Robert Lee

I do this work for selfish reasons. I do it so I can sleep better at night. In these terrible times, I must fight for justice with my art. This Virtually Free project will do just that.

When I first got the call about this project I was a “yes” as soon as I heard that we could help incarcerated teens. Being a black man in America, I statistically know and am related to people that have been or are in jail. I entered this project thinking I understood the prison pipeline story. I read The New Jim Crow. I talked to people. I was informed. After many months working with and getting to know incarcerated youth in Richmond, VA I figured out how little I really knew.

Let me make this clear. I will refer to these teens as boys. They are not young men that need grit to get by and make it. They are boys that have been dealt a bad hand and need our help. They are between the ages of 13 and 16.

The boys I met this summer are brilliant. On the first day, one of them talked about the 4 quadrants of the brain and how each functioned. All I could think was “why is this boy in prison?” The system that has these boys in and out of prison is not broken. It works very well for those that benefit from it – – and that is not the boys or the community. It is our job to take care of them. We need to love them, support them and help them help themselves.

I have committed my life to making art that fights for equity and justice. Learning about the industrial prison complex and youth incarceration has been an intense experience already. The boys we spent time with came in the room with a very hard exterior that was influenced by some terrible experiences I cannot begin to comprehend. When we spent time with them and witnessed their talking, bonding, writing and making art, we saw the youth that was hidden under the thick skin they have had to develop. Their eyes lit up, and they betrayed the persona they have had to construct to survive their existence on this earth. I want the world to see the results of the school-to-prison pipeline and the honest results of systemic racism.

We need your support. People are often asking “What Can I do? Well this is a chance to do something. Help us make this film so we can share this story and fight for justice.

About Director André Robert Lee

André’s resume includes, New York City Public Schools, The Ford Foundation, Miramax Films, Urbanworld, Film Movement, Diana Ross, BET, Universal, HBO, Picturehouse, and Dreamworks. André directed and produced The Prep School Negro. He has visited hundreds of high schools, colleges, universities and conferences with the workshop and is booked through 2019. André also served as producer on the documentary I’m Not Racist…Am I?  He received a Fellowship in 2013 from Colorlines.com, a division of Race Forward, and was tasked with Directing and Producing the 12-month series Life Cycles of Inequity: A Colorlines Series on Black Men. André also directed an episode of the Webby-nominated digital series “The Election Effect” with Shine Global for Paramount Network. He is currently in development for a narrative feature film about the life of Bayard Rustin. André also teaches Filmmaking at the Germantown Friends School where he is working to develop a film program for Middle and Upper School.

Notes from Susan: Why We’re Making Virtually Free

Notes from Susan: Why We’re Making Virtually Free

Blog

Notes from Susan: Why We’re Making Virtually Free


By Susan MacLaury

On any given day in the US more than 50,000 kids are imprisoned, severely limiting their futures. This fact deeply troubled us and prompted our search for a way to address it cinematically, realistically, and tempered with hope.  We are now raising funds to finish Virtually Free on Kickstarter.

In early 2017 we met Mark Strandquist, co-director of Performing Statistics in Richmond, VA. They were to partner that summer with young detainees to create activist art, including a virtual reality jail cell, and we decided to document the 8-week program that brought detainees from detention to an art program daily to work with different artists. Their culminating project would be the creation of a virtual jail cell that would be incorporated into training for all 700 members of the Richmond police force to open their eyes to the impact of incarceration on children.

André Robert Lee, who had directed one of the episodes in our Webby-nominated digital series, “The Election Effect,” joined us as the film’s director. Like us, André was immediately interested and as a social activist he also saw the film’s potential to contribute to potential change in America’s juvenile detention system. The director of The Prep School Negro and producer of I’m not a Racist, am I?, André is an experienced outreach and engagement expert with a network of thousands of schools and cultural programs who have seen his films. He was the perfect partner for the outreach and social engagement we are planning for Virtually Free.

Imagine what these kids could do for themselves and society if given the attention and care they’ve lacked but desperately need. Virtually Free will be a vehicle to create conversations nationally among police, at-risk teens, juvenile justice advocates, and arts educators. It gives a voice to those who’ve been silenced before they were ever given the opportunity to speak. Let’s not give up on any of our kids.

The Election Effect Nominated for A Webby – “The Oscars of the Internet”

The Election Effect Nominated for A Webby – “The Oscars of the Internet”

Blog

Shine Global’s Digital Series “The Election Effect” Nominated For Best Public Service & Activism Video In the 23rd Annual Webby Awards

Shine Global’s Digital Series “The Election Effect” Nominated For Best Public Service & Activism Video In the 23rd Annual Webby Awards

Fans Can Vote Online to Help The Election Effect Win Internet’s Top Honor: wbby.co/vote-vid32

[NY, NY] — [April 4, 2019] – Shine Global announced today that it has been nominated for Best Public Service & Activism Video in the 23rd Annual Webby Awards. Hailed as the “Internet’s highest honor” by The New York Times, The Webby Awards, presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS), is the leading international awards organization honoring excellence on the Internet.

The Election Effect is a five-part documentary series that showcases life for the next generation of voters. The series, produced by Oscar-winning production house Shine Global and Paramount Network, looks at seven students from an array of backgrounds and political beliefs across the nation — and documents the effect of political rhetoric on each of them. Shine Global enlisted the help of five award-winning directors as diverse as their subjects, to capture these conversations in thoughtful and thought-provoking ways.  

In addition to the documentaries, Shine Global created a free downloadable companion discussion guide for teachers, educators, parents, and student leaders to download. With “The Election Effect” and the accompanying Discussion Guides, Shine Global hopes to provide teachers, parents, and community leaders with the skills to promote civil discourse among students. These include listening respectfully to other opinions and trying to understand different points of view — crucial skills to function effectively in a democracy. The series is available for schools and libraries through Tugg Educational.

“Nominees like “The Election Effect” are setting the standard for innovation and creativity on the Internet,” said Claire Graves, Executive Director of The Webby Awards. “It is an incredible achievement to be selected among the best from the 13,000 entries we received this year.”

“The kids who are coming of age now, in this moment, are activists,” says series Producer Albie Hecht. “They’re the most tuned-in, the most connected generation we’ve ever seen.  Considering they are our future, we felt it was important to give them a chance to speak to one another and to the nation. We think we can all learn from the empathetic approach they took in their dialogue.”

As a nominee, “The Election Effect” is also eligible to win a Webby People’s Voice Award, which is voted online by fans across the globe. From now until April 18th, Shine Global fans can cast their votes at vote.webbyawards.com.

Winners will be announced on Tuesday, April 23, 2019, and honored at a star-studded ceremony on Monday, May 13, 2019, at Cipriani on Wall Street in New York City.  There they will have an opportunity to deliver one of The Webby Awards’ famous 5-Word Speeches. Past 5-Word Speeches include: Steve Wilhite’s “It’s Pronounced “Jif” not ‘Gif’; Stephen Colbert’s “Me. Me. Me. Me. Me.”; and Björk ‘s “A E I O U.”

About Shine Global:
Shine Global is an award-winning non-profit media company that gives voice to children and their families by sharing their stories of resilience to raise awareness, promote action, and inspire change. We produce inspiring films and compelling content about at-risk children. Through tailored distribution and outreach, we connect with our audiences in communities, classrooms, museums, and on capitol hill as part of a powerful engagement campaign to encourage social change. Our films have won more than 60 major awards, including an Academy Award® for Best Documentary Short Subject for Inocente and an Academy Award®-nomination for War/Dance.

About The Webby Awards:
Hailed as the “Internet’s highest honor” by The New York Times, The Webby Awards is the leading international awards organization honoring excellence on the Internet, including Websites, Video, Advertising, Media & PR, Apps, Mobile, and Voice, Social, Podcasts, and Games. Established in 1996, this year’s Webby Awards received nearly 13,000 entries from all 50 states and 70 countries worldwide this year. The Webby Awards is presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences (IADAS). Sponsors and Partners of The Webby Awards include: YouTube, WP Engine, EY, YouGov, Vitamin T, WNYC Studios, Fast Company, ESA, Product Hunt, and Social Media Week.

IADAS, which nominates and selects The Webby Award Winners, is comprised of Internet industry experts including Internet inventor Vint Cerf, Instagram’s Head of Fashion Partnerships Eva Chen, Director of Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet & Society Susan P. Crawford, actor and activist Jesse Williams, GE CMO Linda BoffPod Save the People host and activist DeRay McKesson, Google’s Head of Conversation Design Cathy Pearl, Fortnite Designer Eric Williamson, HBO Digital Chief Diane Tryneski, Los Angeles Laker Isaiah Thomas, and DDB Worldwide CEO Wendy Clark.