Group 2 Documentary News West Adv Spring 2019 Documentary on Nichols Tower located in North Lawndale!
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FSM News West explore how LGBTQIA individuals use various art mediums for self-expression. This video was created in collaboration with the Pulitzer Center for Crisis Reporting.
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2017
Free Spirit PRO
Continuing Ed. is a yearlong, statewide series of free public programs that puts parents and schools back at the center of conversations about public education.
FSM News
The MisEducatioN of Gen Z is a short documentary that explores the multiple layers of masculinity and what it means to be a man in today’s society.
FSM News
House Of Fortune is a short documentary about how fortune telling impacts different fortune tellers’ lives.
Free Spirit PRO
Chicago CRED works to reduce violence by providing skills, emotional and mental health support, employment opportunities and positive connection to young men most likely to shoot or be shot. Thereby Creating Real Economic Destiny.
In-School
Practicing their interview and narrative skills. The seniors created a fictional story based off any topic. They decided to do a mocumentary based off the movie, "The Conjuring 2." Students had to write, produce and edit this movie within 1 month.
In-School
You can never know if you're going to be a victim of gun violence, and Amarion hopes his documentary can shed some light on some of the causes of gun violence and how it can be important to others so that the gun violence in Chicago can be reduced.
In-School
Some recipients of public housing become stagnant very co-dependent on the assistance. While there are others who thrive and are able to let go of the assistance. In this documentary the question of whether it is the government or the recipients fault for this problem.
In-School
Through a range of interviews with athletes, coaches, volunteers, parents, and staff members, Carlos Hines makes a case for the importance of the Special Olympics as an outlet for athletes and an inspiration to those outside of the disabled community.
In-School Programs
Zika virus is a virus that is originally spread by mosquitoes. It has been known to cause severe problems including microcephaly. Microcephaly is a birth defect that a child can get when their infected mother is pregnant with Zika and the virus is passed through the fetus. Zika has been emerging and a way to help prevent the more serious effects of the virus is contraception.
In-School
Would less gun control result in gun violence? In my research and interviews, I found that there is not a way to stop the violence because there are too many guns out on the streets and people can get a gun from anywhere. To try to decrease the violence, we should put more money towards education, better after-school programs, and help ex-felons to get jobs.
2016
Free Spirit PRO
"I am what I am, because of who we all are."
As part of the Peace Exchange leadership program, Peace Builders from violence-plagued Chicago neighborhoods traveled to South Africa in the summer of 2016, 22 years after the end of apartheid.
Free Spirit PRO
Nia is a high school senior only months away from graduation. A bright student, she dreams of attending college and having a successful career.
Free Spirit PRO
The Chicago CRED Pullman Pilot recruited 28 young men ranging in age from 18 to 24 to change their neighborhood and change their lives. Two weeks of community building, employment readiness and Life Coaching lead to several months of transitional employment, deconstructing abandoned historic homes and beautifying streets in Pullman.
Free Spirit PRO
In July, 3,000 teens gathered at Northerly Island to enjoy T.I.P. Fest. Teens in the Park Festival is a free event hosted by the Chicago Park District in partnership with Donda's House Inc.
Free Spirit PRO
During the summer of 2016, thanks to a generous partnership with the Emerson Collective and One Summer Chicago employment initiative, the Chicago Park District was able to expand teen leadership and job opportunities to hundreds of youth.
Free Spirit PRO
Evette, a parent coordinator for A Long Walk Home, is still dealing with the aftermath of a family tragedy, but she finds her voice and purpose as a community activist against gender violence.
Free Spirit PRO
Chicago’s school discipline policies have unintended consequences. Is there a better way? Young filmmakers from Free Spirit Media explore causes and solutions to Chicago's school-to-prison-pipeline.
Free Spirit PRO
Last year, students passed SB100, the nation’s most comprehensive statewide school discipline reform, which ended zero tolerance in Illinois and placed stronger standards on the use of suspensions and expulsions.But there is more work to do to end the unnecessary arrests of K-12 students and shift dollars from punitive to supportive and restorative approaches.
Free Spirit PRO
Teacher quality is a fundamental factor in providing the rich educational experience that all Chicago students deserve. Chicago Foundation for Education (CFE) honors exemplary Chicago Public School (CPS) teachers with leadership, learning, and grant opportunities that enhance teacher quality and stimulate professional growth.
In-School
Police brutality has been a topic of contention and debate for centuries, and has regained the eye of the public in the midst of protests across the United States. In this short documentary, Director/Producer Sayvon Williams approaches this complex issue of police brutality through the increase in police militarization and technology. Similar to the criticism brought against the Ferguson Police Force during the protests after the fatal shooting of Michael Brown, Sayvon explores the ways in which contemporary police force equipment and tactics use excessive force and overly militaristic tactics as means of controlling communities.
Free Spirit PRO
This summer, Chicago Park District offered teens the chance to be a part of a free basketball league in 37 locations in our city.
In-School
Senior Documentary Class of 2016
2014
A feature story by Free Spirit Media journalism students Tyira Brown, Paris Manning, Briana Washington at the Gary Comer Youth Center in Chicago
A feature story by Free Spirit Media journalism students India Conner, Jessica Finister & Branden Watkins at the Gary Comer Youth Center in Chicago.
Undocumented Mexican immigrants make up the largest immigration population in America (60%). Many have been living in America for years—some longer then I have been alive—but they are still not citizens. In my documentary I discuss the meaning of the American dream and explore certain aspects of immigration. I also talk about perceptions of undocumented immigrants, the reasons why they come to America, the struggles of deportation, and how Mexican immigrants help the economy. I want to show what immigrants go through to live here in America. Ultimately, we cannot make a change if we do not support Congress to reform immigration policy.
I created this documentary because I noticed many people in communities of color suffering from drug addiction and drug distribution. The communities in which they live in are dis-invested and are in need of more opportunities and support networks to ensure their improvement. My documentary explores three possible solutions to improve and heal the negative effects of the war on drugs, mass incarceration, and the lack of opportunities that exist in neighborhoods throughout the US: decriminalizing certain drug crimes, improving support and treatment for drug addicts and ex-offenders that are re-entering communities, and providing a stronger base of education for community members.
2013
In-School
This documentary specifically focus on the history and media's present portrayal of Black women in the media. This film is approximately 9 minutes produced by me, India Bouldin, at North Lawndale College Prep High School through my Senior Documentary Class with Free Spirit Media. This documentary is relevant, because Black women in history have always been seen in a negative light and affects how Black women interact with each other as well as how society's perceives Black women. After you watch this film ask yourself; Why is this a problem? Why isn't this ever discussed? How does this affect me? What can I do to help young women around me feel good about themselves?
In-School
Broken English? is a documentary that was created for society as a whole to learn and value different cultures. African Americans are an ethnic group that is stereotyped in America because of their way of speaking and their language. This film is to teach non-Ebonics speakers that Ebonics is a dialect that was originated in the south. I would also like to make Ebonics speakers aware that the way they speak has cultural value and is part of their identity. I am a senior and 19 years old. I made this film at North Lawndale College Prep High School with Free Spirit Media.
Ever wondered why your child acts the way they do? Is it because of the media? It is because of the community they live in? There's not one simple answer. There are many factors that contribute to the behavior of children. Many people blame violent video games for the cause of violent behavior in children. As you watch this documentary, try to find out what actually causes violent behavior in children.
FSM youth tackle the issues of gentrification and urban planning in their documentary produced in collaboration with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.
This documentary briefly scans/expresses the relationship between Japanese culture and Japanese animation. It's roughly a 13 minute documentary produced by me, Spencer Martin, at North Lawndale College Prep high school through my senior project documentary class with Free Spirit Media. This documentary is a relevant factor because it brings to light how Japanese animation, better known as Anime, reflects Japanese culture. People should be aware of other cultures because they connect in some way to their own culture. If Japanese Anime reflects Japan, does American Anime reflect the U.S?
Chicago youth spent six weeks learning how to build and maintain safe spaces in their schools and communities. This documentary follows them, as they grapple with new ideas and concepts, designed to increase interpersonal communication and understanding.
This documentary briefly examines the structural barriers specifically in the North Lawndale Community (NL) that contributes to the high rate of obesity and diabetes amongst lower income African Americans who are living in the North Lawndale community. It's an approximately 11 minute documentary produced by me, Dumanisha Ward, at North Lawndale College Prep High School through my Senior Documentary Class with Free Spirit Media. This documentary is relevant and important because it examines and raises awareness about a life, threatening topic that is critical to the NL community. If we don't do something about this problem it will only get worst and worst for the people living in this community and communities similar to it.
2010
Free Spirit Media News discusses New Year's resolutions, youth violence, abstinence, and what it takes to be a good basketball coach.
Digital short produced by Free Spirit Media. A young man details how boxing has impacted his life.
2009
Umoja Students from North Lawndale College Prep, Manley, and Ace Technical High Schools teamed with Free Spirit Media to discover the facts about the food desert in North Lawndale
The Young Women's Action Team in Chicago led a project against sexual harassment and violence on the CTA (trains and buses). This film was shot and edited by student producers from Free Spirit Media about YWAT's public forum. www.youngwomensactionteam.org
Students were inspired to tell this story out of an aversion to the double standard that exists between males and females when it comes to sex. Heated discussions led to the development of this PSA. Double Standard depicts a male who has had multiple sexual partners and is seen as The Man. In contrast, it depicts a female with the same amount to partners who is seen as a Whore. Students boldly take on the topic of sex as it relates to gender.
2001 - 2008
"Will I Be Next?" is a film that explores the issue of gun violence. Five established experts and numerous young people were interviewed for their perspective on this complex and incredibly troubling problem.
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The population of Free Spirit Media's brand new website with our full, historical archive is still underway! Even more media, from the beginning of time, can be found on our YouTube.
This video is presented in collaboration with Art Design Chicago, an initiative of the Terra Foundation for American Art exploring Chicago’s art and design legacy through more than 30 exhibitions, as well as hundreds of talks, tours and special events in 2018.