BUFFALO, NY –The Canisius University Video Institute celebrates its 10th anniversary of making a positive impact on the lives of thousands of our neighbors in Western New York and around the world.
The Video Institute was founded in 2005 by Barbara J. Irwin, PhD, professor of communication studies. Since then, students have produced more than 85 social documentaries and service-oriented videos through the award-winning Video Institute to help non-profit organizations and human service agencies in the Buffalo region and worldwide advance their missions. The Video Institute’s work has been screened at film festivals and broadcast locally and regionally on cable and public television. Productions have earned local, regional, and national awards, often competing with video and film work created by seasoned professionals in the industry.
Projects produced by the award-winning Video Institute include:
- East Side: A Community of Hope, a 30-minute documentary that examines this struggling section of the city and the faith-based initiatives underway to help revitalize it.
- Immersion El Salvador, which documents a group of Canisius students during their journey of self-awareness and enlightenment; and as they explore faith, religion, culture and justice in the Central American country.
- Where the Crow Will Be Forever, a 30-minute film that explores the history of the Crow tribe, life on the reservation in Montana, and why the Crow have chosen to stay on the reservation.
- 1812: By Fire and Sword, a film and virtual exhibit that told the key stories that characterized the War of 1812. A dozen communication and digital media arts students participated in the film and virtual exhibit, which was on display at The Buffalo History Museum.
Through these projects, students have been provided opportunities to put their classroom lessons to work on projects that enrich their learning and benefit the greater community. Students produce social documentaries and service-oriented videos – all connected by the theme of social justice – to promote discourse on ethical, social and cultural issues relevant to the world today. It provides students with a context for real-world learning and for doing social justice.
The Video Institute is co-directed by Barbara J. Irwin, PhD, professor of communication studies, and Jamie O’Neil, associate professor of digital media arts. Click here for more information about the Video Institute or to view more projects.
In celebration of its 10th anniversary, the Canisius University Video Institute will host a screening, “Filmmakers on the Front Line: Living the Mission through Video Institute Alumni,” on Wednesday, March 25 at 7:30 p.m. in the Science Hall Commons.
The 30-minute screening will feature several short films by Matt Rath, COM/DMA ’09, video producer for Samaritan’s Purse International Relief: Conflict in South Sudan, Forgiving Isis and Human Trafficking. A discussion, question and answer session, and reception will follow the screening. The event is free and to the public.
Rath, a 27 year-old Christian filmmaker who loves photography, storytelling and social justice, has traveled to more than 20 countries including Iraq, South Sudan, Rwanda and Niger for his work with Samaritan’s Purse, an international humanitarian organization founded by Franklin Graham. He has witnessed the wounds of war, poverty and disease but has also laughed with someone everywhere that he has been. Rath is living the mission of the Canisius University Video Institute every day through his work with Samaritan’s Purse. View clips of Rath’s work here.
“Filmmakers on the Front Line: Living the Mission through Video Institute Alumni,” is co-sponsored by the Office of Campus Ministry, the Canisius Jesuit Community, the Communication Studies Department, the Digital Media Arts Program, the Journalism Program, The Office of Mission and Identity, and USA JUSTICE. For more information, contact Barbara J. Irwin, PhD, at (716) 888-2108 or @email.
Canisius is one of 28 Jesuit universities in the nation and the premier private university in Western New York.
-30-
