Professors Nefin Dinç and Ted Schwalbe, both of the Department of Communication, will discuss their recently completed “Youth Filmmaking in Turkey” project. The talk, “Filmmaking as a Means of Social Engagement,” will take place on Wednesday, March 3 at noon in room S-104 of the Williams Center.
This presentation is free and will feature a 30-minute presentation and brief discussion, followed by refreshments. All campus and community members are welcome. The event is part of the College of Arts and Humanities’ annual Brown Bag Lecture series.
The 18-month project which began in July 2008 was coordinated by SUNY Fredonia and Atlantik Film, a production company in Turkey, and was underwritten by the U.S. State Department. More than 70 youth from six Turkish cities were trained to make short films that express their concerns about important social issues. Eighteen films have been produced to date, with themes ranging from democracy, tolerance and human rights, to diversity, women’s issues and economic empowerment.
Professors Dinç and Schwalbe will talk about the project and its culminating experiences, which included a film festival this past January in Ankara, Turkey, which marked the end of the project. All 72 participants reunited for two days of discussion, interaction, assessment and the film festival.
Professor Dinç is a native of Turkey and an assistant professor at SUNY Fredonia, where she teaches film and video production through the Department of Communication. Her specific roles as co-director of the project included serving as primary instructor, content specialist, producer, director and distributor, and Turkish media spokesperson. She has worked for more than 12 years in the Turkish film industry.
Professor Schwalbe is the chair of the Department of Communication at SUNY Fredonia. His specific project roles as co-director included managing the overall project, fiscal administration, and project evaluation and reporting. He was also responsible for coordinating the U.S. Component of the project and promoting it, including serving as a U.S. media spokesperson.
For more information regarding the Brown Bag Lecture Series, contact Director Natalie Gerber at gerber@fredonia.edu or 716-673-3855.
