a documentary project produced by youth with incarcerated parents
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We wanted to take a moment to share some milestones from the last year, and also share some ways to help.
Please click
HERE to support now.
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The Echoes project begins and ends with young people, and this past year the crew and I have led workshops for hundreds of youth in high schools, after-school and summer programs. Through talks, screenings, and hands-on camera workshops, we've shared powerful stories and empowering those directly affected to make change.
Specifically we've launched our
Resiliency Stories project - a collection of short documentary portraits of artists and activists with incarcerated parents. These inspiring individuals tell of how they processed their experiences and what it took for them to find their voice. When we've screened these films, it's often the first time young audiences have gotten to hear from powerful role-models of other young people who have had an incarcerated parent.
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Reaching practitioners in the US and Abroad
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This past year, the Echoes project has become a consistent presence in trainings, conferences, and symposiums for professionals who work with children of the incarcerated. We've brought realities of having an incarcerated parents to judges, police and corrections officers, lawyers, social workers, and educators.
And it's not just in America. August crewmember Kharon Benson was selected for an
exchange trip to the Dominican Republic, where he toured prisons, met with officials, screened Echoes films, and interviewed local youth. Then in November (thanks to
AFSC) he was flown to Barcelona Spain for the
Nobel Youth Summit, and shared his work with youth from around the globe.
The Echoes project has also been visited by researchers from the UK and Venezuela, and we're learning that the Echoes project has begun to be a model for organizations around the world.
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Reaching Beyond, and Looking Ahead
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Last December, crewmember Kharon Benson thought he was almost finished with a personal film about his relationship with his incarcerated father. But he realized he hadn't quite gone deep enough and gotten the story right. After another year of soul-searching, intense filming, and gut-wrenching editing, he's produced our most powerful film to date. We can't wait to (finally) share this film. Watch out for early 2016 release.
We're also deep in production on our film about parenting from behind bars, and finishing laying the ground work for full-length documentary. Stay tuned!
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We're able to do this work thanks to support from individuals like you. We continue to give our DVD's away for free and conduct most of our workshops free of charge. Our successful Kickstarter campaign made this past year's work possible. Now we need your help to secure our work for this coming year! Here's 3 ways you can help:
1. Donate money: tax-deductible donations can be made
HERE
2. Donate old equipment: we often need DSLR's, old lenses, or tripods for our camera trainings.
Contact us for info.
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Please
contact us with questions, ideas or feedback, and thank you for your support!
Sincerely,
-Jeremy and the Echoes Crew
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