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Breaking Down the Impact of "Blackfish"

BlackfishIn January 2013, the documentary "Blackfish" premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, telling the story “about Tilikum, a performing killer whale that killed several people while in captivity,” according to the official film synopsis. Nearly two years later, the film’s impact continues to ripple out.

According to a December 2014 Washington Post story, the stock price of Tilikum’s home park, SeaWorld, has declined by 60 percent since the film’s July 2013 theatrical premiere. A California state lawmaker proposed legislation in April 2014 that would ban California aquatic parks from featuring orcas in performances, although the proposed law is now on hold pending further study. And, in June 2014, inspired by "Blackfish," the U.S. House of Representatives expressed official interest in studying the impact of captivity on orcas and other marine animals. Read more...

Interactive Comic Book Fights Violence Against Women in India

“Priya’s Shapriya_logokti” (translated to “beloved’s power”) is a new augmented reality comic book and art exhibition, fighting abuse against women in India and around the world. The project, which was produced by “Rattapallax” and debuted early December, combats gender based violence by combining art, storytelling and technology. Read more...

Brian Winston: Is Clicktivism Enough?

Brian Winston

"The last thing I want to do is develop media to get in the way of person-to person interchange because... I think all communication should end with either a handshake or a kiss." This quote from George C. Stoney, pioneer of public-access television, highlights the importance of encouraging participation on the production side of media – and also served as the focal point of Brian Winston's recent lecture at American University, "Is Clicktivism Enough?"  Read more...

Forming Partnerships to Build Audience

The Mama SherpasIn light of Facebook’s breastfeeding censoring scandal comes a documentary aiming to normalize the birthing process--"The Mama Sherpas." This documentary, by Brigid Maher, producer/director and professor in American University's School of Communication, investigates America’s rising cesarean birth rate and the midwives helping solve this obstetric crisis.

The film shows the outstanding work nurse-midwives do in providing optimal maternal-child health care. Yet, the challenge for Maher, like many filmmakers, comes in actually convincing audience’s to alter their previous attitudes about the role of midwives in modern society.   Read more...

2014 BRITDOC Impact Award

britdoc impact awardNow in its 4th year, The BRITDOC Impact Award celebrates social impact documentary film through rewards for extraordinary achievement sponsored by PUMA and Netflix. This year's winners: "American Promise," "Blackfish," "Granito," "The House I Live In" and "No Fire Zone."  Read more...