Community Invited to Participate in 2013 Vanport Oral History Film Festival

The North Portland Multimedia Training Center (NPMTC), a project of The Skanner Foundation, announces its 2013 Vanport Oral History Film Festival. The Festival will run from January 2013 through September 2013 and will accept monthly submissions of oral history interviews documented on video.

NPMTC Administrator, Naomi Pierce, says this contest is different from last year's NPMTC "Life in Vanport" Film fest, which focused on producing videographed oral history from individuals who had lived in Vanport, Oregon. "This year we are broadening the topic and expanding the technological device requirements to film the productions." Productions may now be about any topic or individual that is of interest to the producer, as long as it fits into the oral history genre. Although the film fest's oral history topics will not now be exclusive to Vanport, NPMTC will keep Vanport in the name of the annual film festival to honor those who once lived in the lost city.

Another change, Pierce notes, is that filming can be done on any recording device as long as the production can be disseminated electronically. Last year's contest encouraged use of professional HD video cameras and included NPMTC training for participants on these devices. NPMTC may offer training again in the spring, but for now, Pierce hopes allowing use of other types of recording devices and broadening the topic will generate more submissions throughout the year. Currently three producers trained by NPMTC on professional HD recording equipment are completing their "Life in Vanport" productions soon to be posted on the NPMTC website for viewing and voting. Last year's contest blends with this year's to include all productions to date.

The contest, funded in part by The Mount Hood Cable Regulatory Commission, is intended to address three areas of need experienced by the African American community living in North Portland: Lack of visibility and access to relevant news from mainstream media; lack of access to technology and technology training; and the need to increase activities that provide positive community involvement. Pierce says The Vanport Oral History Film Festival contest creates a platform for community members to participate through outreach and feedback about times and places in history from their own unique perspectives. The film festival encourages members of the community to come forward with their stories and encourages the use of technology to record these stories.

Videographers are invited to submit a 3-5 minute video oral history which will be viewed via the NPMTC website and voted on by the public. Videos are submitted monthly and at the end of the film festival contest (September 31, 2013) all monthly winning submissions will be viewed by a panel of independent judges to pick 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place cash prize winners.

For complete information and contest submission registration, visit www.npmtc.com , email npmtc@comcast.net, or call 503-381-0330.