Short video is an amazing tool. It touches people in a completely different way than news articles, reports, or lectures, and it allows social justice groups to reach outside their base of members to a larger audience.
CurrentTV and the Third Millenium Foundation are showing how short video can be used to raise awareness about an issue. The two groups have joined together to promote tolerance in the United States through Seeds of Tolerance - an innovative video contest that received almost 400 submissions. A panel of guest judges have narrowed the field to 6, and you are invited to go and vote for the winner (who will receive a grand prize of $100,000, as well as a $15,000 donation to a charity of their choice).
This is really smart. The prizes and the exposure that is available through distribution on Current TV make the project attractive to highly skilled videographers and cultural creatives, and the charity donation keeps with the social justice vibe of the core audience. CurrentTV distribution also guarantees that high-quality submissions will gain an audience beyond that activist core.
I don't know about the 374 losing submissions, but the 6 semifinalists are outstanding and range in topic from the sex-trafficking industry to our nation's prison-industrial system in all its complexities. They are all worth 5 minutes of your time.
As for CurrentTV and Third Millenium - they get to see a number of positive results:
- greater awareness of a variety of social justice issues among CurrentTV viewers and internet visitors.
- A (increased in the case of CurrentTV) stable of cultural creatives with social justice leanings that can be contacted for future projects.
- A collection of high-quality videos that can be used to promote similar projects to funders and members
- Buzz and higher traffic from word of mouth about the contest
This is a pretty cost and time-intensive project. There are easier (and cheaper) ways for nonprofits to reap the benefits of video production. Some non profits are using short video and YouTube to chronicle the work that they are doing. Others are opting out of video and embracing Flickr as a medium for creative contests to drive interest in their topic.
If you're interested in finding out more about how short video, video sharing, and photo sharing can help increase the efficacy of your work, I'd recommend visiting the Non Profit Technology Enterprise Network, or becoming a reader of NetSquared.
We're dipping our toes in these waters ourself, so please check out (and subscribe to!) our Flickr and YouTube pages.
Printer-friendly version
