Students from three local high schools will screen documentary videos they produced through the Hear Me 101 Project at Pittsburgh Filmmakers Melwood Screening Room on Thursday evening, May 14, after which they will be available for online viewing at http://www.hear-me.net/hearme_101.
Hear Me 101 is a project of Carnegie Mellon University’s CREATE Lab and several other local organizations. The screening will be at 6 p.m. Thursday at 477 Melwood Ave. in North Oakland. A panel discussion following the videos will feature, among others, Nico Slate, associate professor of history; Halle Stockton, a reporter for PublicSource and filmmaker Gabe Colombo.
The documentaries were created by students at Clairton and Steel Valley high schools and the McKeesport Technology Center and address such topics as student voice, activities for young people and overcoming stereotypes.
“Hear Me 101 is focused on creating a legitimate and safe platform for young people to participate in crucial dialogues — or even start them, in some cases,” said Jessica Pachuta of the CREATE Lab, the project’s co-director. “Some of the students will continue working on their messages this summer as paid interns of the CREATE Lab with support and resources to connect youth stories to stakeholders and decision-makers.”
Other partners in Hear Me 101 include Pittsburgh Filmmakers Youth Media Program, the Consortium for Public Education and The Western Pennsylvania Writing Project. It is supported by the Heinz Endowments, the Grable Foundation and the Pittsburgh Foundation.