LATEST NEWS

We’ve recently returned from a week in Boston with our Reel Economy partner, United for a Fair Economy (UFE) for Raise the Roots, the annual conference of the Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative. We kicked off the conference with an sneak peek screening of the dynamic documentary Inequality for All. Starring Robert Reich, it’s being lauded as the Inconvenient Truth of the Economy. We packed the house at The Brattle Theater in Cambridge and the screening was followed by an engaging panel discussion on organizing for progressive state tax policy.

The next day, we led a workshop entitled From Seats to Streets: Using Film to Move the Masses. We presented case studies that showed how the Reel Economy collective can and is being used to help advance a fair and just economy. Workshop attendees included directors of organizations from all over the country who are a part of UFE's Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative, a network of 28 member organizations in 24 states that use grassroots power to promote progressive tax reform.

A main focus of the session was on developing specific strategies to put the films to use for state level shifts – we’ve recognized, as has Reich, that this is where change is happening and our work with Reel Economy in the next year with UFE will field test a state level organizing strategy. The workshop participants came up with specific examples of how they can put these films to work at home and envisioned the impact Reel Economy can have.

We've already begun some of this work in North Carolina with UFE and Democracy North Carolina, where we are hosting two screenings of Citizen Koch, one in Durham (June 30th) and one in Greenville (June 25th), to spotlight the similarities between the issues in the film (which follows the gubernatorial election and recall in Wisconsin) and the current political climate in NC. Our goal is to support and assist with further building and mobilizing the Moral Monday movement and to advance the work of NC organizations working for economic and social justice.

The Working Films team is grateful for the care and support we’ve received from so many in the days since Robert West, our co-founder and long-time executive director passed away. Hearing and reading stories of love and appreciation for Robert – for his strategic thinking, generosity, passion for the work, and joux de vivre – expressed by friends and colleagues from around the world has made this difficult time much easier. The memorial service celebrating Robert’s life and legacy will be held on Saturday, June 22nd, at 2:00 PM, at the Cameron Museum of Art, 3201 South 17th Street, Wilmington, NC. It will be followed by a celebration that he planned at the historic firehouse at 602 South 5th Avenue, which was Robert’s home and is also the headquarters of Working Films. If you are planning or even considering coming to Wilmington for the memorial, please let us know as soon as possible by emailing or calling Andy Myers ([email protected] / 910-342-9000). We can help make sure you have all the information you need and your stay is comfortable. We’ve reserved a block of rooms for Saturday night, June 22nd at the Hilton in downtown Wilmington. You can book a room in the block by calling the Hilton directly at 910-763-5900 by Friday 6/14. The Reservation ID is WST. For those who would like to honor Robert’s life and legacy, contributions can be made to the Robert West Reel Engagement Fund, which will support an issue-driven Working Films’ initiative developed and evolved under Robert’s leadership. Dedicated to innovation, strategy and on-the-ground implementation, this Fund, just like Robert, will be nimble, dynamic, creative and responsive to the many urgent needs for change. Robert’s obituary as printed in the Wilmington Star News is below. Again, thank for your concern and solidarity. It is sincerely appreciated. The Working Films’ Staff and Board Robert Kyle West  Robert Kyle West, Co-founder and long-time Executive Director of Working Films, a nationally recognized non-profit dedicated to linking non-fiction films to activism, passed away at home in Wilmington, North Carolina on June 6, 2013 from brain cancer (GBM). Robert and his twin sister Jane West were born on April 6, 1953, in Philadelphia, PA to parents Roberta Kyle West and Joseph F. West. As a child he resided in Lansdowne, PA and Cape May Point, NJ. In 1960, Robert's father died, and in 1967 his mother, a native Virginian, moved the family to Richmond, VA. Robert attended Douglas Freeman High School and Virginia Commonwealth University where he developed what would become a life-long passion for art, history, politics, literature and film. Early jobs in publishing and bookselling led West to the Mint Museum in Charlotte, NC, where he was curator of film and video from 1985-1999. He was most noted for founding and directing the Charlotte Film and Video Festival, drawing fiction, non-fiction, experimental filmmakers and animators from all over the U.S. and the globe. In this same period he and a team of friends also founded Charlotte's Gay and Lesbian Film Series. Robert considered the use, curation and moderation of a public convening - especially one built around an independent film - an art form in itself. In 1999 he turned his deep belief in the power of film to build community and galvanize hearts, minds and concrete change, into the nonprofit Working Films, which he co-founded with filmmaker Judith Helfand. That year he moved to Wilmington, NC to establish his home and the headquarters of Working Films in a historic firehouse on South Fifth Avenue. Robert and Working Films were pioneers in the field of media engagement, crafting long-term and innovative partnerships between filmmakers and some of the nation's and world's leading nonprofits and NGOs. The engagement methodologies he crafted are now part of the parlance of making, funding, distributing and actively using non-fiction films, nationally and increasingly internationally - particularly in the UK where he collaborated with BRITDOC. The working motto he loved and helped coin: STORY LEADS TO ACTION. Robert tirelessly gave back to the field by sitting on boards including the National Alliance for Media Arts and Culture , serving on juries and nomination committees including the Paul Robeson Fund for Independent Media, the Rockefeller Media Fellowships, the Media Arts Fellowship Program of the NEA, Creative Capital, the NC Arts Council and The Independent Television Service, a production arm of PBS and serving on film festival panels including NC's Cucalorus and Full Frame, The Center for Social Media's "Making Media that Matters", Sundance and in the last few years, Sheffield (UK) and Eso-Docs (EU). An out gay man since he was twenty-five, Robert had an unrelenting commitment to the rights and equality of all people. He truly believed that everyone has the right to "be who they are." Robert credits his uncle, Charles M. Butterworth, Jr., a Harvard trained lawyer who devoted his time and skills to the catholic worker movement, with giving him the gift of "considering a life committed to justice outside the mainstream." Robert's surviving siblings and family members include; Fred and Hillary West of Chestnut Hill, PA and their children Kyle and Emily; Jane and Bruce Bench of Seattle, WA and their children, Robert, Jordan and Christopher; and brother John West of Santa Barbara, CA. He is predeceased by brother Joseph West, Jr. Robert also deeply loved his friends from Wilmington, Charlotte, NY and around the world. Too numerous to name, he appreciated their thoughtful care and their many messages of support throughout this year. Robert turned the past very difficult year into a series of life-giving lessons offered to family and friends: Be Who You Are; Unplug from Technology, Take the Time to Feel the Wind and the Sun, and Be Present. It is in that spirit that we will gather on Saturday, June 22nd, at 2:00 PM, at the Cameron Museum of Art, 3201 South 17th Street, Wilmington, NC for a memorial service celebrating Robert's life and legacy. Memorials in Robert West's honor may be made to the Robert West Reel Engagement Fund at Working Films, 602 S. Fifth Ave, Wilmington, NC 28401 or workingfilms.org/robertwest. Online condolence may be sent to the family at Atlantic Cremation Service.

UPDATE: The memorial service celebrating Robert’s life and legacy will be held on Saturday, June 22nd, at 2:00 PM, at the Cameron Museum of Art, 3201 South 17th Street, Wilmington, NC. It will be followed by a celebration that he planned at the historic firehouse at 602 South 5th Avenue, which was Robert’s home and is also the headquarters of Working Films. Our much beloved Robert West, Working Films' Co-Founder and long-time Executive Director, passed away peacefully in his home early this morning. He approached death the same way he lived his life -- with grace, dignity, intention, honesty, and whenever possible, humor. Since Robert’s diagnosis of brain cancer (GBM) last September, he has been embraced by the love and support from friends and colleagues in Wilmington and around the world. Be it fresh cut peonies straight from the Saturday farmers market, a stunning hand-worked velveteen quilt from LA, a box of posh UK chocolates, heartfelt responses to his revelatory posts on Caring Bridge, or the myriad emails, hand-drawn cards and letters he received, he was held closely and cared for deeply. And, along with him, so was Working Films. For that, we will be forever grateful. We are heartbroken. But we are buoyed by the knowledge that Robert’s singular vision and unique spirit live on. He leaves all of us a legacy. Whenever the lights come up after a stirring film we will take a deep breath... smile, think of him and welcome the catalytic moment when stories lead to action. And in that moment, Robert will be with us. Details of a memorial and celebration (designed and curated by Robert himself) will be forthcoming. For those who would like to honor Robert’s life and legacy, contributions can be made to the Robert West Reel Engagement Fund, which will support an issue-driven Working Films’ initiative developed and evolved under Robert's leadership. Dedicated to innovation, strategy and on-the-ground implementation, this Fund, just like Robert, will be nimble, dynamic, creative and responsive to the many urgent needs for change. With deep appreciation, love and solidarity, Working Films’ Staff and Board

Schedule a one-on-one consultation to hone your audience engagement and outreach strategy, gain input on your fundraising approach, and meet the double bottom line - making an impact while making a living. Our team can provide grounded and strategic advice to ensure your documentary film or media project will make a measurable and meaningful difference. For more information on what we offer in these personalized sessions and to schedule an appointment, click here. [Update Fall 2014: we are not currently offering consultations] [caption id="attachment_2561" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Marcia Jarmel[/caption]

Working Films’ Co-founder, Robert West was awarded with the 2013 Frank Harr Community Service Award, presented by the University of North Carolina at Wilmington LGBTQIA Office. The award recognizes a person or organization promoting visibility and understanding of LGBTQIA issues and who are working towards improving the health and well-being of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community in Wilmington, NC and surrounding areas. Robert was nominated for the award because of his tireless effort with Working Films' Reel Equality campaign in 2012, launched in response to the proposed ballot measure which placed a ban on same-sex marriage and legal recognition of domestic partnerships in the NC constitution. With the goal of turning audiences into supporters of statewide efforts to fight the ban, Robert led the curation of six films to educate citizens on how bans like this can have devastating consequences. These include: The Campaign, Sole Journey, Gen Silent, Marriage Equality, Out in the Silence and Freeheld. The award was presented at a ceremony on May 4^th, honoring Robert’s determination to fight the ban and his unrelenting commitment to the rights and equality of the LGBTQIA community.

We are excited to announce that Reel Economy will be part of the 2013 Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative's Annual Conference from June 4-6 in Boston, MA. The Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative, is a network of state-level grassroots organizations that advocate for progressive and adequate state taxes. This conference will be open to allies and advocates involved in the tax fairness and economic justice movement: community leaders, activists, and organizers, legislators, people concerned with tax policy, people not yet concerned with tax policy, , journalists, foundation representatives, people with good ideas, and others who believe in the power of a bottom-up movement! We’ll be there to kick things off with an advanced screening of Inequality for All and we’ll represent Reel Economy in a workshop on how to effectively use film to advance economic justice campaigns. Click here for the full agenda and registration.

We are excited to announce that Reel Economy will be part of the 2013 Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative's Annual Conference from June 4-6 in Boston, MA. The Tax Fairness Organizing Collaborative, is a network of state-level grassroots organizations that advocate for progressive and adequate state taxes. This conference will be open to allies and advocates involved in the tax fairness and economic justice movement: community leaders, activists, and organizers, legislators, people concerned with tax policy, people not yet concerned with tax policy, , journalists, foundation representatives, people with good ideas, and others who believe in the power of a bottom-up movement! We’ll be there to kick things off with an advanced screening of Inequality for All and we’ll represent Reel Economy in a workshop on how to effectively use film to advance economic justice campaigns. Click here for the full agenda and registration.

As you may know, this past fall, Robert West, Working Films' cofounder and executive director for the past thirteen years, was diagnosed with GBM, a fatal brain cancer. Robert has embraced this news with grace, love and courage. On Sunday, The Southern Documentary Fund, The Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University, Chicken & Egg Pictures, P.O.V., The Garrett Scott Memorial Fund, The Johnson Family Foundation, Thom Powers, Liz Shaw, Betty Hahn and filmmakers Julia Reichert, Steven Bognar, Marco Williams, Cynthia Hill, Alice Elliot, Tia Lessen, Carl Deal, Michele Stephenson, Joe Brewster will be celebrating the work and vision of Robert West and Working Films’ unique brand of Reel Engagement - past, present and future. This is a special opportunity to honor Robert West's vision and his invaluable contributions to the field of social issue documentary filmmaking across the country, around the globe and at home in North Carolina. Please join us if you are at the festival and in the area. We will also post updates on our Facebook page while we are here, so be sure to check them out. Sunday, April 7 10:00 - 11:15 a.m. Carolina Theater, Cinema 2 (brief program begins at 10:30)