Fundraising to Travel Abroad and Participate in Internship
I am culminating my graduate studies by participating in the Creative Minds in Cannes Internship Experience at the Cannes Film Festival in France, May 9 - 23, 2011. I am one of only 40 students worldwide, who have this year, been awarded one of these highly sought position. In order to take advantage of this opportunity, I am engaging in fundraising on several levels. I am seeking patrons, sponsors, and supporters to contribute financially. No amount is to small and will be greatly appreciated. Donations can be made by depositing funds into my Paypal account at ttakanke@hotmail.com, or by mailing checks, payable to Titilaya Akanke, to P.O. Box 66453, Baltimore, MD 21239. T-shirts are available at a cost of twelve dollars each. Shipping is an additional five dollars for one to four shirts, and ten dollars for five to nine shirts. With orders of ten or more shirts, shipping is complementary. Supporters will be included in promotional materials before and during the Creative Minds in Cannes experience, and in projects completed later.
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Fundraiser in Detroit - "Preparing for a Journey" - Evening of Entertainment, Dinner and Music
Fundraising efforts will also involve a community celebration in Detroit that will include screenings of my film projects, presentations on the screenwriting program at Morgan State University and the Creative Minds in Cannes film program, a talent show and old school jam session, open mic for singers, poets, and spoken word artists, dinner, music and dancing, door prizes, a raffle and auction.
Three film projects on which I have worked will be viewed. In 2009, I began work on the documentary, Turmoil and Triumph: the Plight of Urban Youth, an examination of the issues plaguing urban youth and possible solutions. Still in the rough cut stage, excerpts be shown, followed by a short discussion. We Wear the Mask, a collective class project, features an adaptation of the poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar. The Journey of Life is a short digital story that chronicles the experience of our family as we struggled to reconcile the pain and cope with the pain of my grandson Jabari's death (shot and killed two days before his eighteen birthday), and still find joy in our own lives.
Artists are invited to display their skills in the talent showcase and open mic, a component that will lend excitement and a sense of community to the event. The evening will culminate with dinner, music and dancing as DJ No Requests plays the best in reggae and R & B. The public is invited to join us for this joyous and memorable community celebration. Tickets are available by contacting ttakanke@hotmail.com or maatakanke@gmail.com.
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Fulfilling My Academic Requirements and Achieving Creative Goals
In a continued effort to expand my writing repertoire and develop skills that will make me a more prolific storyteller, I have been studying screenwriting at Morgan State University for the past three years. I have learned components of what it takes to write a good screenplay and television drama, and I have completed drafts for both genres. Most recently, I wrote and submitted to the Scripts Pipeline Competition, a one hour pilot for a television drama, entitled Urban. The story, originally written for the class, Collaborative Television writing, taught by Professor Keith Mehlinger at Morgan State University, is based on my many years of working with various community centers in Detroit. I am at the point of having fulfilled my course work requirements, and I have begun preparing for my comprehensive exams and writing my thesis, a feature length screenplay. Involvement in an internship is another educational requisite that I am about to fulfill by participating in the overseas endeavor.
Creative Minds in Cannes Film Program
Creative Minds in Cannes is a film program that presents opportunities for contestants to work internships, attend workshops and film screenings, network with and have their work critiqued by industry professionals. Participants expand their knowledge of the film industry and make contacts that will help them establish careers. The program is divided into three components: "The Filmmaker Institute," "The Networking Connection," and "The Internship Experience."
"The Filmmaker Institute," charges students with the task of producing a five minute film as part of the "We Made It In Cannes" film competition. Contestants are placed in a diverse group of filmmakers and given production and editing equipment to complete their projects. Additionally, they learn the nuances of how films are funded, purchased, retailed, and distributed in the international marketplace. The top three teams of producers receive awards for their work.
"The Networking Connection" is geared toward actors, journalists and those generally looking to make contacts for future endeavors in the business. These participants attend pitch meetings, workshops, and other festival activities that allow them to make connections to achieve their goals.
"The Internship Experience" (for which I have been accepted), places student in positions in which they work directly with host companies in respective areas of interest. Certificates of completion, school credits, and assistance in securing employment after the festival are important aspects of this program component.
The primary mission of Creative Minds in Cannes is to discover new film and television professionals and usher them into the business. To date, the program has involved more than 300 students in the Cannes Film Festival, arranged in excess of 200 internships, produced 50 films, and secured more than 30 jobs for alumni. For complete details about Creative Minds in Cannes, refer to the website, http://www.creativemindsincannes.com/.
The Cannes Film Festival
Founded in 1946, the Cannes Film Festival is one of the largest, oldest and most prestigious in the world. With the scenic French Riviera as the backdrop, the event is held annually in Cannes, a resort town in the south of France. Over a half million people, including industry professionals from all aspects of the film business, journalists, celebrities, and fans, converge from around the globe to participate in the international affair. Thousands of films are screened competitively and non-competitively, and deals are brokered. This year marks the sixty-fourth Cannes Film Festival with Robert DeNiro as the president of the Jury, the body of accomplished international artists, respected by peers, and appointed by the Festival's board of directors to scrutinize potential recipients of Cannes awards.
The Festival is organized in sections that focus on specific activities. The main event, "The Official Selection," showcases films from around the globe competiting for prizes. The non-competitive "Parallel Sections," hosts screenings of international new and restored movies, and each day, highlights a particular country by featuring a series of its films. Noteworthy sections of the Festival and related events produced by outside organizations include "Director's Fortnight," a non-competitive showing of movies from around the world; and "International Critic's Week," which features global, non-commercial first and second works of directors. Master classes by world renowned filmmakers, tributes honoring artists and screenings of their films, and cinematographic exhibitions are also highlights of the Festival.
Newcomers and students compete for "young talent awards for innovative and audacious works," Best Feature Films, and several other prizes under the banner of "La Cinefondation," a three tiered program under the auspices of the Cannes Film Festival, designed specifically to support novice international filmmakers.
Marche du Film is the business counterpart of the Festival in which deals are negotiated to debut, trade, promote, buy and sell films, and develop projects. Its ultimate goal is to "foster new partnerships" and contribute "to the economic health of hte film industry. For more information about the Cannes Film Festival, log onto http://www.festival-cannes.com/.
Sincere and Heartfelt Thanks to Supporters
As a writer, educator, activist, and most recently, visual storyteller, I live by the philosophy that we have a duty to seize opportunities when they are presented. It requires diligence and sometimes stepping outside of our comfort zone. I would much rather be the one extending assistance during these challenging economic times rather than asking for it. However, the reality is that each of us needs a circle of support to accomplish our goals. At this time, in order to take advantage of this esteemed opportunity, I am asking for donations from supporters. You will have contributed to my pursuit of what I consider to be my life's work: remembering our past, and preserving our future by telling our stories from our perspective.
Sincere and heartfelt thanks are extended to the following sponsors and supporters: Morgan State University, Aisha Shule/W.E.B. DuBois Preparatory Academy, Professor Keith Mehlinger, Dr. Monifa Love Asante, Maat Akanke, Armica Jordan, Annisha Jordan, Omowale Miller, William Winder, Frank Moseley of High Risk Tees, Jasmine Leigh, Beverly Miller, Juanita Guilliam, Dabian Witherspoon, Breyanna Hall, Atobekoe, Eric Addison, Paul Greene, Dolan Hubbard.
