DOXA Documentary Film Festival Needs Our Help
Graphic designers don’t often participate in documentary filmmaking, which is a shame. Just as our craft helps shape culture, documentaries are powerful storytelling vehicles, often revealing subjects, issues, and even entire movements we’d otherwise never understand. Heck, Gary Hustwit’s documentary film Helvetica was a good example of this and I was proud we were able to bring it to Vancouver, and his next film, Objectified, is soon to be screened here as well.
Anyway, I hope no one minds me sharing a little about my passion for documentaries. I recently joined the fundraising committee supporting the DOXA Documentary Film Festival and would like to ask for your help. You see, we’re proud to bring together a variety of awesome films from around the world to Vancouver each year, but with the current economic climate and resulting arts & culture cut-backs, our festival requires the support of people like you to remain viable.
What is DOXA?
DOXA Documentary Film Festival is Western Canada’s largest documentary film festival hosted by The Documentary Media Society in Vancouver each May. DOXA is a non-profit, charitable society devoted to sharing inspiring, innovative, and thought-provoking documentary films from around the world. For example, on April 16th, DOXA is screening Recipes for Disaster, the hilarious and thought-provoking story of a young Anglo-Finnish family as they rid themselves of all oil-based products for a year in an effort to live environmentally sustainable lives.
DOXA’s role in the community.
There are numerous worthy charities, but DOXA is specifically doing terrific work in the arts and culture sector, helping expose not only documentary films and filmmakers to the world, exposing important issues and encouraging dialogue, and exposing Vancouver to the world as a significant city with creativity, innovation and high quality storytelling through world-class documentaries.
Beyond showcasing terrific films, DOXA also works hard to get youth involved with two amazing programs, Connexions Youth Forum and Rated Y for Youth. Connexions gives young adults the opportunity to be mentored by seasoned filmmakers and then allows those participants to create their own short documentaries to be screened at the festival—an opportunity I would have died to have when I was their age. And Rated Y for Youth is a DOXA initiative showcasing documentaries suitable for youth aged 12-18 to promote intelligent dialogue and critical media literacy to a new generation, through non-fiction, media arts.
DOXA’s plan for the future.
Doxa has made significant structure improvements to create a solid foundation and plan for the future of the festival. The festival is expanding, improving its programing, producing more screenings and events, and is producing two exciting youth initiatives this year—introducing young people to documentary films and directly to the filmmakers and film making process itself. Awesome!
Why would I care?
As a community of passionate, intelligent, “switched on” creative professionals, I image most of you have an appreciation for good filmmaking. And I hope you agree that it’s easy to go see a Hollywood movie anytime, but never as enriching or thought-provoking as a compelling documentary. Documentaries are where the truth is told, where learning happens, where movements take flight, and where change happens. I believe you are like-minded in your view of the arts and its impact on culture, and understand the financial need created by this economic climate which includes provincial and federal financial cutbacks.
Please join me in supporting the DOXA Documentary Film Festival, which is meeting real, humble needs right here in our own community. We’re proud of what has been accomplished and excited by what it can become with the right kind of support and people behind it. DOXA is a registered charity run by a dedicated group of volunteers. There are numerous ways you can help support the festival along with their youth programming.
Here are the ways you can help:
If you have any questions, you can visit the DOXA website or ask me directly at mark@industrialbrand.com.
Thanks for your support!
