Throughout the 7 years of production making State of Exception, we equipped and trained several activists in Rio to collaborate in the film’s participatory methodology. We are now seeking the sustainability of this initiative through the creation a video/photo/multimedia equipment library accessible to media activists in Rio to borrow equipment on short-term loans, fostering social inclusion through increasing access to otherwise inaccessible communications technologies. UNESCO has stated that “access to communications technologies is a constitutional right and should be written into legal framework of all countries”. The library is part of the new Sharing Economy which seeks to shift our relationship to the Earth’s resources by fostering Collaborative Consumption, in which participants mutualize access to products or services, rather than having exclusionary individual ownership.
The library was launched in parallel to PROJECT TAMBOR: a series of intensive hands-on media training courses for human rights defenders working in Rio’s informal settlements (favelas), organized by our friends at the Mutirão Lab. The inaugural training program ran 3x weekly from May-August 2018, when 30 students from across Rio were selected from more than 200 applicants to participate in this FREE intensive training program (with priority access to residents of Rio’s most militarized favelas in the Alemão, Manguinhos, Jacarezinho and Acari complexes). Filmmaker/educator Jason O’Hara taught the Audio/Visual production component of the course in Rio for four weeks in May 2018. We are currently planning the next iteration of the course for early 2020.
The complete TAMBOR curriculum:
Mandatory modules:
I. Latin American History/Culture (6 hours)
II. Theory of Communication (6 hs)
III. History of Independent Media (6 hs)
IV. Investigative Journalism (6 hours)
Modules of specialization:
1. Community Journalism (9 hs)
2. Community Radio (9 hs)
3. Graphic Production (15 hours)
4. Digital Photography (12 hs)
5. Screen printing (12 hs)
6. Audio/Visual Production (15 hours)
7. Video editing (15 hs)
8. Streaming (12 hs)
9. Video As Proof and Protection Protocols (9 hs)
10. Human Rights Campaigns in Social Networks (6 hours)
11. Cultural Production (12 hours)
12. Distribution of Audiovisual Products (6 hours)
*Any receipts issued by IDA, in accordance with IRS regulations, will not specify a dollar amount for the deduction. They will simply describe the goods donated in detail, and the donor will have the responsibility of quantifying the donation and confirming it’s deductibility. If a donor has questions about the deductibility of a non-cash contribution they should contact their tax professional.