Wednesday, September 3, 2014

Using film to change the world...

In the U.K. there is a graffiti artist and filmmaker named Banksy. This week I read a quote from him that went like this…

Film is incredibly democratic and accessible, it’s probably the best option if you actually want to change the world, not just re-decorate it.

I was struck by his words. They truly reflect how our community uses film to tell our story and to make a better tomorrow. This blog is about three efforts.

The first is from a young girl living with PH. Hers is the story of a young hero, fighting for a better tomorrow. Watch it below or on Facebook




The next video is a mirror to PHA's International Conference. Each Conference, PHA creates a video to try to capture the energy and excitement of the event. Conference is the one time that the strength of the community can be seen and felt in one place. This is our effort from June 2014. We hope you enjoy watching. Oh, and staff are now reviewing more than 40 of the plenary and breakout sessions. Soon you'll be able to watch those too. We'll let you know when they're posted on www.PHAssociation.org.



The final video is from Team PHenomenal Hope. Thanks to Chuck Finder and the good folks at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, we have a new 23-minute film telling the story of their non-stop Race Across America to raise awareness and funds for pulmonary hypertension. Get your popcorn and settle in!



If there's a lesson from these videos, it's that there are many ways to effectively get our story out. Whether told from a webcam or with professional equipment, effectiveness comes from a good idea and just going out and doing it.