Two weeks in a row, President of SAG-AFTRA, Gabrielle Carteris invited We Make Movies’ Smartphone Studio to present at her weekly PTEOE (President’s Task Force on Education, Outreach and Engagement) livestreams for the SAG-AFTRA community. In just under two short weeks, the videos have accumulated a combined view count of over 9K, and are only gaining momentum on the SAG-AFTRA YouTube channel. At the end of week two’s presentation, presenters Aubrey Mozino and Sam Mestman earned high praise from Carteris, who declared “Your program, what you have been offering is really something that has resonated with the members. And I want to say thank you for that,  because you are helping to empower. And we want everybody to feel empowered, particularly at a time when everybody feels very vulnerable. You’re really allowing people the ability to see their future."

Following the success of the eARTh Project in Compton, CA, We Make Movies partnered up with Apple and the Kerry Wood Foundation to bring the program to Chicago, IL. The third installment of the Summer Stories was helmed by Steve Douglass, an Apple Distinguished Educator. Twelve students from various socio-economic backgrounds and neighborhoods of both suburban and inner city Chicago, came together to get a crash course in how to make a movie with iPhones. 

Without the fuss of navigating complex gear, the kids learned to tell their stories with the portable, lightweight, and easy to use filmmaking tools totaling less than $300. The program instead, "emphasised iteration, practical knowledge, critical thinking, and collaboration," an intentional design of Sam Mestman, CEO of WMM and LumaForge. His hope is that the next generation of storytellers will walk away with "situational awareness, presence, resilience, communication skills, and adaptability to new...