Our Town is a “day-in-the-life” video scrapbook that features stories of the people, places, and happenings of the particular town as seen through your eyes as the filmmaker. There are no restrictions as to age or experience and no cost or compensation to participate - just enthusiasm and willingness to be part of the project.

 

Community Meeting

 

Community members - residents, business owners, school teachers and students, and town officials, as well as other interested parties in the vicinity -  are invited to attend a volunteer planning meeting to learn about Our Town. The meeting takes place well before before the filming date and anyone interested in the production is invited to attend.

 

At the meeting, local residents discuss which landmarks, people, events, and local stories the program should tell about their town. Residents are especially urged to participate, but you don't have to live in the particular town to participate - just have a great town story to tell or be willing to help record town stories.

 

Rhode Island PBS will answer questions about the project during the meeting and ask volunteers to brainstorm a list of subjects and events to videotape. The volunteer filmmakers will later videotape the footage for the documentary, with guidance available from Rhode Island PBS.

 

There is no compensation to the videographers involved for time or materials - filming and other participation in the project is strictly voluntary.

 

Workshop for Filmmakers

 

Rhode Island PBS recruits 20 to 25 volunteers who will use their own cameras. Volunteer filmmakers are asked to bring their camera to the workshop. A Rhode Island PBS producer and Rhode Island PBS videographers will be on hand to provide technical advice and shooting tips to help ensure a fun filming experience and superior quality footage. The workshop will also explain the shooting log, and plot the project time table and deadlines.

 

After Filming

 

Videographers deliver footage and shooting logs to Rhode Island PBS. A brief on-camera interview will also be arranged, during which the filmmaker describes what he or she filmed and why, putting the story into context.

 

Editing together of all videographers' footage is done by Rhode Island PBS.

 

Anyone interested in being a storytelling videographer - or in being paired with a resident to record a story for the program - should contact Rhode Island PBS at 401-222-3636 or by emailing ourtown @ ripbs.org.