Just as we are about to choose a winner for our LACE contest, we are pleased to announce that in celebration of the new bus ad we created with Options For Sexual Health we are launching a Sexy Summer Kissing Contest! Details on how to enter below.
Our new ad campaign "We've Got a Room For You" is a cheekier take on the bus ad we have created before to advertise the 1-800 SEX SENSE info line. What's more it's on nearly all transit buses in the province! Reflecting our philosophy of 'pleasure management" we are creating an effective alternative to just say no messaging. It's sure to attract attention with a young couple making out in a clinic waiting room (based on a true story set in the BC CDC's STI clinic!)
Opt’s 1 800 SEX SENSE Line, a toll-free in BC phone and email service, is positioned as a great way to hook up with a clinic or ask a burning sexual health question. Check out our Ad! We also made a behind the scenes video about the making of the ad.
Katherine Dodds AKA "Kat" is the founder of Good Company Communications and HelloCoolWorld.com. Trained in renegade advertising & branding through her work with Adbusters in the '90s, Kat's early induction into the possibilities of the web-world was inspired by the term hypertext, which she immediately found comforting. She is dedicated to cause-related communication and to the development and use of tools that promote democratic processes.
It's been a busy time around here -- LACE Campaign has kept us moving, and it has surpassed our expectations so far. What LACE (which stands for Live Aware Create Empowerment) is all about is launching a movement and a brand framework that activates all kinds of women to be proactive about their health, specifically about making sure they don't forget to get their Pap test. Now we have a contest to create the campaign for Pap Awareness Week in October.
You can read Lizzy's blogs on the LACE site to get an idea of all we have done this past year. It's a grassroots campaign that BC Cancer Agency has hired Hello Cool World to launch in BC. We have hopes that we can even broaden our reach nationally as we have had a lot of responses from people all over Canada. (Didn't hurt that our full page Elle ad accidentally ended up also in the Ontario edition!)
But for now we have less than a week left to get some ideas from you as contest entries. Please think about how we can reach out to women in BC age 20 - 69, who have not had a Pap recently. The goal of the campaign is to get them through the clinic doors during Pap Awareness Week! Whether you are a creative type who wants a meaningful challenge, or someone who wants to see the women of your own specific community empowered -- we want to hear from you! A clear and simple description of your idea is all it takes to enter. Enter Now!
Press Release from Force Four Enteraintment issued June 18, 2010.
Force Four Entertainment picked up the Banff Rockie Award for Best Canadian Program for the one-hour documentary 65_RedRoses at the Banff World Television Festival on Tuesday, June 15th. Directed by Nimisha Mukerji and Philip Lyall, the film tells the heart-wrenching story of Eva Markvoort, a beautiful, high–spirited young woman with Cystic Fibrosis, as she awaits a double lung transplant.
In February we started working on our Hello Cool World vision. One strong area we felt we wanted to work on was to really make our online store a successful way to raise money and a new model for funding the campaigning efforts of our friends. As our 'regulars' will know - with the makers of The Corporation film,we are working on building a movement to change the corporate form, funded by our online store. With The Corporation, however, we are still only re-sellers of the DVDS, which we have to buy from our distributors, which doesn't leave much for the campaign.
Right now, we have a unique opportunity now to expand this work. We are working with the filmmakers of the award winning 65_RedRoses, a moving documentary about Eva Markvoort's struggle with Cystic Fibrosis. Without fully realizing it, Eva started a global campaign for organ donation in the spring of 2007, while she was waiting on a transplant list for new lungs.
We see the need for a new way for social cause filmmakers to distribute their films. Like 65_RedRoses. So we are also building a 'fair trade' DVD distribution network that can share profits for the causes and the creators of the films we support. 65_RedRoses is the beginning!
HelloCoolWorld made a trip down across the border to attend the third annual Green Festival in Seattle June 5 - 6. It was great to see such a unique collaboration between grassroots community groups, organizations and other companies, all come together to share ideas for a green future.
We were especially excited to hear Thom Hartmann speak about the history of Corporate Reform. Amy Goodman from Democracy Now was also a keynote speaker, who shared her experiences as a journalist trying to cover stories that corporations are trying to cover up, such as the BP oil crisis in the Gulf of Mexico, and the police brutality that she suffered from at the Republican convention during the last US elections.
Director Denis Delestrac and Producer March Achbar available for interviews
The prospect of Earth being ruled from space is no longer science-fiction. The dream of the original Dr. Strangelove, Wernher von Braun (from Nazi rocket-scientist to NASA director) has survived every US administration since WW2 and is coming to life. Today the technology exists to weaponize space, a massive American industry thrives, and nations are maneuvering for advantage.
"BAS!" is a film about trafficked women in Mumbai. Personally, I really liked this film because it gave a unique view into the individual lives of these women. I particuarly liked how the film doesn't shy away from talking about the things that are wrong with the system of transition as well, such as the fact that many of these women have to be married off at the end. The film is beautifully shot, and reveals some interesting facets of the lives of these women in transition.
Claudia Lisboa made the film "Beauty Refugee" which screened at DOXA last weekend. Though the film was a personal story about her life with her family, there were some interesting themes that came out of the film. The film is about her family's obsession with plastic surgery
Screening at Vancity Theatre Tuesday, May 11 at 8:30 PM
If you love this universe — come out tonight to the Vancity Theatre in Vancouver! It's one of the new 'collection' from Mark Achbar of The Corporation. It's stunningly shot, extremely engaging and chillingly important.
We spoke to Pax Americana writer, Harold Crooks yesterday about the film:
Executive Producer Betsy Carson & narrator Mikela Jay will be in attendance. Writer Harold Crooks will host a Q & A.
We spoke to Mysha Dewar-McClelland from WAVAW about being a community partner at DOXA this year. One of the reasons WAVAW supports DOXA is because the film festival showcases stories and messages that aren't necessarily mainstream news, and need to be told. Here is more of what Mysha had to say:
To buy tickets to "BAS! Beyond the Red Light" and "Sin By Silence" visit DOXA
Six Miles deep is a film about the oldest matriarchal democracy in the world – the 6 nations, or Haudenosaunee people. Set during the 2006 conflicts at Caledonia, the film explores indigenous land claims issue, through the perspective of the women leaders in the community. It's one of several youth films we are promoting at DOXA.
This Sunday, May 9 is Mother’s Day and we’re encouraging everyone to Take Back the Day with the peace and justice organization Inter Pares. We helped create the campaign to reclaim the original meaning of Mother’s Day and are big supporters of Inter Pares. They work internationally with grassroots groups and activists, and have a particular focus on empowering women. You can learn more about Inter Pares (Latin for “among equals”) at: www.takebacktheday.ca
Check out this short animated on the real, radical “her-story” of Mother’s Day, a day rooted in social activism and the inspiring stories of its 3 extraordinary founding foremothers.
SOME ACHBAR EXEC PRODUCED FILMS COMING SOON TO DOXA IN VANCOUVER! + COOL YOUTH FILMS.
HELLO COOL WORLD COMMNITY PARTNER FOR PAX AMERICANA & A SERIES OF YOUTH FILMS read on...
As our regular readers will know, the success of The Corporation has spwaned a uniquely produced "collection" of films, with Telefilm dollars allocated via Mark Achbar. Two of these films are launching now!
Now that the dust has settled on our LACE premiere, we want to offer congratulations to our friends at Chee Mamuk. They have every reason to celebtrate the good work they do, and now they have an award for it!
On April 18, the BC Persons With AIDS Society held an Awards Gala honoring volunteers, paid staff, visionaries, activists and consistent supportive voices who work on behalf of people living with HIV as well as in prevention. We couldn't be more thrilled that Chee Mamuk has won in the category of Innovative Programs & Service Delivery!
So far Projecting Change Film Festival has been a blast. Check out the interview we did with Colette on the opening night. Colette Gunson is executive director of the festival, and our history with her goes back to when she worked with Hello Cool World for the launch of The Corporation. Most recently she helped us with our LACE PSA shoot, and a workshop we did with the BCNU.
Last night's LACE launch and party was a total success with many folks at the screening of "Chemerical" which was the feature doc that our LACE short films preceded. A discussion afterwards was accompanied by some eco-friendly cleaning product & cosmetic gift bags.
Last night some of us at Hello Cool World held our very first "Theory-into-practice Salon" more about that later...TODAY our LACE Campaign press release goes out to media, promoting our launch next Friday April 23, at 7 pm of the "It's What's Inside" PSA, and short film about the Action Team. It's premiering in front of the film "Chemerical" at the Projecting Change Film festival. Plus our ad goes into Elle magazine, and Lizzy continues to look for doughnut sponsors for our party. We met with our friends at Coop radio and W2 yesterday, to plan a party to celebrate our launch, W2's new space, and Coop Radio's 35th Anniversary & fundraising drive... So if you are in Vancouver on April 23 you want to MARK THE DATE....And if you can help us let us know! Email: outreach{at}lacecampaign.com
Meanwhile elsewhere on the world wide web...
TODAY, on the film & corporate personhood front -- I'll be on David Mathison's Blog/Talk/Radio show for Be The Media. (Buy the book, by the way, it's great). Along with indie film go-to guru Peter Broderick, and Corporation author -co-creator Joel Bakan we'l be talking about indie distribution and grassroots promotion on the web. And corporate personhood...
The street nurses of Bevel Up are calling on the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games to dedicate former Olympic cars to fight AIDS. So many agencies in the Downtown Eastside could use outreach vans for their work. Whether delivering a meal to a man with AIDS in a SRO in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, or providing a means to get an HIV positive woman to a doctor’s appointment or for an agency to provide services for sex workers – no Buick need be wasted!
Help us spread the word and get as many signatures as we can! Share it on Facebook & Retweet to your followers (@BevelUp). Let's create an Olympics legacy Vancouver can be proud of.
OK so I was never good at math, but I was excited to discover that the inventor of the world's first computer program was a woman!
In 1843 Ada Lovelace anticipated the development of computer software, artificial intelligence and computer music. She wrote the first recorded 'program'. All this at a time before computers as we know them existed.
Water has been an issue dear to my heart since we started the company 9 years ago. My mother always said, if you want to do one thing to decrease suffering in the world, make sure you give everyone, everywhere access to free, clean water.
Sadly, we've gone in the other direction.
We've polluted the last largest fresh water body on earth (The Great Lakes) and we are heading towards what many believe are the world water wars. And did you know that Nestle controls most of the world's bottled water?
Hello Cool World checked out Pride House during the Olympics in Vancouver, where we hung out and had a chat with one of the ambassadors. Pride House was exactly what we were hoping it would be – a positive and safe queer space for people to be themselves and enjoy the Olympics. The issue of gender and sexuality is not far from the Olympics – the homophobic comments made by critics about Johnny Weir, and the exclusion of women from ski jumping in the Olympics are such examples of the gender stereotypes that are still prevalent in sports. We learned that Pride House’s main goal was to provide refugee information for people who may be from other countries where it is dangerous to be queer. Pride House aims to also create a space where all people, regardless of sexuality and gender can come together and enjoy the Olympics. It is the hope of Pride House to encourage other Pride Houses in future international sporting events like the Olympics.
Well, as the whole world knows, there was a very big party last week in Vancouver, our humble headquarters are in the midst of it all. There's a history of problems with drink spiking and drug and alcohol faciliated sexual assault when big events like this happen. SafeVibe is a movement for everyone who wants to keep predators out of the bars and put an end to sexual assault. The more people who actively get involved (men, women, youth, everyone!), the closer we will be to making social change a reality.
So, we decorated our window for SafeVibe, and David and Lizzy hit the streets with the WAVAW street team, handing out coasters and posters. It was in the height of Oympic party mayhem, and they found a lot of folks on the street were happy to get the 'vibe'.
I loved watching the Canadian women’s hockey team spill onto the ice to celebrate their gold medal win. I almost missed the chance to see the three-time gold metal champions because the coverage of the men’s semi-final round dominated the headlines. But I saw the team gracefully play their way to a gold, lead by the only female coach in Olympic hockey. This victory was only 24 hours after four Canadian women medaled in bobsled, but I couldn’t help but be reminded of the group of women ski jumpers whose frustrating journey to compete in these games has been almost forgotten. And that’s likely because, according to University of Alberta’s Pirkko Markula, “women will have received only 5 percent of pre-Olympics media coverage, and will receive only 25.2 percent during the Games”.
Hailing from the mountain town of Salt Lake City, Utah, Lizzy enjoys picnics, reading on a lazy Sunday morning and adventurous bike rides. After learning about books at the University of Toronto she now calls Vancouver home. She joined Hello Cool World as a member of the LACE campaign action team, and luckily for us, decided to stick around.
It hasn't been ALL rosé champagne* and freshly harvested oysters here on Salt Spring... just a healthy dose! While Lizzy continued our Olympics coverage back on the mainland, David, Sandy and I 'retreated" to this nearby island paradise to spend a few days considering our 'vision', and in particular new opportunities arising from the recent upsurge in interest in The Corporation around corporate personhood. We also talked about the upcoming LACE Campaign, and how to use our previous successes to launch this campaign.
On the way we saw a large pod of Orcas setting the tone for what has been a great getaway from the street action in Vancouver. But we are coming back tonight!
One of the things we discussed was how to build our 'fan-base', those who sign up to get our email alerts, and in some cases want to do a lot more.
Inspired by reading the book "Be The Media" (which I recommend to all indie producers of anything) we contemplated what it would take to seek out and cultivate our '1000 true fans". This idea was in Kevin Kelly's forward to the book, which is compiled by David Mathison, and includes info about self production & distribution from many experts including the much quoted Peter Broderick.
One week ago the 2010 Olympic Games opened in Vancouver, HelloCoolWorld’s hometown. Our photographer and friend, Nancy Bleck, Slanay Sp’ak’wus, reflects on the Games First Nation’s focus.
Last Friday, day of the opening ceremonies of the Vancouver Olympic games I watched while some of my First Nations friends participated, and others protested.
During the ‘official’ opening, whether they knew it or not, the world was introduced to a basic lesson in First Nations protocol, or Chiyacx, the traditional law for how to do things in a good way. Those unfamiliar with Chiyacx, may have observed only what they see as ‘dancing and costumes’, what should be understood as regalia and ceremony. What happened was actually an historical first.
Nancy Bleck is an award-winning international artist working with photography, film, video, and cross-cultural collaboration. She was recently honoured with the YWCA ‘Women of Distinction' award in the category of Arts, Culture and Design, for her work on Uts'am - Witness, a project spanning 10 years.
Hello Cool World joined an estimated 4,000 people who gathered on the afternoon of Sunday, February 14th, for the 19th Annual Women’s Memorial March. The yearly gathering serves as a reminder that violence against women is persistent in our neighborhoods, provinces and country. Led by the families of missing women, we gathered at the Carnegie center and slowly walked through Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (or as locals refer to it, the DTES) through to Gastown, watching supporters wave from apartments above.
Since HelloCoolWorld's non-virtual office is in Vancouver we find ourselves in the midst of a pretty big street party! In the coming days, our video team will report from the streets on what is going on in our 'hood. Check out our first video blog-cast from the Opening day "alternative" - the convergence protest the afternoon of February 12, a largely celebratory gathering of thousands of people who wanted their voice heard over the corporate-speak of the official games.
SafeVibe is a movement for everyone who wants to keep predators out of the bars and put an end to sexual assault. A campaign by the Vancouver organization WAVAW (Women Against Violence Against Women), the SafeVibe community is made up of all genders and sexual orientations who are committed to keeping the party scene safe. Hello Cool World helped design SafeVibe and are hosting it in our "nestwork" of campaign sites. We continue to do whatever we can to help get the word out, such as this interview with SafeVibe Coordinator Michele Murphy!
This time six years ago I would have been sitting through the early screening at Tinseltown as The Corporation had the beginning of it's almost record-breaking run there.
I would have been selling our devil-man tee-shirts for cash on the stairway, and marveling at the table action with our our activist cohorts, such as the Council of Canadians, and the lineups of hardcore fans that just wouldn't quit.
Tomorrow, January 16 marks 6 years since The Corporation launched in Canadian Theatres. That day it also screened at The World Social Forum in Mumbai, and at the Sundance Festival in Salt Lake City. As the decade turned, The Corp found itself in two "top ten" lists for the decade -- Eugene Hernandez of Indie Wire, lists is as on of the top 10 docs of the decade and Peter Hall of Hollywood.com puts in his top 10 of underrated movies of the '00's.
One of the things I have always noted is the staying power of this film. It remains the reason people find us as it's popularity is not waning.
Nettie Wild, another Canadian filmmaker friend of ours, maker of Bevel Up is celebrating as "Wild at Heart" a book about her films launches along with a retrospective of her films at Paciific Cinemateque in Vancouver tonight. Screening info below.
It's a time of reflection on where the need is, and on what one can possibly do to have any kind of impact. I prepared for the new year by having a donations frenzy yesterday afternoon for a number of alternative media venues that I regularly read. (List and links at the end of this blog). And thank you to all you HelloCoolWorld.com supporters that donated to GiveSomethingBig. If you missed the chance to send holiday cards, you can donate to Inter Pares anytime! We think they are worth supporting.
Now my thoughts my heart goes out to Gaza.
Last year around this time I was marching in the unusual Vancouver snow in protest against Israel's massacre in Gaza. This year I will head out in this grey drizzly Vancouver rain at 3pm to the art gallery in solidarity with Code Pink's Gaza Freedom March. Google Gaza or look on #Gaza, #gfm for an action near you. The international delegation experienced violence at the hands of the Egyptian police, who would not let them into Gaza.
One of the pleasures of working on the ‘GiveSomethingBig.com’ campaign for Inter Pares was meeting designer David Berman. He’s been working with the Ottawa-based social justice organization for 8 years. We had met on the phone during an earlier project -- but in the summer of ’08 we gathered in the IP board room, for a workshop with the data-boys from Exvisu, to talk about audiences, blogospheres and strategies to motivate giving.
Colette joined Hello Cool World Team back in 2003 and was a key organizer for The Corporation and The Take's grassroots outreach efforts across North America.
After being inspired by the organizing and awareness building potential of the internet and social issue films, she returned to school to study Communications and sharpen her skills.
Having completed her studies last summer, she has joined Hello Cool World once again to assist with the Give Something Big campaign.
As is our annual tradition, we are closing our webstore Friday, November 27 for Buy Nothing Day. It's the same day as Black Friday, the official kick-off of the Christmas shopping season where consumer mobs flood stores and ransack shelves in a frenzied quest for low, low prices. Hopefully this year no workers will be trampled to death in the ensuing hysteria, and we encourage everyone to give this deranged day of consumerism gone wild a miss. But if you really can't deny yourself, we love this faux website at Do The Green Thing where you can "shop your sustainable heart out and Buy Nothing™."
To show our continued support for the Give Something Big campaign, Hello Cool World and The Corporation are teaming up with the peace & justice organization Inter Pares for the Give Something Big contest! On December 14, we’ll be drawing for the Grand Prize which includes:
The Corporation 2 Disc Special Edition DVD
Give Something Big Holiday Card Collection Set (12 print cards & envelopes)
Hello Cool World's Colette Gunson, and Founder Kat Dodds are going to be joining many other media activists to give a workshop during the day-long event at the Vancouver Public Library. Read on for details of who is going to be there and what is going on...check out our HCW email (which can be forwarded) about the event and our participation.
#IranElection is trending topic on twitter again. 30 years after the Takeover of the US embassy and hostage taking in Tehran, the green movement hijacked the traditionally govn't sanctioned event. Photos and videos are pouring in from the demonstrations that have been going on. Reza Sayah was on CNN (now on Youtube) -he describes what has been going on. And for a great history of US-Iran relationship going back to the pre-Shah era check out this short youtbube mini-doc.
Sunday's fantastic concert at the Chan Centre was a sold-out success. Since MC Bill Richardson, Notes of Compassion (AKA musicians of the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra reaching out), Maestro Bramwell Tovey, and the duet-ing duo of world renowned pianists Jon Kimura Parker and Ian Parker all performed for free, it is great to know that Health For Humanity will be the beneficiary of all the ticket sales. To find out more about what H4H does check out their website.
If you act now, you might still be able to get a ticket to Symphony for Smiles, Notes of Compassion’s Benefit concert for Health For Humanity featuring musicians of the VSO, Maestro Bramwell Tovey, with renowned pianists Jon Kimura Parker and Ian Parker. MC Bill Richardson. Last we heard there were less than 50 tickets left, so if this is your cup of tea click here now! The concert is this Sunday, October 25, at the Chan Centre.
Congratulations to Nimisha and Phillip on winning the audience award at the Vancouver International Film Festival. Consider becoming an organ donor, I just did! #ijustgavelife on twitter. www.65RedRoses.com
Now this is the part where it should go without saying, but I will say -- I am opposed to censorship, of films, filmmakers, and opinions, but I say, like Naomi Klein, that this is not the moment to celebrate Israel after what the world watched happen last December and how the year began: witnessing war crimes in Gaza.
I asked each speaker to summarize what they spoke about framed as Three ACTION POINTS. Rivershed's founder Fin Donnelly sent me the following three points summary.
1. Get to Know Your Rivershed
2. Reduce Your Impact
3. Get Active
The details are in the blog that follows. Also follow our #Waterlifefim converstaions on twitter!
THE LONG AWAITED VANCOUVER LAUNCH OF WATERLIFE -- THIS WEEKEND! Says Mark Achbar (The Corporation) "As an exec. producer on Waterlife, I had the pleasure and privilege to support and help shape this award-winning film, and to observe the working process of its director, Kevin McMahon. From the outset, Kevin had an exceptionally clear vision of what he wanted to do, and the finished work reflects the precision of his intention and command of his craft. Waterlife was deservedly awarded the Special Jury Prize at this year's Hot Docs, the most prestigious documentary film festival in North America. It was also recently invited by Michael Moore to screen at his film festival in Traverse City later this month." Special Events this weekend in Vancouver go to OurWaterlife.com for updates!
We’re in the research phase of a new campaign for BC Cancer Agency’s Cervical Cancer Screening Program (CCSP). We’re looking for feedback on materials to help us design messages that will increase the rate of Pap testing among young women. We've launched an online survey contest with the chance to win La Senza gift certificates. (BC women between the ages of 20-29 are eligible for the contest.)
Take the survey and pass the link on to your friends. The contest won't be up for long!
If you haven't seen it yet -- go to FIERCE LIGHT -- in theatres NOW in Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal.
DOXA opened last night in Vancouver with Larry Weinstein's "Inside Hana's Suitcase" and a party at the VAG. WATERLIFE plays on Tuesday at DOXA. HelloCoolWorld and Rivershed Society community sponsors.
Today I went to the film: "Shooting Women" which was an inspiring doc about women behind the camera. Featuring over fifty women cinematographers and directors from around the world. It was shot over a period of six years by pioneering filmmaker and cinema studies professor Alexis Krasilovsky. Includes interviews from camerawomen from RAWA. (Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan)
“We are the first camerawomen in Afghanistan ...” Mehria Aziz, Camerawoman (Kabul, Afghanistan)
The film was followed by a panel of feisty women discussing how Women Behind the Camera are underrepresented. Moderator Rina Fraticelli mentioned some stats from a study recently done that can be viewed at:www.pleaseadjustyourset.com.
I'm very pleased to announce that Velcrow Ripper's excellent new film "Fierce Light: When Spirit Meets Action" will be the first of four theatrical feature documentaries that I've helped produce to hit mainstream movie theatres. This is the best weekend to see Fierce Light if you possibly can.
-- Mark Achbar Producer/Director The Corporation, Executive Producer Fierce Light, Waterlife, Pax Americana, A Short History of Progress
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"HUGELY ENGAGING AND VISUALLY DELIGHTFUL." ~ Toronto Sun
"A POETIC CALL TO HEARTFELT ACTION." ~ Common Ground
Mark Achbar is one of a wave of non-fiction feature filmmakers reaching large international audiences through mainstream theatres, TV, DVD, and the internet. He co-produced and co-directed the two most successful Canadian feature documentaries ever made: THE CORPORATION and MANUFACTURING CONSENT: NOAM CHOMSKY AND THE MEDIA. His films popularize radical critiques, win dozens of prestigious awards, and gross millions at the box office.
Get ready! This Friday (May 15) Velcrow Ripper's award-winning film FIERCE LIGHT will open in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver (with other Canadian dates TBA).
Aside from the films, one of the greatest things about Hot Docs is the people you meet. Last night I had the pleasure of hanging out with some of the industry's luminaries as well as some exciting up-and-comers.
Cindy Witten, Director General of the English programme at the NFB with filmmaker Wim Wenders.
Kevin McMahon's feature documentary, Waterlife, played to a full house at the Hot Docs documentary film festival last night. Afterwards, we headed to the Bata Shoe Museum to celebrate where there were more than a few familiar faces...
Hello Cool World's Colette Gunson is in Toronto to help promote Inter Pares' Take Back The Day Mother's Day campaign and to check out the Hot Docs film festival.
NEWSFLASH: VANCOUVER FLOWER ACTION IS AT 3:30 PM ON SATURDAY MAY 2 at THE DOWNTOWN LIBRARY ... WATCH THIS SPACE FOR PICS FROM MAY 1st EVENTS IN OTTAWA AND TORONTO!!
OTTAWA, TORONTO, VANCOUVER: As the saying goes, “Every mother is a working mother!” On May Day or International Workers’ Day, with Inter Pares we are hitting the streets in Vancouver, Ottawa and Toronto as part of the build-up to our own Mother’s Day campaign.
Samantha McGavin of Inter Pares holding fair trade carnations, and dressed as one of the founders of Mother’s Day.
I'm happy to report news from Mark Leiren-Young's blog about the Green Chain being available free online in celebration of Earth Day.
Big news for Green Chain fans around the world (outside of Canada). The Green Chain is now available online NOW at a website near you to celebrate Earth Day! The Green Chain is a film about the conflicts between people on both sides of the battle who love trees — and are willing to risk anything to protect their personal visions of the forest. (will be available on Dailymotion, Hulu and YouTube)" (Note: Canadian's the only one of these that will work is YouTube).
CANADIAN PARLIAMENT TO VOTE AGAIN ON U.S. IRAQ WAR RESISTERS ON MONDAY, MARCH 30th!
Please contact the Leader of the Official Opposition and your local Member of Parliament and ask them to support U.S. Iraq War resisters during next week’s vote. If the 163 members of the opposition parties can unite again, together we can defeat the 143 Conservatives who promise to vote against Iraq War resisters and deport them to jail in the U.S.
Tomorrow, March 22nd is International World Water Day. Officially declared in 1992 when the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution, World Water Day is meant to create awareness about the over 1 billion people world wide that lack access to clean, safe drinking water and to motivate action. Here's how you can get involved.
My friend Mark's film is getting it's theatrical debut this weekend. VANCOUVERITES Please flock to 5th Avenue Cinema and help us keep it going!! More info on extra events like the Suzuki Foundation sponsored panel on Saturday) at: TheGreenChain.com. We are also thrilled to be promoting Brett Gaylor's Rip: A Remix Manifesto which is at Doxa Festival in Vancouver this weekend, and opens in Montreal on Friday, info about locations and times at the official film site, and if you want to help us promote the film login to our outreach headquarters, or contact Colette at: outreach@hellocoolworld.com !!
My Alternet inbox brought me a reminder that the latest attack on Gaza may be over, but it must not be forgotten.
Media Benjamin is co-founder of Global Exchange and CODEPINK: Women for Peace. My first experience with Global Exchange was through the enormous support they gave The Corporation when we launched at the Castro in San Francisco. They were the hub for volunteers who blanketed the city with our leaflets and posters. Recently, moved and even re-politicized by what can only be described as the atrocities of what Israel has done to Gaza, I have been following what CODEPINK and Medea have been up to. To read about her trip last week to Gaza check out the article.
I'm at the Making Your Media Matter conference in DC listening to a panel on Money and Mission. Interesting times to try to promote and produce social issue work. I'm networking to find support for our own Campaign 4 Corporate Harm Reduction, for our work with Bevel Up, and also to promote the recent Sundance hit, Prom Night in Mississippi.
Israel: Boycott, Divest, Sanction wrote Naomi Klein in The Nation, January 7, 2008.
It's time. Long past time. The best strategy to end the increasingly bloody occupation is for Israel to become the target of the kind of global movement that put an end to apartheid in South Africa.
The only international news network covering every aspect of the war on Gaza is Al Jazeera English. The station isn't available in North America but you can watch it live in high-quality through www.livestation.com (player download is required).
With just a week left before Christmas, we are in the midst of our last big push to promote Inter Pares' "Give Something Big" alternative giving campaign. We'd love your help!
Hey! I just donated to the Inter Pares Give Something Big campaign because I wanted to send some of the cool cards we designed to my own friends and family. FYI, we here at HCW are also donating all profits from our online store and C4CHR donations to Inter Pares this season.
To find out more about The Corporation and Hello Cool World's involvement in the campaign check out our last e'Zine.
We're thrilled to be launching this project with Inter Pares and hope that all our supporters will help build a world of equality, social justice, and peace.
As we work on the new video for Chee Mamuk (STI Division of the BC Centre for Disease Control) with youth from the Sto:lo Nation (and a few others) I am feeling very privileged to get to work with such great people on projects that I really believe will have an impact. Don't Stress the Tests is an excerpt of the video we did last year with youth in Chemainus. The new video we are launching later this month is called "Strong Path".
When I started Good Company Communications eight years ago I had a vision for what the web could do for social causes that came out of my previous 20 years of activism. It really started with Manufacturing Consent* -- the film that pulled me from my "separatist" world of no TV, no computer, and the attempt to exist without plastic, into the realization that we need to BE the media, it's too powerful to leave alone.
I was already working with Mark Achbar during the early days of The Corporation when I started all this, so as to have a way to not only promote the film's launch, but to work on sustaining the desire it produced in so many people -- to get involved, to shape change and to prevent profit over people from prevailing.
As we prepare to send out an e'Zine next week to all our HCW members, I am thinking about the projects we take on and how they interconnect.
What's new at HelloCoolWorld? We are getting ready to close our webstore for the annual BUY NOTHING DAY event. (Created many years ago by Vancouver artist and activist Ted Dave and taken up by Adbusters, now an international out of control anti-consumer activism day!) It happens when Americans traditionally start their post-thanksgiving shopping orgy that lasts until Christmas.
In these times, it does seem that unfettered consumption as a way of life has reached it's own bottom line. The day after BND we are going to be urging you to do a little more "Think-Buying" as now, it's more important then ever to support the progressive people, organizations, and causes that are also feeling the crunch as the financial crisis trickles down to their funders and donors making fund-raising more precarious.
We're thrilled to be working with Inter Pares this year on their alternative giving campaign -- Give Something Big! We're making it part of our Campaign 4 Corporate Harm Reduction.
BEVEL UP follows street nurses in Vancouver's Downtown East Side (DTES) working with anyone who needs their care. Many of these people are homeless. Watch this blog for details of our ongoing work with the film and the issues it represents.
This morning, it is, as my friend Terry said last night when I phoned him from the party, a good day to wake up! Hurrah for President Obama, and remember all of you who got him elected, stay involved. That's the only way democracy stays "happening".
Mark & Siobhan drinking "Barack’s Fizz™". Read on for a full description!
I'll be partying tonight in Vancouver with Mark Achbar and Siobhan Flannagan celebrate (we hope) our US friends and Obama's victory. For an international look at how US elections work check out the BBC online.
I'd also like to encourage those in the US to go see the powerful film Trouble The Water— a true story about a remarkable couple in New Orleans — including a raw first-person video account of the hurricane as it hit them. The film documents them surviving not only deadly hurricanes, breached levees and armed soldiers, but reflecting after the fact on a government that has repeatedly failed them a powerful testament to why we need change NOW.
Watching the new feature film of Battle in Seattle brought me right back there, I could almost smell the tear gas. The feature film depicting the real events in Seattle in 1999 comes out on Friday October 17 in Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. Check out the trailer. Battle in Seattle dramatizes real events with some high profile actors, but all the footage that isn't acted is actual footage from the WTO protest, collected from the many film crews that were there including the makers of The Corporation. It was the early days and Mark Achbar had three different camera crews running around Seattle.
French President Sarkozy says the days when "the all powerful market is always right are over". This footage part of a Real News Network video today that offers a less US-centric view of the alleged "bail out". Or, as economist and historian Dr. Michael Hudson tells the Real News crew, it's not a "bailout" but a "giveaway" and will create a new kleptocracy of billionaires.
The VIFF Is happening... last night DOC and POV celebrated 25 years with a party at the VanCity Theatre. Next week don't miss World Premieres of FEIRCE LIGHT, and BLUE GOLD ... watch this blog for info! TONIGHT join us at Radical Entertainment for a FREE evening of short online political films...
"Politube"includes a screening of our own Feminist Heritage Minute animation (created for Inter Pares a Social Justice organization based in Ottawa), our cohort Naomi Klein’s viral short film to promote The Shock Doctrine, our GNN pal Stephen Marshall’s "Channel Surfing the Apocalypse", and more!
5:30 -8 pm: NEW MEDIA BC Networking sessions (and I hear there is free beer if you get there early) 8-9:30pm “Politube” -- screening. Location: Radical Entertainment
Because of the box-office success of The Corporation Mark Achbar was given a performance envelope from Telefilm Canada which he has been using to support many social issue doc-makers. (I confess I am one of them, so my bias is showing.) While Mark was thrilled to get the money, he discovered there is a double standard when it comes to documentaries. (You can check out Mark's article in the latest POV.)
Short dating violence awareness messages directed by youth launch online. Meanwhile Canadian senate considers bills to censor violence on TV and to restrict tax credits to filmmakers whose content is deemed "not in the public interest'.Dialogue anyone??
We’ve introduced a couple of new titles to our webstore this week. One of them is the unusually entertaining environmental doc “Plagues and Pleasures on the Salton Sea”.
Hello Cool World's first guest blogger is back! The ranting & raving Mike Cowie (of mikesanddislikes.com) puts The Shock Doctrine firmly in the latter category. Enjoy!
Dedicated to music, film, sport, world travel, a far more just world, & Bob
Dylan (not necessarily in that order), Mike is presently
tangled up in the blues (& joys) of writing his first book, an account of his
(and wife Sonoko's) 3-year trip across Asia.
Want to share your thoughts on The Shock Doctrine with Naomi? Check out the Guardian blog and participate in the exclusive forums. Naomi is reading all the comments and will be weighing in later this week.
Sometimes life imitates art. In a disturbing twist of events, two days after the Halifax release of A Stone’s Throw, Camelia Frieberg’s feature film, an announcement was made about the re-opening of the Moose River Gold Mines in Nova Scotia.
Hello Cool World has just signed on to help Canadians for Democratic Media with their campaign for media reform in Canada! The big push of the campaign right now is to lobby the CRTC (the body that regulates broadcast and telecommunications systems) to reverse the trend of Big Media Cross-Ownership.
Can We Build A Better Hero? It’s a question worth asking! We are thrilled that the proposal we put together as a partner with Women Against Violence Against Women (WAVAW) to do an innovative violence prevention project with youth in BC has been awarded a grant from the provincial government!
The Won’t Get Weird Campaign is up and running! And today is Valentine’s Day – which is Good Company’s 6th anniversary – now we are six! We’re proud of the fact that we’ve been putting safe sex in advertising where it belongs since 2001. : ) What better time to celebrate the launch of our new viral video for Options for Sexual Health (OPT).
I get the New York Times Headlines in my inbox everyday. This weekend's chilling, but utterly unsurprising story was on the "unequivocal" nature of scientist's warnings and that "human activity" is the main driver…" And there was that sad image once again of polar bears balancing on shrinking ice floes. Since I spent my childhood in Canada's arctic, the polar bears' plight always gives me a pang.
We were overwhelmed by one question during the first year of The Corporation's launch: Everyone asked us : "What can I do?" Now we're right backatcha asking: What have you done? In order to develop the Campaign 4 Corporate Harm Reduction, we want to collect your stories about what the film inspired you to do, and what the result was. And if you've heard of things other people have done let us know too.
I saw Jennifer Baichwal's film for the first time at the Vancouver Film Festival last week. Last night it opened in Vancouver (it's been playing for several weeks in Toronto) and it will open in other Canadian cities soonI've seen a fair amount of films lately, but the flashbacks from this "art and horror" flick have been haunting me. The visual vastness of Peter Mettler's cinematography, punctuated by Edward Burtynsky's still shots, perfectly portrays the dark soul of Walmart and its kin. Manufactured Landscapes lays bare what globalization, mass-market consumption, and techno-waste actually looks like.
We came across bristling blogger Mike Cowie & his hilarious rants about our latest campaign project - The Big Picture with Avi Lewis - and we just had to share. So please enjoy HelloCoolWorld.com's first guest blogger!
I hope you all checked out Avi's show again last night ("The Big Picture with Avi Lewis: Part 3 - Can We Save Planet Earth?"). Debating how to deal with global warming may not have stirred up quite as passionate of a debate as the shows from the past two weeks on torture and religion did; but, really, it's the much bigger - and much more important - topic by far.
An open letter to all those who made the smart choice and watched Avi Lewis' show on CBC last night ("The Big Picture with Avi Lewis Part 2 - The Root of All Evil - Is religion the root of all evil in the world?")
Earlier this month I traveled to Sao Paulo and Rio, in Brazil, to participate in the Visible Evidence Documentary Conference. Invited by Concordia Communications Professors Liz Miller and Tim Scwhab to be part of their panel "Branding Politics — Emerging Forms of Distributing Political Documentaries", this was an opportunity to reflect on what we are trying to achieve with HelloCoolWorld and our work as idea distributors and net workers. (Or "discourse networkers" in more academic parlance!) Thanks to a travel grant from the Canada Council I was able to attend this conference and it was a real opportunity to think our collective project through in an inspiring setting.
We at HelloCoolWorld are thrilled to be helping to promote the release on DVD of the film Winter Soldier. Described as one of the "most devastating anti-war films ever made," by Time Out New York, the film itself is both historically important and unsettlingly relevant to the state of the world and war today. But it was the DVD extras which had me thinking, again, about the power of documentary to not only to move viewers, but to influence participants.
By Katherine Dodds On July 08, 2006 | 0 Comments
The summer is speeding by. A quick mind-reconnaissance of the past two weeks sees us sipping champagne to celebrate the Woman of Vision Award that Women in Film and Video Vancouver honoured me with at their Gatsby-themed Spotlight Gala. (Was it already two weeks ago??)
It's a frighteningly busy week for us at HelloCoolWorld, we are in the midst of launching the promotion for a very fabulous film — Winter Soldier, and tying it in with our already ongoing promotion for Scared Sacred. We hope to do some co-promo for these films with the World Peace Forum that starts later this week.
Hello. When I first envisioned the possibilities of Hello Cool World, the web wasn't making things as easy as they are right now. And even before I even started trying to do we are trying to do, all to often, there I was, all heady with crazy-sounding visions of what could be done, but when I talked to progressive leaning folks this excitement was dampened by omnipresent back-ground whine about "access".
Katherine Dodds AKA "Kat" is the founder of Good Company Communications and HelloCoolWorld.com. Trained in renegade advertising & branding through her work with Adbusters in the '90s, Kat's early induction into the possibilities of the web-world was inspired by the term hypertext, which she immediately found comforting. She is dedicated to cause-related communication and to the development and use of tools that promote democratic processes.
Hailing from the mountain town of Salt Lake City, Utah, Lizzy enjoys picnics, reading on a lazy Sunday morning and adventurous bike rides. After learning about books at the University of Toronto she now calls Vancouver home. She joined Hello Cool World as a member of the LACE campaign action team, and luckily for us, decided to stick around.
It hasn't been ALL rosé champagne* and freshly harvested oysters here on Salt Spring... just a healthy dose! While Lizzy continued our Olympics coverage back on the mainland, David, Sandy and I 'retreated" to this nearby island paradise to spend a few days considering our 'vision', and in particular new opportunities arising from the recent upsurge in interest in 
Nancy Bleck is an award-winning international artist working with photography, film, video, and cross-cultural collaboration. She was recently honoured with the YWCA ‘Women of Distinction' award in the category of Arts, Culture and Design, for her work on Uts'am - Witness, a project spanning 10 years.
of working on the ‘
My friend Mark's film is getting it's theatrical debut this weekend. VANCOUVERITES Please flock to 5th Avenue Cinema and help us keep it going!! More info on extra events like the Suzuki Foundation sponsored panel on Saturday) at: 
Dedicated to music, film, sport, world travel, a far more just world, & Bob
Dylan (not necessarily in that order), Mike is presently
tangled up in the blues (& joys) of writing his first book, an account of his
(and wife Sonoko's) 3-year trip across Asia.
