IN ANOTHER SKIN: PERSONA POETRY ON FILM
Ages 16-29
Fall 2020, Online
In this distance learning workshop student fellows will explore the possibilities of the persona poem, and create short videos to add dimension to their written words. Persona is a dramatic character distinguished from the poet, who is the speaker of a poem. Persona allows the writer to write from a wholly different perspective—different gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic class, religion, etc. Persona poems might be written from the perspective of historical figures, fantasy and fictional characters, even animals or objects. Working in persona will offer fellows the opportunity to challenge their own beliefs and push against the edges of their thinking. As fellows get familiar with working in persona they'll begin to collect images for the creation of a persona film, then perform their finished poem as a voice over. The films will emerge from their poems and provide a visual embodiment of the character whose skin they've slipped into. The film's images will complicate and inform our understanding of the poem's character in surprising ways—playing with devices like expectation and surprise, juxtaposition, and synthesis. Each fellows will create at least two polished poems and a single film. Their work will be shared at a virtual screening and on the program website. Limited to 8 student fellows.
Jalen Eutsey is a poet, book reviewer, freelance sportswriter, and amateur photographer. He earned a BA in English from the University of Miami and an MFA in Poetry from the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University.
Darian Jones recently received his associate's degree in Digital Media Production at the Community College of Baltimore County. He is interested in documenting unique and authentic stories, and he hopes to give back by teaching others.
Hannah Yamagata is an undergraduate student at Johns Hopkins University studying biomedical engineering. She is a copy editor of The Hopkins Undergraduate Research Journal and loves dancing and performing in her spare time.
