NONFICTION ANIMATION: RECALLING BALTIMORE’S CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
Ages 16-29
Spring 2019, Morgan State University and on location at the Lillie Carroll Jackson Civil Rights Museum, 1320 Eutaw Street
In this experimental documentary workshop, student fellows will explore Baltimore’s Civil Rights history, while learning animation techniques and refining their storytelling skills. They’ll work with visual and print archives, and interview both historians and the activists who drove the movement. Inspired by animated documentaries like Chicago 10 (link) and Waltz with Bashir (link), they’ll apply a range of techniques to reimagine and revivify the stories they uncover, even as they respect the integrity of the historical record. They’ll be introduced to ToonBoom, Cinema 4D, and the Adobe Creative Suite, including After Effects and Premiere. They’ll experiment with composite animation, rotoscoping for stop motion and frame animation, and digital illustration. With the instructors, they’ll engage in the ethical considerations that must be addressed when recreating nonfiction transcriptions. They’ll create several, short, collaborative animations, and their work will be shared on the BYFA website and at a public screening. The workshop will include a location production day at the Lillie Carroll Jackson Civil Rights Museum. Limited to 12 student fellows.
Nonfiction Animation: Recalling Baltimore’s Civil Rights Movement is a co-production with Morgan State University.
Keith Mehlinger is Director of the Digital Media Center and of the Screenwriting and Animation program (SWAN) at Morgan State University. A producer/writer/director, he produced episodes of the syndicated series, Story of a People, and recently completed a short documentary about parents of sons lost to street violence for the Morgan multimedia project, Mother's Lament.
Dale Beran is a writer and artist living in Baltimore, MD. His latest book, It Came from Something Awful, is forthcoming from St. Martin's Press in August 2019. He teaches writing and animation at Morgan State University.
Kyle Yearwood is an assistant in Morgan State University’s Screenwriting and Animation program, with proficiency in cinematography, editing, photography, special effects, and animation. He has worked as a videographer for the Baltimore MTA, interned for HBO’s Show Me a Hero, and currently freelances in visual production.
Alfonzer Harvin is a graduate of the Screenwriting and Animation program (SWAN) at Morgan State University. He has created animations for Comcast and for the Baltimore Parking Authority, and is skilled in all phases of production. He believes knowledge is all we need to change the world.