• TU Home
  
  
• About
  
  
• Newsroom Archives

  
  2012 Archives

  
  2011 Archives

  
  2010 Archives

  
  2009 Archives

  
  2008 Archives

  
  2007 Archives

  
  2006 Archives

NEWSROOM

TU to host third annual WAMMFest at Senator Theatre

Event celebrates women and minorities in media, features public radio’s Kitchen Sisters

TOWSON, Md. (March 18, 2010)—Towson University will host the third annual Women and

Minorities in Media Festival (WAMMFest) on Sat., March 27 at the Senator Theatre in Baltimore. Sponsored by the Department of Electronic Media and Film (EMF), the event seeks to address the underrepresentation of women and minorities in the media industry and features guest artists, video screenings and master classes.

The Kitchen Sisters will be featured as WAMMFest guest artists Saturday, March 27.

WAMMFest invites community members to celebrate women and minorities working in television, radio, film, sound and media studies. Organizers collected audio and video submissions from media professionals and students of regional middle and high schools, colleges and universities. All works reference women or minorities as their main subject or have been created with a woman or minority in a key creative role.

“We received both student and professional submissions in audio and video," explains Mary Lackey, a WAMMFest coordinator and TU lecturer. "Most of the pieces are narratives and short stories, but there are also experimental pieces and abstract non-narratives. We also received documentaries—one submission covers teen gambling and another documents a man with a disability.”

Approximately half the submissions will be screened at WAMMFest by guest artists—women and minorities working and succeeding in the media industry. This year’s guest artists are Davia Nelson and Nikki Silva, better known to National Public Radio listeners as the Kitchen Sisters. The pair are Peabody award-winning documentary producers and creators of several acclaimed series—including Hidden Kitchens and Lost & Found—on NPR.

“We were really drawn to the Kitchen Sisters because of their national acclaim and the way they support underrepresented groups through their work. Their vision matches our passion,” says Lackey.

Nelson and Silva will screen submissions and afterward take part in a discussion and Q&A session during the festival. They will also hold a master class about documentary techniques on Fri., March 26, at TU’s Media Center.

WAMMFest is free to all students and $5 for the general public. For more information and a full event schedule, visit the WAMMFest Web site or e-mail wammfest@gmail.com.