Though my postings here may have petered off a little bit, it doesn't mean that I'm not thinking about depth and simplicity in general, and this documentary project in specific, every day.
I have a few magnetic postcards that Mister Rogers gave me for my 31st birthday on my refrigerator. Every morning when I'm grabbing half and half for my coffee, I look Mister Rogers in the eyes and he smiles and says, "You Are Special!"
But that's just the beginning. Nothing I do in or out of the office fails to pass through the lens that Mister Rogers helped me to shape.
Right now, I still owe Chris a new musical bed and voice over for the second iteration of our trailer. We want to show it to FCI's Bill Isler to further demonstrate our capabilities, and give him a sense of where the film is going. I have to constantly reinforce to people that we're not trying to make a biopic, we're trying to show that affects of meeting the man, and being inspired by him.
To that end, and with specific inspiration from depth and simplicty-free media conference I attended this week, I've been asking people where they think the good work is being done these days. I asked my buddy James -- a Hollywood agent with the rare distinction of understanding deep and simple -- thusly:
- In the era of the blockbuster, the longtail, and internet democracy, who do you think is doing good, substantive, meaningful work? What people? What companies? What studios, labels, or networks? Where's the justice and righteousness coming from? I just know it's not here [at MTV]. And I wanna be at -- or start up -- a place that can be both good business, and good for the world.
So... you tell me. Who's doing the good stuff? Individuals? Organizations?
Please leave your answer in comments.
3 comments:
Love this group - UN Foundation - Nothing But Nets - http://www.nothingbutnets.net/ $10 can save a childs life! Skip the Starbucks - save a life!
Teachers!! Every day they work with the most important folks around, children!! Though they take knocks for the time off, I dare the naysayers to spend an hour in a classroom of 30 students..... and actually get through to them, especially the 12-17 year olds! For many kids, a teacher can be a strong influence in their decision making process. My children are young adults,and they often talk about teachers that impacted their life decisions. Young people need strong, positive role models. Teachers are often just that.
I think it's both. I agree that teachers are doing the good stuff, but it's not just teachers. Parents - everyday parents - are doing the good stuff teaching their kids the things they need to know to make a difference in the world. Volunteers - we had a blood drive at our church this last week, and people showed up and donated their blood. A month or two ago, we had a clothing drive for people in the Ukraine.
But it's also organizations - I mentioned my church: they do so much for people in the community! Meals On Wheels is another good organization, as are Samaritan's Purse and the Red Cross. The Salvation Army is a wonderful organization - and those are just a handful.
Samaritan's Purse collected toys and clothing and other items for children who were separated from their families by the tsunami in Asia a few years ago.
Now, in Darfur, Samaritan's Purse is helping setting up schools to help teachers and local leaders get children back to school so that this generation of children in that country doesn't lose its future because of the war.
They have built over 50 permanent classrooms and numerous temporary schools, making it possible for thousands of children to resume their education, and they've furnished them with school supplies.
They provide daily meals to 12,000 students at schools in 18 communities across southern Darfur. This not only addresses the chronic problems of malnutrition, but also improves attendance and behavior. Students are more focused on their lessons, and girls who were previously kept at home by their families are beginning to attend school.
And that's just in one area - samaritanspurse.org has so much more information about what they are doing around the world. There are other organizations, too, that work all over the world to help those in need - the work is done by individuals who care, it is supported financially by other individuals who care, and it's focused and furthered through organzations that gather and concentrate the combined vision and efforts of all of those individuals to make a difference in the world.
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