Contacting organizations for partnership

Today I drafted a letter to send to organizations who I could potentially partner with. I plan to email and call these organizations tomorrow. I have a self-imposed deadline of this Friday 2/3 to secure a partnership... which now seems too soon. How did February sneak up like that?

LETTER: (perhaps a bit long?)

Dear _____________,

I am a student at University of Colorado (Denver), in the BFA Digital Design program of the College of Arts and Media. I specialize in video production and design (animation and interactive).

I am working on a thesis project that is aligned with the goals of your organization. I would love to talk with you about the project and opportunity for collaboration! I strongly believe this project can be a great asset to the right organization, and could have a positive impact on the community.

My vision is to partner with an existing organization (such as yours) whose focus is helping teenage Colorado girls prevent unintended pregnancy, thereby increasing their health and self-sufficiency.

I will produce a series (~10) video shorts (2-4 minutes each) featuring diverse teenage girls speaking directly to their peers about sexuality, responsibility, personal freedom, peer pressure, and wellbeing. The voices will be from young women, for young women. Current topics in sex, pregnancy, and empowerment will be addressed.

A key communication strategy is that teenagers can watch the videos on their smartphones. Video is the visual media of choice for today's teenagers - they prefer to watch rather than read. Smartphones are also an effective way to reach an audience who may be low-income and not have internet access at home.

This subject matter can be sensitive (or embarrassing!) for teenagers, who often look to their friends as resources instead of parents and educators. Video on smartphones is a great way for a young audience to access information privately. Teenagers share information via social networks and personal texts. This is an excellent way to disseminate information discreetly related to a very personal topic.

In terms of execution - video content will be housed on a YouTube channel and also embedded on a one-page microsite associated with the partner organization. YouTube provides a ubiquitous existing platform for reaching a large audience, and a microsite allows the audience to personally connect to a valuable community resource.

If you would like to work with me, this is what I would need from you:

-help me identify the key issues for our audience

-help develop the basic messages for the videos

-connect me to teenage girls who are advocates for sexual health, comfortable talking about it, and willing to be on camera

-permit me to work with your marketing staff to develop a one-page microsite that permits a conversation "loop" so viewers have a resource for questions and concerns

-respond to communication that results from the project (i.e. teenage girls who need a resource)

Please let me know if you are interested in working with me on this project. I would be grateful for your time and insight.

Best wishes,

Alison

Alison Colby

415-699-0202

colbyalison@gmail.com

Status widget

Only took me two hours to figure out how I was going to make a green/yellow/red status widget on my page.

I think I'd like those two hours back. But after spending one I just couldn't bear defeat.

Practicing our pitches, saving the world

The last few days I've gotten together with gals from the DD thesis classes. It's been a great opportunity to practice our pitches - trying to nail the statement of what our projects are about.

When people can't really explain their project, it leads me to believe they don't know exactly what their project is. A lot of people are stressing about how to make very abstract concepts executable for a thesis project.

Thesis teachers ask why so many projects have intensely ambitious goals - world-peace type stuff. The thing is, we've had all these incredible examples shown to us - as a group of design students and as a culture - of how to save the world with design. IDEO, gadgets to clean water in Africa, Tom's shoes, the advent of Facebook...

...the last 10 years have been a perpetual frenzy over being the youngest / most talented / creative / entrepreneur / to change the world for the better.

It's kind of intimidating. And it is definitely psyching people out as we try to nail down our thesis projects.

Pitch - Delevie feedback

Last night I made my thesis pitch to Brian Delevie. I am pleased that it was well-received.

Brian's main response was regarding demographics/"power dynamics" - issues of race and ethnicity - that might complicate the way my audience receives messages.

For example, will a young Latina population be reluctant to listen to African American teenage girls talk about sex and pregnancy, even though the issues may affect them similarly?

I'm not sure this is something I can necessarily control. However, I can explore the issues of race and communication with my partner organization, and find out if there is a suggested way of handling it. Will my videos feature racially diverse groups of teenagers? Or will some feature only same-race? I can't do anything about other people's biases. I can create an inclusive, color-blind resource for teenage girls from all backgrounds.

I feel like while it is a potentially delicate/politically charged area (talking about race divisions) - I'm not sure how relevant it is to my videos. I would like to think that messages about pregnancy prevention transcend race dynamics.

Then again, different ethnicities & cultures do have very different notions about sex, pregnancy prevention, romance and relationships, and standards for discussing intimacy.

This is definitely an area for which I need some third-party insight, hopefully from a partner organization.

Something they want to use

Howard Cook from the DAC gave me some more very good advice -

"Looks like you have built a solid foundation and are planning well. ...while there are teen pregnancy resources out there I believe delivering the content where it can and will be used, smart phones, has real merit and is important.

The key will be to make something they want to use not have to use.

It will need to have audience appeal ...Research? Focus groups? Perhaps that can be added in your plan..."

thank you Howard!

Pitch - Salamon/Bowers feedback

Met with Salamon and Bowers at Effective UI today. Did a quick pitch for my new idea, and got some good feedback:

Most importantly, I need to focus/decide on:

• quantity of video shorts
• quality of video shorts (they are filmed well - good technically - high quality - good design)
• integrity of the message/content

Other things to create / keep in mind:

• get stats about teenage pregnancy to backup the importance of the project
• get stats about smartphone use to backup reason why it is best tool to reach audience
• make a microsite for the partner organization that has all the videos on the page
• allow for a feedback loop/conversation - permit a way for viewers to respond to the videos and contact the organization / drive questions back to the organization
• make motion graphics at front and back of video branded for the organization
• make a shot list / animatic / storyboard
• 2-3 minute shorts. Make 15-20 to have at least 10 really good ones.
• display at BFA thesis: microsite, videos, possibly a teenage representative for the show

I will prepare some stats and visuals in the case they are useful for my pitch to Brian Delevie tomorrow.

Pitch prep

I am doing a 5-minute pitch of my thesis tomorrow to Michael Salamon, and again on Tuesday to Brian Delevie. Here is what I've prepared.

PITCH

I want to create web videos about current topics in sex, pregnancy, and empowerment for access via smartphones as a positive outreach tool for teenage girls in Denver.

I am especially interested in communicating ideas about sexuality, responsibility, personal freedom, peer pressure, and health, in an effort to curb unplanned pregnancies.

My vision is to partner with an existing organization whose focus is is helping Colorado women and girls reduce unintended pregnancy, thereby increasing their health and economic self-sufficiency.

====================================================

SPECIFICS

I want to make video shorts of young women talking about current topics in in sexual health and wellbeing. The voices will be from young women, for young women.

The videos will be mounted on a YouTube channel associated with a parent site (i.e. Planned Parenthood) dedicated to audience outreach. YouTube provides a ubiquitous existing platform for reaching a large audience.

Design of a related unique web page may or may not be necessary depending on the partner organization.

====================================================

WHY VIDEO AND SMARTPHONES?

Video and smartphones are particularly relevant tools for the audience I am trying to reach.

Specifically, video is the visual media of choice for today's teenagers - they prefer to watch rather than read.

Smartphones are the best way to reach an audience who may be low-income and not have internet access at home.

It is also a great way for a young audience to share messages and information easily via social networks and personal texts. This is perhaps the best way to disseminate information related to a sensitive topic - allowing girls to relate information among trusted friends, instead of depending on adult educators and parents.

====================================================

BACKGROUND

I was inspired this fall working with Nurse Family Partnership, an organization that provides personal nurses for low-income pregnant women (some as young as 13 years old). I also have a lot of compassion for the challenges teenage girls face.

The project meets a number of my own criteria for a compelling project:

• inspires me
• has a human connection
• is local
• provides an opportunity for partnership (with businesses/organizations/communities)
• can actually make a positive impact and help people / contributes to society
• utilizes tools/media I enjoy and want to get better at (video, motion, web)
• incorporates the element of storytelling

and it also fits characteristic of a good digital design thesis endeavor:

• executable in allotted timeframe
• presentable
• solves a design problem
• evocative, timely, & relevant
• distinct approach through the use of design
• has some degree of quantifiably measured success

====================================================

Timeline

Took me about 3 hours to produce this in Apple's "Numbers" program, perhaps the clumsiest bit of software from Apple.

Getting things in order

Rough production schedule.

JANUARY

• research the issue
• specifics related to teenage girls in Aurora, sexual health resources, teenage pregnancy
• gather resources
• people, articles, SME, organizations

FEBRUARY

• partner with an organization
• interviews & exploration with organization
• determine the best web-based "home" for this communication. A very simple micro-site? Probably a YouTube channel that is linked to from an existing website. All it needs to be is a place to house videos which will ultimately be viewed on phones.
• decide how this will be presented at the BFA thesis show. iPad- YouTube? Get actual people from the partner organization or representing teenage girls to be present?
• determine how to market this tool to girls. social media? classroom? health organizations? school educators? the best tool is word of mouth. How can this be trusted, "cool," and for lack of a better word, viral?

• video production - talk with girls and educators

MARCH

• edit
• create web "home" if required
• mount to selected/created website

APRIL

• market/promote to the teenage audience as determined above
• assemble for BFA thesis presentation

MAY

• BFA thesis presentation

Lists, time, and INSPIRATION

I have started tracking my time for thesis. I intend to put time in everyday. I'm using an app called TimeKeeper - which is new to me. I've used Freshbooks and MakeSomeTime in the past, but for some reason opening a browser is too much for me. TimeKeeper has a gadget in my top toolbar that I can access really fast and watch all the time. It helps prevent me from forgetting to log time, and allows me to switch projects almost effortlessly.

That said, I am putting together a project schedule. I am fired up about this video idea and feel more personally committed to it than I have other ideas.

It has numerous qualities that make it a project I can stick with:

• inspires me
• has a human slant/connection
• is local
• provides an opportunity for partnership (with businesses/organizations/communities)
• can actually make a positive impact and help people
• utilizes tools/media I enjoy and want to get better at (video, motion, web)
• incorporates the element of storytelling

and it also fits characteristic of a good digital design thesis endeavor:

• executable in allotted timeframe
• presentable
• solves a design problem
• evocative, timely, & relevant
• distinct approach through the use of design
• makes connections - relates to trends & context
• has some degree of quantifiably measured success

Voice memos

Over the last few months, I have periodically noted thesis ideas with voice memos while driving. Here are a few of them.

Video as a tool for reaching teenage girls - January 2012

Evolution of the Electronic Storybook - January 2012

Internet Love & Identity, part 1 - December 2011

Internet Love & Identity, part 2 - December 2011

Self Exploration - October 2011

Teenage girls, video, privacy, outreach; a new direction

I think I shall treat this blog as though it were for my eyes only... because I feel compelled to write as a stream of consciousness...

I am compelled to change my thesis idea yet again... and I am circling back to an original idea I had.

perhaps my original ideas were closer to my heart?

I just met with Howard Cook, my mentor from the DAC (Digital Animation Center) where I was a student 2 years ago. He is very good at identifying ideas that work and don't work - and pushing me to question "why" - and helping me be the creative that I want to be (or already am).

The digital storyboard is not a new idea, and as he says, it may be an idea that is bigger than me. Bigger than I can tackle this semester. And perhaps not something that I am really fired up about.

I do want to do something more human. And I do want to incorporate video. I recognize that the thesis committee recommends that we do not start with our medium. And while one advisor has encouraged video, another has advised against it, and so the bottom line is that I decide for myself.

I believe video is a great vehicle for communication. And so I am circling back to an original idea I had of working with people - teenage girls - and using video as a resource for them to learn.

The conduit is cell phones - video on cell phones - which is a modern tool for intimate experience. We have private conversations, read articles, and watch movies, exclusively by ourselves on these devices.

Cell phones are a great tool for conveying sensitive ideas -- information that someone would seek or ingest personally, privately.

I didn't believe that my thesis project might be a platform to actually help people. I have felt like "changing the world" is a tall order. But maybe that's not true...

This fall, I had the opportunity to create a PSA for a national organization called Nurse Family Partnership. NFP provides personal nurses for low-income pregnant women (some as young as 13 years old), who educate and aid them through prenatal until the child's 2nd year. It was amazing to meet young women who benefited from this program, whose children get a positive start in life, and the women are able to learn healthy habits and make better lives for themselves as well.

I've always had a special interest in the struggles of girls as teenagers... it's a very difficult time in life, and hard to know how to be happy, or social, or confident.

I see an opportunity to use video on mobile devices as a positive outreach tool for a teenage girl audience.

I am especially interested in communicating ideas about sexuality, responsibility, personal freedom, peer pressure, and health.

This could be done via a YouTube channel or a section of another site (like NFP, or Planned Parenthood) dedicated to audience outreach.

Resources and Recollections

By Shel Silverstein

Books/authors to reference

Nick Bantok

Griffin & Sabine

Freubal gifts

I miss my pencil

Some of my favorite old stuff

Shel Silverstein

Roald Dahl

Go Dog Go (PD Eastman)

Horrible Hepzibah (Edna Mitchell Preston)

Start small / Evolution of the electronic storybook

Snow White is one of the first books I remember reading by myself.

Now, children learn to read on iPads.

I attended a workshop last summer at Boulder Digital Works (BDW) called "Making Digital Work". It was about adapting new workflows and mindsets for a world that increasingly relies on digital creative.

Many of the ideas were actually very basic, and could be applied to all threads of work and entrepreneurism.

One of the ideas was "Start small." With that idea, I'm circling back to one of the first questions I asked when considering thesis:

How do we feel about babies growing up without books?

How will it feel to tell our grandchildren, "Once upon a time, people made books out of TREES!"

Books, to our grandchildren, will be what they absorb in a digital reader. Already babies use games on their parents iPhones as much as plastic toys and wooden blocks.

I am interested in the evolution of the electronic storybook.

Picture books will inevitably employ elements of motion; electronic children's stories already incorporate interactivity as babies swipe their tiny fingers to "turn a page."

How can motion be incorporated effectively to a storybook to enhance the experience, promote imagination, learning, and entertainment? Can motion in storybooks add value instead of dumbing down storytelling? When does it cease to be a book and become a movie instead?

Starting over

After about 6 months of writing on napkins, I'm still trying to pin down a thesis. Here is a sampling of some of my chicken scratches, accumulated and at last digitized.