FAMU's J-School Journals to host first public film screening since 2019

FAMU's J-School Journals is back with two new documentaries to be showcased Saturday, April 23, 2022 in the Lecture Hall of FAMU’S School of Journalism & Graphic Design.
FAMU's J-School Journals is back with two new documentaries to be showcased Saturday, April 23, 2022 in the Lecture Hall of FAMU’S School of Journalism & Graphic Design.

J-School Journals is back with four documentaries to be showcased in their first in-person screening since 2019.

The screening will take place Saturday, April 23, with two screenings at noon and 3 p.m. in the Lecture Hall of FAMU’S School of Journalism & Graphic Communication, 510 Orr Drive.

The award-winning program is a bi-annual event on the campus of Florida A&M University.

Since 2006, the program has created a nexus where aspiring filmmakers and award-winning students come together to show off their talents. What started as a "documentary night" has now expanded to a live event to include talents of journalism, public relations, and Graphic Design students.

This semester, FAMU Professor and J-School Journals Director, Kenneth Jones, hopes to attract local students and members of the public to the event to allow students to have their hard work displayed to a larger audience.

Alongside a team of nine public relations and two graphic design students, Jones has worked hard to make this a successful event with four documentaries.

When asked what fueled his decision to choose the new documentaries, Jones expressed the significance of the issues being told from more than one perspective.

“I think the two stories, ‘Far From Home’ and ‘It Takes a Village’ are untold stories in regards to a different look at young single mothers and a different look at refugees that are now having to make a home in Tallahassee away from their homeland — for negative reasons,” said Jones.

Aliyah Terry, co-producer of "Together" and public relations associate on the team, has worked with Jones and J School Journals since her sophomore year. Terry is excited about her documentary being selected for the live event.

“I’ve always wanted to be a filmmaker since I was a young girl, so being selected for my documentary to be showcased live is a dream come true. I’m also super excited to see how the film relates to the audience or helps educate them in a way they didn’t know before,” said Terry.

The selections are as follows:

  • "The Sneaker Game," produced by Kamryn Marshall and Kelly Pusey

  • "Together," produced by Aliyah Terry and Maya Williams

  • "Far From Home," produced by Kayla McKinney & Mariah Wiggs

  • "It Takes a Village," produced by Tatiyana Hayes & Kylii Clay

To RSVP for the event for a free ticket, attendees should email their name and screening preference to Shan’T-Erica Pugh (shanteri1.pugh@famu.edu) or Maeve Francois (maeve1.francois@famu.edu).

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU's J-School screens four documentaries on Saturday