so a complicated matter this Project HELP stuff. as you know, last year i decided to dedicate a full week of work to a non profit in need of a visual face lift. after opening the floodgates here myself + crew sorted through a wild variety of applications + in the end went with a new non profit with solid roots. The Network of Young People Affected by War (NYPAW) had a great plan we came to find out through numerous discussions with members of the group. check out their new site here.

however, as the non profit world tends to be rather temperamental, i’ve come to learn, even the best laid plans change. anna our producer has attempted to get into my head that we’re here to help so flexibility is key. unfortunately, our attempts at flexibility only pushed the 2009 version of P HELP into 2010. granted, our group at NYPAW is truly motivated but they are answering to a higher power – in this case the UN.

with that in mind, wanted to let you know that we have made one last effort to pull everything together + help this group with one fine production. if all goes down as it should we’ll be shooting later next month in nyc. the same time i’m moving to portland. should be an exciting month + i’ll keep you posted.

in terms of the 2010 version. you can imagine that 2009 left us rethinking how to make this project more effective. i mean, how hard can it be to give away a week of work? apparently it’s more complicated then i originally anticipated with the bulk of the effort lying not in providing the visual media but rather in finding a solid match.

it’s with this in mind that i’ve decided to change the format for this, our second year, of Project HELP. you’re still welcome to send non profits you think would be a good fit our way but bottom line is i’m now working on reaching out to organizations i see as a good fit. for the time being this list is down to a last few possibilities so i hope to have the full story soon.

then we’ll open the doors to have you jump in should you want to. regardless, i encourage you to look around your current locale + see where you can help out. if you’re in portland, here’s a start.

welcome to the future. 2010 is here + we’re ready to kick it off with a bang.

in addition to a growing roster of clients/partners/work, myself + team are back this year with our week of donated non-profit time. can’t think of a better way to start the year. after our initial foray last year (more here) we’re refining + continuing our Project HELP efforts.

it all started with this quote i read a year ago;

so we’re still working on tying this thing together. it’s as slippery as a greased pig lately but everything is falling into place now. as of last update we were to be shooting in halifax a few weeks ago. at the last minute we found out that only 3 of the NYPAW founders would be present. with that in mind + after speaking with the organizers + NYPAW advisers we decided to hold off. there was another upcoming event they filled us in on.

that leaves us where we are now – waiting. waiting to see everything fall into place, waiting to see if we can get all or most of the young NYPAW founders together in one place + really waiting to help this fantastic new group out. if you’re unfamiliar with the group or our effort to help a non-profit out this year then check this or this out.

the latest plan has us in nyc in november covering a youth conference where NYPAW members will not only be present but will be speaking at UN headquarters. this could get interesting. already have our sound engineer in nyc ready to jump in so the disparate ends are coming together.

this month’s pdn looks like it covers working with non-profits as well as shooters who make a difference though can’t vouch for that as haven’t read it yet. let me know. (this is off subject but a good piece via pdnonline as well.) and if you’re into hypothetical situations, track down someone from the class i taught last week + ask them about our ‘greening photography’ cafe shoutdown. thanks everyone.

so the word is out now + i’m psyched on that as this thing is really getting exciting now. if you don’t know there’s more via earlier posts but we’re putting together a dandy of a week of help for a non-profit this summer.
ASMP just put out a piece on it in their spring bulletin (pg 24).

PDN/photoserve also have a spot up on it here as well. more to come.

and in case you’re on the movie circuit or interested in more on the plight of child soldiers check out the trailer for Emmanuel Jal’s movie Warchild.

quick update to say thanks to everyone who has contacted us about the project, spread the word + and really got the ball rolling. though times are tough everywhere right now i think that this is more important than ever + appreciate the assistance as i’m sure our non-profit will as well.

if you aren’t aware of 2009 Project HELP there’s more on the link – basically myself + staff are donating a week’s worth of visual media work to a non-proft that needs a facelift. we’ve a had some amazing applications and no doubt the process evaluating them all will not be easy.

we’ll announce a final selection 3.31.09 and updates on the plan from there. feel free to keep the word alive as this is not a one time adventure but a new yearly program that we’re all excited to be putting together.