More Than 25 Million American Young Adults Invited to Participate in

Online Campaign







Cronkite, Brokaw, Maher, Weinstein, Williams



among VIP Jurists

    NEW YORK, Feb. 4 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- USA TODAY, The United
 Nations, The Associated Press, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, The
 NAACP, The Humane Society of the United States, MTV, MySpace, the American
 Film Institute and a roster of American leaders, led by Walter Cronkite and
 Tom Brokaw, have joined forces to engage young adults 14-24 years old in
 pressing social issues using the power of the internet and User Generated
 Content.
 
 
 
     In its 4th year, FYI - Film Your Issue has grown into a global
 internet-based competition inviting more than 25 million high school and
 college students in the U.S. alone to engage in pressing contemporary
 issues by creating and uploading two-minute short films on issues that
 impact their generation. In addition to taking the pulse of young adults on
 issues, FYI - Film Your Issue encourages young people to add their voices
 to the public dialogue, and underscores how even an individual voice can
 influence public debate.
 
 
 
     Beginning Feb. 15, films can be uploaded on multiple participating
 platforms including MTV, YouTube and AFI Screen Nation, as well as promoted
 on MySpace TV, after registering on www.filmyourissue.com. Select entries
 will be highlighted on MySpace TV and distributed by The Associated Press
 to its 1,800 Online Video Network media outlets. The submission deadline is
 April 14, 2008.
 
 
 
     "The internet has become one of the most potent platforms of social
 change , social activism and raising consciousness -- and with the rapidly
 evolving technology which puts filmmaking capabilities into the hands of
 young people, this competition brings those elements -- the internet,
 social activism and 'User-generated-content' -- together dynamically," says
 HeathCliff Rothman, founder and president of FYI - Film Your Issue. "We are
 excited as we begin the 4th round that this unprecedented consortium of
 organizations has joined with us to encourage the next generation of
 leaders, and provide a global platform for pressing social issues."
 
 
 
     Winners are selected by an illustrious VIP Jury, by the public online,
 and by participating cause organizations. Prizes to eleven winning films
 include internships at USA TODAY, The United Nations, P.O.V. and The Humane
 Society and a $5000 college scholarship from The Bill & Melinda Gates
 Foundation and Strong American Schools, and a filmmaker VIP Pass and
 presentation at SILVERDOCS: AFI/Discovery Channel Documentary Festival.
 Winning films or excerpts will also be broadcast on Starz, and a selection
 presented at the annual NAACP Conference. The MTV audience favorite will be
 featured on Think, MTV's multi-media community focused on youth activism,
 and the winning filmmaker profiled on MTV News. In addition, FYI presents
 two additional annual awards: The Walter Cronkite Civic Engagement
 Leadership Award to an academic institution, and The Eleanor Roosevelt
 Humanitarian Award, to an individual.
 
 
 
     FYI 2008's VIP Jury is headed by legendary news anchors and authors
 Walter Cronkite and Tom Brokaw, and includes MySpace Founder Tom Anderson,
 MTV President Christina Norman, CNN Anchor Wolf Blitzer, NBC Anchor Brian
 Williams, United Nations DPI Under-Secretary-General Kiyotaka Akasaka, Best
 Buy Vice-Chairman Brad Anderson, HBO Host Bill Maher, USA TODAY Publisher
 Craig Moon, USA TODAY Founder Al Neuharth, Weinstein Company Co-founder
 Harvey Weinstein and others.
 
 
 
     Past judges include George Clooney and Presidential candidate Barack
 Obama. Winners from past competitions have gone on to work in major
 Hollywood production companies, been invited to present their films on
 Capitol Hill, and one recently co-produced a film that was the 2008
 Sundance Grand Jury Award winner. Through the global reach of the internet
 and The United Nations Department of Public Information, entries from past
 rounds have come not only from the U.S., but from all points across the
 globe, including Iran, The Philippines, Brazil, Russia, Hong Kong, Israel,
 the U.K., Argentina and elsewhere.
 
 
 
     Partners for the 2008 FYI competition are USA TODAY, The Associated
 Press, The United Nations, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, MTV,
 MySpace, NAACP, The Humane Society of the United States, SILVERDOCS:
 AFI/Discovery Channel Documentary Festival and AFI Screen Nation, Natural
 Resources Defense Council, PBS' award-winning documentary series P.O.V.,
 Starz, The Human Rights Campaign, ASCAP and The International Documentary
 Association. Academic partners are The Association of American Colleges and
 Universities, The National Association of Student Councils, The American
 Association of University Professors and The University Film and Video
 Association.
 
 
 
 
    For Further Information, contact
 
     Ragini Bhalla
     The Sharpe Alliance
     ragini@sharpealliance.com
     310-271-2323
     cell: 310-623-2849
 
 
 
 
 
 

SOURCE USA TODAY

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