MEDIA RELEASE

It’s a wrap!  This summer, students from Ocean View to Kaimu produced videos that reflect their perspectives on Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park.

The first annual Digital Mountain ’09: It’s My Park! (DM•IX) engaged and equipped youth with digital media skills, while strengthening their park ties.

“Now, we need the public’s help in selecting the winner of the People’s Choice Award,” said Park Superintendent Cindy Orlando.

To vote, watch the videos on-line at http://www.digitalmountain-hawaii.com and select your favorite.

You‘re also invited to come and cast your vote at the premier showing of the students’ films at the DM•IX Film Festival set for 6 p.m. on September 19, 2009 at the Kilauea Visitor Center.

Cake will be served and park entrance is free for those coming to the festival.

“The film with the most votes wins and a pretty nice win it’ll be,” said DM•IX co-executive producer, Roland Joseph Torres.

The winner of the People’s Choice Award will receive an Apple iBook laptop computer and a Mini DV Digital Video camera to jump start his/her video-making career. Prizes for other categories will also be awarded at the festival.

According to Torres, there are several things to consider when selecting your favorite film.

• Does the film express the student’s commitment to the concept of It’s My Park?
• Is the video well shot and the audio captured? Do the transitions and effects enhance the video?
• Does the student’s work speak to Hawai‘i’s unique natural and cultural heritage?
• Does the student demonstrate an understanding of the story-telling process?
• Are you engaged and do you get a sense of the student’s connection to the park?
• Does the student’s music choice(s) enhance the overall video?

DM•IX  is sponsored by the Friends of Hawai‘i Volcanoes National Park, Hawai‘i Natural History Association, Ka‘u Rural Health Community Association, Pacific Media & Learning Trust, Friends of the Future, National Park Foundation, Evelyn and Walter Haas Jr. Fund, Lyman Museum, Pacific Tsunami Museum, KapohoKine Adventures, Hawai‘i Forest and Trail, and Hawaiian Walkways.

Digital Mountain ’09: It’s My Park!  was inspired by director Ken Burn’s latest production, The National Parks: America’s Best Idea, a 12-hour six-part series about the creation and evolution of the National Park System set to debut September 27th on PBS.