Local Produce: South Side Teens Create Award-winning Film on Nonviolence
In a city wrought by gun violence, draped in gang activity and divided by socio-economic segregation, the best hope for the disenfranchised and impoverished neighborhoods of Chicago may emerge from within.
The I Grow Chicago Peace House on the South Side is a community center dedicated to nonviolence and positivity. The center has helped heal and develop scores of young individuals near the infamous Englewood neighborhood. The Peace House teaches its intakes relaxation techniques through yoga and meditation, job skills, farming and how to connect with others in positive and meaningful interactions.
The Peace House is a testament to the ideology that it takes a community to improve a community.
Community TV Network, also on the South Side, captured the spirit of the community center in its acclaimed film, “Welcome to the Peace House,” which debuted earlier this spring. CTVN is a non-profit youth media organization that empowers youth to learn video production in Chicago. The program gives youth the opportunity to learn the technical side of video production inside and outside of their school.
In the short feature, members of the Peace House tell how being a part of the community has helped them from going down the wrong path as well as how to deal with their feelings in a healthy way. According to CTVN, the young filmmakers wanted to re-shape the stories surrounding their own communities by taking the cameras into their own hands.
Led by CTVN’s Angelo Ross, Sierra Blackman, Briona Barker-Daws and instructor Bill Sacco, the community-focused team of creatives crafted a project to prove that there are people concerned about the wellbeing of their neighborhood — and are doing something about it.
“Our aim was to highlight people who are preventing youth violence and promoting peaceful solutions,” Sacco said via a news release.
The CTVN filmmakers behind “Welcome to the Peace House” were awarded a cash prize and the CHICAGO Award, an award created by the Chicago International Film Festival to celebrate films focused on Chicago’s communities, earlier this month.
The CineYouth Festival celebrates the talents of young filmmakers aged 22 years old and younger from around the world. The CineYouth Festival showcased more than 70 short films and is presented by the Chicago International Film Festival.
