Courtney Spence on How Students of the World Develops Documentary Filmmakers

In Chapter 5 of 15 of her 2010 Capture Your Flag interview, non-profit executive and Students of the World founder Courtney Spence answers "What do you do and why do you do it?" She shares her organizational purpose to empower college students to travel abroad and tell the story of NGO work fighting problems on the frontlines. These locations range from New Orleans to India to Cambodia to other challenged areas. Students receive both impactful travel experiences gathering community stories on-location as well as post-production experience in Austin, Texas where projects are completed and, over time, distributed.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: What do you do and why do you do it?

Courtney Spence: So I created students of the world back as a sophomore at Duke University with a purpose to tell stories of progress. What we do is we take university students, we partner them with some of the most innovative organizations working all over the world, our students spend about four weeks on location where they immerse themselves in a community, form relationships, form friendships and really purpose to tell the stories of those that are the front lines fighting some of the worlds most pressing problems and whether that be in Cambodia, India or New Orleans. We are a chapter based nonprofit so we have chapters at various universities across the nation, one of our chapters is here in Austin, the University of Texas, and when the students return from their four weeks of production we bring them back to Austin for a six week sort of mega post production creative brainstorm where we all work on various multi media projects so it’s short films, it’s photo essays, it’s audio documentaries, audio documentaries over photo essays so it’s really sort of up to the individual student to figure out how they want to best tell the story of that organization, that individual.

Erik Michielsen: How do you define success in what you do?

Courtney Spence: There’s a few things that we look back every year, first and foremost the student experience, did our students, you know, were they safe? Did they enjoy themselves? Do they feel like they really had a purpose in doing what they did and do they feel that they were successful in helping craft these stories from these organizations and these individuals on the ground? How many people heard these stories? What sort of impact did that have? For example, we had our team from the University of Texas in Northern Thailand working with a woman who basically had taken in children that were being trafficked, children from off the streets, it was a really impactful experience for the students, they showed it to a single individual person here in Austin and the next thing we knew, a five thousand dollar check was being written to go directly to this woman to build a new house for the children she was caring for. So seeing those small moments where people are moved by the media, moved by the story and want to get involved, that is certainly successful for us.

Courtney Spence on How Curiosity and Listening Inform Successful Storytelling

In Chapter 6 of 15 of her 2010 Capture Your Flag interview, non-profit executive and Students of the World founder Courtney Spence answers "What have you learned about successful story telling through your nonprofit efforts?" Spence shares how listening and curiosity enable more successful storytelling. Spence has learned this over time creating her non-profit, Students of the World, that sends student documentary filmmakers abroad to work with Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and the communities they serve across the globe. She highlights how both curiosity and listening provide individuals the space and security to open up and share their story.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: What have you learned about successful story telling through your nonprofit efforts?

Courtney Spence: I think the most important aspect to successful story telling comes from an honest and sincere sense of curiosity and from listening. I think a lot of times you read in books and you read articles and you go into a situation and you think you know the issue or you know the organization but we really tell our students to arm yourself with this knowledge but once you get to the ground and you meet the individuals that are dealing and facing these battles everyday, throw everything that you thought out the window and spend some time to just get to know the person, get to know where they live, get to know their families, really before you try and tell their story for them let them tell their own story and I think that that is hard to do in this day and age but I also think that when you find yourselves in these opportunities, particularly with the right individuals, they will open up so that you will be struck with the stories that come from them.

Courtney Spence on How to Affect Social Change Using Documentary Media

In Chapter 9 of 15 of her 2010 Capture Your Flag interview, non-profit executive and Students of the World founder Courtney Spence answers "What inspired you to create Students of the World and what has you most hopeful about the legacy the organization can build over time?" Spence shares how she formed her organization after doing a travel abroad experience and working with the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University. There she learned how to apply storytelling and documentary media as a tool to impact social change.

By connecting her international community immersion with her desire to help college student program participants apply creative and technical tools to showcase impactful stories, Spence founds her non-profit Students of the World to help students engage in projects where they learn and affect positive change through their actions.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: What inspired you to create Students of the World and what has you most hopeful about the legacy the organization can build over time?

Courtney Spence: It was my international experiences to date as a sophomore and it was also the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke, it’s a fantastic organization full of people who are so dedicated to this idea of storytelling but not just for the sake of storytelling but for having it go somewhere, they really believe in using documentary media as a tool for social activism and social change, that idea just blew me away.

I’m familiar with storytelling in media formats but the idea that you can use it for good was just -- it got me really excited. So it was could I find a way to marry those two ideas, one immersing yourself in international communities, challenging yourself as an individual, as a young person but also taking innate skills that you have at the time and really taking them and translating them into something that can make a difference. Young people can tell stories, young people know – especially now, I mean gosh, ten years later our students learned Final Cut when they were in sixth grade! I mean they speak through media, multimedia platforms, this is how they communicate so in many ways we were really lucky because technology and trends sort of followed this idea to date where I’m just blown away with the creativity that comes from these young people and there’s a real sense among so many of our students to give back.

So I think, for me that it is something that is really encouraging and when you talk about this legacy of Students of the World, I really – I hope that it becomes a way for young people to realize that they can make an impact now, you don’t have to take leadership courses to make a difference when you’re forty five, you can be a leader, you can be a change maker, you can be an influencer in your twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two years. But, you know as twenty-one year-old, twenty-two year-old but at the same time you have so much to learn so this concept of going in and saying ‘ We’re not going to tell you how to do this, I’m not here to teach you English, I’m here to just – tell me your story, let me learn from you and let me recognize that you’ve had infinite more experiences than I’ve had’, you know battling HIV on the ground, caring for orphaned children, dealing with human trafficking in Northern Thailand I mean these are issues that people at every age face day in day out and I think that if we can show young people that they can be involved but they also still have a lot to learn I think that that would be a good thing.

What Tiffany and Apple Teach About Brand Storytelling - Richard Moross

In Chapter 5 of 17, entrepreneur, innovator and Moo.com founder Richard Moross uses Seth Godin's phrase "Be Remarkable" to unify his company, Moo (www.moo.com) around a common goal. Moross references Tiffany and Apple as inspirations behind why innovative product packaging creates winning consumer experiences and lasting brand stories. Moross frames this approach as shipping product that takes into account sympathy for the surrounding box.

How to Cultivate Passion for Singing A Cappella - Audrey Parker

In Chapter 9 of 15, consultant Audrey Parker finds creative and artistic inspiration by singing outside of work. From college a cappella groups at Wake Forest University to chorus groups after graduation, Parker finds equilibrium in her creative and business pursuits. She learns to apply the artistic element in what she does professionally and her work experience in what she does artistically to make a stronger contribution.

How A Cappella Singing Informs Leadership Style - Audrey Parker

In Chapter 10 of 15, consultant Audrey Parker learns teamwork participating in a cappella and chorus. She finds the greatest takeaway to be learning alternative perspectives by playing different, complementary roles in the production. She learns to appreciate differences while being flexible picking up different roles, including low, high, and solo responsibilities.

How Student Athlete Opera Singer Defines a College Life - Dan Street

In Chapter 13 of 20 of his 2010 Capture Your Flag interview, Rice University graduate and entrepreneur Dan Street shares his approach to balancing opera singing, full courseloads, and sports while attending Rice University. After pushing himself to his limits with a full courseload, basketball, baseball, and opera singing, Street retreats to focus on school and singing. 

How Singing Opera Teaches Pursuit of Excellence - Dan Street

In Chapter 12 of 20 of his 2010 Capture Your Flag interview, entrepreneur and Loku.com (previously BorrowedSugar.com) founder Dan Street shares how singing opera teaches him foreign language, culture and political history. Training to perform opera teaches Street how to apply necessary dedication, preparation, and sacrifice in his pursuit of excellence.

How Art Education Informs Fashion Stylist Career - Lulu Chen

In Chapter 1 of 13, fashion stylist Lulu Chen shares how her art education has informed how she defines style and applies it in her work. To Chen, style is a personal expression of oneself and one that makes them happy in their own skin. She pushes away from conformity and uses visual details and designs, from colors to silhouettes to patterns, and layers, to help others express their personality.

How Artist Turns Painting Passion into a Fashion Career - Lulu Chen

In Chapter 3 of 13, fashion stylist Lulu Chen shares how her early art experience, specifically painting, inspires her future transition into editorial pictorial formats within the publishing and fashion industries.

How Mentor Relationship Helps Artist Develop - Lulu Chen

In Chapter 4 of 13, fashion stylist Lulu Chen details why a longstanding painting mentor proves so valuable shaping her artistic perspective. Beyond learning drawing, painting, and perspective, Chen develops emotionally through consistent focus creating and finishing projects.

How Art History Classes Inform Graphic Arts Education - Lulu Chen

In Chapter 5 of 13, fashion stylist Lulu Chen highlights motivations to integrate art history and marketing classes into her bachelor of fine arts coursework in graphic arts. First, Chen prioritizes a broad education. Second, she references how art throughout history reflects a narrative of the times. Chen specifically cites Edgar Degas and his paintings as periodic social commentary.

Lulu Chen on How to Build a Fashion Stylist Portfolio

In Chapter 7 of 13, fashion stylist Lulu Chen answers "Based on your experience what’s the best approach to building a commercial stylist portfolio?" Chen shares how collaborative test shoots create early career fashion portfolios. Chen highlights collaboration as a cornerstone component bringing together young industry talent - often assistant-level staff - to do test shoots. These shoots help all parties develop individual styles and tastes that over time get refined into individual portfolios.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen: Based on your experience what’s the best approach to building a commercial stylist portfolio?

Lulu Chen: Well as an assistant you meet other assistants on photo shoots and you develop friendships and you figure out who has the same aesthetic as you or same style and you do test shoots, which contribute to building your portfolio. Building a test shoot is basically the same thing as a regular shoot but on a smaller scale. When young talent comes together and contributes to a test shoot, they are exploring their style; they’re developing their tastes and they’re trying to develop a portfolio. So this is the time for them to be creative and to work together and to really collaborate because everyone is putting in their time and money and effort. It’s not necessarily something they got commissioned to do and so it really is about the collaboration.

How Julia Roberts Travel Shoot Kick Starts Stylist Career - Lulu Chen

In Chapter 9 of 13, fashion stylist Lulu Chen transitions out of fashion public relations and marketing to apply her creative talent in an assistant stylist role. Her first role lands her at an on-location In Style Magazine shoot with high profile Julia Roberts. As an assistant, Chen finds herself supporting and helping the stylist in any way possible.

How to Build a Lasting Creative Arts Career - Lulu Chen

In Chapter 13 of 13, fashion stylist Lulu Chen shares her approach to building a creative arts career. Chen notes creative career plans are more loosely defined and less structured than other professions such as law. She prioritizes applying organization skills to create her own structure and stay reliable while working as a freelance stylist in the fashion publishing business.

Why Sound Engineer Left Roadie Job to Study Political Science - Ken Rona

In Chapter 2 of 12, business analytics expert Ken Rona reads "In Search of Excellence" while touring with bands as a sound engineer. Following the book's guidance, Rona creates a BHAG - big hairy audacious goal - to be President of the United States and charts his first step, return to school to study political science.

How LL Cool J Tour Sound Engineer Motivated Union Workers - Ken Rona

In Chapter 1 of 12, business analytics expert Ken Rona reflects on lessons learned while working as a sound engineer while touring with LL Cool J, MC Hammer, Guy, Run DMC and others. Specifically, he finds ways to build alliances with union workers to get jobs done under pressing deadlines.

How to Cultivate Childhood Passions for Food, Travel, and Film - Slava Rubin

In Chapter 9 of 16 in his 2010 Capture Your Flag interview, Belarus-born American entrepreneur Slava Rubin answers "What Childhood Experiences Contributed Most to Shaping Your Passions for Food, Travel, and Film?" Rubin shares the experiences cultivating his passions for food, travel, and film.  A latch key child with two working parents, Rubin watches "Yang Can Cook" and "Julia Child", learns to cook, and soon finds satisfaction feeding others and making them happy.  Born abroad, Rubin prioritizes a college abroad experience to Belgium to broaden his cultural experience.  Rubin's film interest shapes through Blockbuster visits and his tendency not to choose movies by quantity but by those showing film festival olive branch award logos.  These collective experiences - enabling happiness, opening cultural doors, and creating fine art - influence Rubin to apply these interests and build the IndieGoGo mission.

Slava Rubin is CEO and co-founder of Indiegogo, the world's largest crowdfunding platform. Indiegogo empowers anyone, anywhere, anytime to raise funds for any idea—creative, cause-related or entrepreneurial. Prior to Indiegogo, Rubin worked as a management consultant. He earned his BSE degree from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. Slava Rubin is CEO and co-founder of Indiegogo, the world's largest crowdfunding platform. Indiegogo empowers anyone, anywhere, anytime to raise funds for any idea—creative, cause-related or entrepreneurial. Prior to Indiegogo, Rubin worked as a management consultant. He earned his BSE degree from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.

Transcript:

Erik Michielsen:  So, what childhood experiences contributed most to shaping your passions for food, travel and film?

Slava Rubin: I was a latchkey kid, I would say, where I was coming home and having to open the door by myself because my parents were both professionals and they were making money.  My mom was a doctor and my dad was engineer.  And I think I just got bored eating leftovers and cold food out of the fridge and so I just started deciding I just needed more tasty food.  So I started experimenting with the microwave, watching Yang Can Cook and Julia Child, and whoever on PBS and starting making some food.  I think I really enjoyed it and then saw that making food, but then feeding others with the food that I made really made them happy, which was kind of a happiness for me, which in the long run which was just very cool.  So I think that perpetuated till today because I even love making food today. 

I think the travel thing...I was born in Belarus, so you can say I was addicted to travel as soon as I was born because we moved to New York City right away, as my family moved to America. But when I was in college I studied abroad in Belgium, and I guess it's also cliche, I just fell in love with traveling because I lived in Belgium on purpose.  It was kind of in the heart in Europe and I traveled all around every week and I didn't do much work for classes and it was cool.  From there it's just been nonstop.  I've torn through an entire passport and had to get additional pages and that good stuff.  

In terms of film, I don't really know the answer to that except for when I was at Blockbuster as kid I wasn't always drawn to the wall that had the most titles.  Just because you had 74 copies of something didn't mean that was exactly what I wanted to see.  Sometimes I wanted to see were those olive branches, which back when I was a kid I actually didn’t know what those olive branches meant yet, but today those kind of mean it's a festival equals the olive branches, so I would kind of look for those branches to be like, ``Oh, which one got the most branches.``  It's kind of funny because they still do the same thing today and try to put a lot of branches on your DVD title.  I was like, ``Wow, these are really cool movies.``  I mean, now you look back I know I know I watch ``Reservoir Dogs`` well before ``Pulp Fiction`` came out and back when Quentin Tarantino was not so special, but it`s kind of cool when you kind of find those gems.  Plus, they're a little more interesting.  You get a little more than just he vanilla and chocolate, you get all those crazy flavors.