I’ve recently become fascinated by the surge of interest in the concept of Transliteracy.  One of the things I find fascinating is that, for a new term, it’s not really all that new. In a way, it’s just a fancy new term for media literacy with a few different twists. The Center for Media Literacy defines media literacy as:

a 21st century approach to education. It provides a framework to access, analyze, evaluate and create messages in a variety of forms — from print to video to the Internet. Media literacy builds an understanding of the role of media in society as well as essential skills of inquiry and self-expression necessary for citizens of a democracy.

Similarly, the National Association for Media Literacy Education states:

Media literacy– the ability to ACCESS, ANALYZE, EVALUATE, and COMMUNICATE information in a variety of forms-is interdisciplinary by nature. Media literacy represents a necessary, inevitable, and realistic response to the complex, ever-changing electronic environment and communication cornucopia that surround us.

Although media literacy began as a reaction to the perceived negative influence of Mass Media during the middle of the 20th century, it has evolved to include and analysis and understanding of a variety of emerging media. In this way, media literacy is not much different than transliteracy, which The International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) defines as:

an umbrella term encompassing different literacies and multiple communication channels that require active participation with and across a range of platforms, and embracing both linear and non-linear messages.

Despite the fact that print is a communication medium, media literacy tends to focus on non-print or non-text print materials. Transliteracy attempts to be broader. IFLA, in its report “Transliteracy: take a walk on a wild side,” quotes Sue Thomas, who defines transliteracy as “what it means to be literate in the 21st Century,” that is, having a “unifying perspective” on the ability to “read, write and interact across a range of platforms, tools and media from signing and orality through handwriting, print, TV, radio and film, to digital social networks.”

In this respect, media literacy can be considered a sub-topic of transliteracy. Regardless of how one chooses to use the terminology, the emerging field of transliteracy is building on the foundation set forth by media literacy.

Having a long-standing interest in media literacy in my work as a media librarian, the recent wave of interest in transliteracy fascinates me, and I hope to investigate and write more about it, especially as to how it relates to libraries.

As with last year, as the deadline neared for the American Library Association’s Midwinter Conference where the Notable Video for Adults Committee meets to compile its list, I was unable to keep up with my reviews. My entire list of scores and links to the films I did review are here.

The official announcement includes annotations and purchasing information. Below is the list of the selections with links to my reviews, where available:

• American Outrage
• At the Death House Door
• FLOW: For Love of Water
• In Search of Memory
• I.O.U.S.A.
• Lake of Fire
• Malls R Us
• Operation Filmmaker
• Sita Sings the Blues
• Trouble the Water
• Unnatural Causes: Is Inequality Making Us Sick
• Walk to Beautiful
• Waltz with Bashir
• Who Does She Think She Is?
• The World According to Monsanto

My first two reviews for Educational Media Reviews Online are now available:

• The Last Days of Shishmaref
• Split Estate

Lake of Fire is an impressive documentary, 18 years in the making, about abortion. At times, it is difficult to watch due to some graphic footage and descriptions, but the graphic nature of the film is never gratuitous nor exploitative. Lake of Fire provides an honest look at many aspects of the issue and does not shy away from some of the more gruesome details.

Although the film rests definitively on the side of pro-choice, it allows defenders on both sides of the issue speak their minds. At nearly two and a half hours long, the film allows the issues to develop slowly and thoroughly and with intelligence. Despite showing the pro-life movement in a bad light by focusing a good deal on the violence perpetrated by some of the more extreme people, the film is most concerned with showing the complexity of the issue.

With a lengthy running time and with covering a long period of time and a wide-variety of voices, Lake of Fire could have easily lost it’s narrative path, but it never does. The film is well-organized, brilliantly edited and beautifully filmed. The choice to film or convert footage to black and white helps take away any distractions of the different time periods and allows the filmmakers show graphic material in a way that has an impact but it not so graphic as to feel gratuitous. Read more »

Renewal is a promising but ultimately disappointing film about religious communities who focus on their role as caretakers for the earth. Comprised of 8 stand alone stories, Renewal shows the diversity of the effort by portraying the environmental concerns of Christian, Jewish, Buddhist and Muslim traditions. Unfortunately, not all 8 stories are equally interesting and the more interesting segments are in the beginning of the film giving the entire project a feel of diminishing returns. Because each segment is between 9-12 minutes, none feel substantial. The film would be strengthened by removing some of the weaker episodes (Eco-Justice, Sacred Celebration, Interfaith Power and Light) and deepen the more notable ones (A Crime Against Creation, Going Green, Food for Faith, Ancient Roots, Compassion in Action). Each segment is easily accessible on the DVD, so these more interesting stories can be shown as stand alone episodes.

Second Skin examines the lives of various people who immerse themselves in the world of online gaming, specifically Massively Multiplayer Online Games. The film shows some of the positive aspects of these games, such as people meeting and falling in love, and the liberating effects the games can have for those with physical disabilities. It also delves into the serious problems addiction to these games can have. The strength of the film lies in the compelling subjects interviewed for the film. Second Skin is a good introduction to the issues raised when people spend such a significant amount of time interacting through an online environment. The insights won’t be new to anyone who has been following the effects of any kind of online social interactions, but the interviewees make for engaging viewing.

Second Skin provides a lot of statistics throughout, but sometimes they seem out of context. The numbers are often only tangentially related to the story.

The section about the liberating effects of online gaming for those with physical disabilities is disappointingly short and feels like a bit of an afterthought. The film would have been stronger if one of the subjects from this short segment were one of the people the film follows more thoroughly.  Read more »

Trouble the Water is a fascinating and multi-faceted film about Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. The film intercuts footage taken during the storm by Kimberly Rivers Roberts with the story of their attempt to return to normal life after the storm. Rivers Roberts and her husband, Scott, did not evacuate and shot some amazing footage of the rising water. Their efforts after the storm speak to how poorly the local and federal governments handled the tragedy. Focusing on the personal stories of Kim and Scott and their friends and family makes Trouble the Water engaging as we watch people with difficult pasts pull together to become heroes and survivors.

As with the best documentaries, Trouble the Water transcends their personal stories. Trouble the Water is as much about poverty, racism, and the role of the government as it is about these specific individuals. Trouble the Water is an intellectually stimulating and emotionally engaging film.

Read more »

As interesting as it is, On Our Watch doesn’t really transcend being a one hour episode of Frontline. Informative but cursory, On Our Watch provides background about the genocide in Darfur and some of the positive impact public support to end the violence has had. The episode does an excellent job of condensing a lot of information in the just under one hour run time, but because of that it feels cursory. It’s a great introduction to the topic and would be excellent for classroom use, but it doesn’t have the depth nor is it as engaging as many of the other nominated videos.

The entire episode is available to view here.

Say My Name is an interesting look into the world of female hip-hop artists and would make a compelling double-bill with Who Does She Think She Is. Like that film, Say My Name allows the artists to speak without interference from the filmmakers and is loosely structured around common themes that develop from their stories. Say My Name speaks with both established and new artists from New York, Atlanta, Detroit, and London.

Say My Name speaks volumes about the misogyny in mainstream music and hip-hop culture without becoming didactic. There is only one short stretch toward the end of the film where it directly confronts this issue but it bubbles under the surface throughout the film. It is more of a celebration of the female artists but the need of this celebration points to the inequalities in the male-dominated industry. Read more »

Blindsight follows a group of mountain climbers, led by Erik Weihenmayer who was the first blind person to climb Mt. Everest, who lead a group of blind Tibetan children in an attempt to reach the peak of thhe 23,000 foot Lhakpa Ri. The children are all engaging and their back stories are far more interesting than the tale of the climb. Many of the group leaders seem more focused on having the children reach the peak than on doing what is best for the children which makes Blindsight rather aggravating to watch.

Oddly absent from Blindsight is footage of the children attempting difficult parts of the climb. Most of their footage is of them on what seems to be relatively level ground. The infighting among the group leaders supplies what little drama the film has to offer. This would have been a better film without the mountain climbing part. I was much more interested in the blind school established by Sabriye Tenberken and the stories of the children who attended it. I want to see that movie. Read more »