Eminent American Film Maker Mr. Joe Fab Empowers Youth to Seek Change as Cultural Envoy to South India

Chennai, December 12: On the invitation of the U.S. Consulate General-Chennai, Emmy nominated director, producer and writer Mr. Joe Fab will visit India as a Cultural Envoy of the United States.  

PAPER CLIPS (84 minutes/color) a documentary film written, produced and co-directed by Mr. Fab will be screened at the IFFK on December 13, 2008 (3:45 p.m. at Dhanya Theatre, Thiruvananthapuram).  

“PAPER CLIPS” is a moving documentary film about how the young people in a largely white rural Tennessee town decide to commemorate the Holocaust by collecting a paper clip for every victim – 11 million paper clips in total.  This inspiring project changed the students, their teachers, their families and the entire town forever and eventually opened hearts and minds around the world.  The film’s message of tolerance and hope and the power in all of us – even school children -- to live this message and change our world for the better is the focus of Mr. Fab’s youth workshops.  

Based on PAPER CLIPS, the “POWER OF ONE” youth workshops will encourage children to focus on the world around them including the immediate surroundings of their family, friends or school or a bigger space (their city, State or country or the entire universe) and identify things that they would like to see changed for the better.  The “POWER OF ONE” is the power that is in each of us to change our own circumstances as well as the world around us.  “POWER OF ONE” workshops will be held on December 14 from 10:00-12:00 and 2:00-4:00 at Women’s Muslim Association, Syed Usman Memorial Building, Panavala Junction, Thycaud, Thiruvananthapuram  695 014.  Please contact Cultural Affairs Officer Ragini Gupta at guptar@state.gov or 94467-03790 for more details. 

Joe Fab is filming a follow-up to PAPER CLIPS documenting the action around the world inspired by PAPER CLIPS and is hoping to include material from his South India workshops. 

Mr. Joe Fab has nearly 35 years experience in film and video production, media and communications, event production and the live presentation of plays and music.  Recent honors include the prestigious Christopher Award, given for achievements in media that “affirm the highest values of the human spirit.” Also, in 2006, Billy Campbell, president of Discovery Networks U.S., presented him the Discovery and Imagination Award – an honor whose two previous recipients were Hollywood actor Christopher Reeve and Dr. Jane Goodall.