Events

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A Fantastic Evening! FilmAid's Annual Power of Film Benefit

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Guests from the film industry and humanitarian community gathered on November 20 to show support for FilmAid’s efforts to harness the power of film to provide critical information where it is needed and inspire hope where it is lacking. FilmAid's Annual Power of Film Benefit took place at Lexicon night club in New York City.

Sebastian Junger (The Perfect Storm, Restrepo) was honored with FilmAid’s Richard C. Holbrooke Memorial Award for Dedication to Humanitarian Service. He received the award for his career’s work, as an award-winning documentarian and best-selling author, recognizing the power of film as a cultural force and a window to new worlds and experiences. Said Junger, “FilmAid [puts] cameras into the hands of people who have grown up in very troubled countries, who are in some ways in the best position to document those troubles and inform the rest of the world about them. That is an unbelievably important task." 

The award was presented by author and human rights advocate Kati Marton, whose late husband Ambassador Richard C. Holbrooke was an early supporter of FilmAid and namesake of the annual award.

FilmAid Founder Caroline Baron presented the FilmAid Community Leadership Award to Eline Media Founder and CEO Michael Angst for his many years of service as FilmAid’s Board Chair. FilmAid’s Executive Director Simon Goff was joined on stage by Rodriguez Shamamba, FilmAid alumni from Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya who was recently resettled to Massachussetts. Griffin Dunne acted as Master of Ceremonies for the event, which included a Silent Auction.

FilmAid thanks its generous event sponsors including American Express, Robert and Tracy Baron, Condé Nast, The Culver Studios, Film Finances Inc., FilmNation Entertainment, HBO, The Hollywood Reporter, Nancy and Ron Proesel, Relativity Media, and Variety. 

See our complete photo album from the event on Facebook

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FilmAid to Honor Sebastian Junger at Annual Power of Film Benefit

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FilmAid’s Annual Power of Film Benefit will be held on November 20 in New York City. We are excited to announce that we will honor Sebastian Junger with the Richard C. Holbrooke Memorial Award for Dedication to Humanitarian Service.

Author of The Perfect Storm and WAR, Junger is one of America's most acclaimed writers. He is also a documentary filmmaker whose Restrepo, a feature-length documentary chronicling the deployment of a platoon of U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan's Korengal Valley, was nominated for an Oscar.

Sebastian’s latest film, a documentary from HBO Films titled Which Way Is the Front Line from Here?, chronicles the life and career of frequent collaborator and close friend Tim Hetherington, who passed away in the war zones of Libya.

As a contributing editor to Vanity Fair and as a contributor to ABC News, he has covered major international news stories around the world, and has been awarded the National Magazine Award and an SAIS Novartis Prize for Journalism. He has also written for such magazines as Harper's, The New York Times Magazine, National Geographic Adventure, Outside and Men's Journal.

Presenting to Sebastian will be author and human rights advocate Kati Marton, whose late husband Ambassador Richard C. Holbrooke was an early supporter of FilmAid and namesake of the annual award. Marton has been a great friend to FilmAid and we are delighted for her to join us.

Since 1980, Marton has published eight books. Her 2009 book, a Cold War memoir entitled Enemies of the People - My Family’s Journey to America, published by Simon & Schuster, was a National Book Critics Circle finalist and is soon to be the subject of a major motion picture. Her latest book, Paris – A Love Story, published in August 2012 by Simon & Schuster, is a memoir with Paris at its heart and like all stories of Paris, love as its theme.

Marton is on the board of directors of the Committee to Protect Journalists, the International Rescue Committee, the New America Foundation, and Central European University. She is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, P.E.N. International and the Author’s Guild. In 2011 she was awarded the Leo Nevas Human Rights Award from the United Nations Association.

We’d love to see you on November 20! For tickets and more information, visit www.filmaid.org/Nov20.

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Emmanuel Jal takes Peace Campaign to Kakuma

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Emmanuel Jal visited Kakuma Refugee Camp in partnership with FilmAid International on September 28, during his international We Want Peace Tour. Former Sudan war child and refugee, now hip-hop star and activist, Emmanuel’s visit held special resonance for the international star and his audience. In Kakuma, Jal recorded “Yei,” a song about overcoming struggles and getting through the difficult situations.  Created by Silverstone and Jal, the performance featured talented refugee music artists from Kakuma and will be launched internationally with FilmAid International in November. Jal also recorded a music video of one of his hit singles in the beautiful scenery of Kakuma with the help of FilmAid’s student filmmakers. “I am extremely amazed by the great talent in the camp ranging from filmmaking and singing to dancing, and I loved being able to collaborate with them and inspire them through my own experiences,” said Jal.

As part of his We Want Peace Tour, the soft-spoken peace ambassador had an opportunity to speak with the South Sudanese communities at the camp, promoting peace and the importance of entrepreneurism, which he feels is lacking among young people in the community. Jal also engaged the elders in a panel discussion on ways to finding lasting peace in Sudan and the possibility of repatriation for the Sudanese community in Kakuma. As an advocate of women’s rights, Jal pledged funds to the education of women and girls in the Sudan.

On Saturday September 28, Emmanuel Jal and traditional and contemporary dance groups and musical artists treated audiences of many different nationalities in Kakuma to electric performances. The crowds stood through the entire performance, enjoying hit after hit from Jal singing alongside his sister, Nyaruach and his other backup singer Nyamal. Nyaruach and Nyamal traveled from Dadaab refugee camp to be a part of the concert.

As a witness to the atrocities of Sudan’s second civil war and having been a child soldier himself, Emmanuel now uses music to tell his story and advocate for peace. The We Want Peace campaign aims to “raise awareness on the fundamental principles of justice, equality, unification and conflict prevention.” Following his time in Kakuma, Jal took the We Want Peace Tour to Johannesburg, where he performed and spoke at the One Young World Summit in alongside Kofi Annan, Richard Branson, Yunes Mohamed and Bob Geldof. Later this month he will travel to Zambia for a community and school tour in Lusaka.

At FilmAid we are often fortunate to meet individuals who have incredible and unbelievable stories. Occasionally we get to work with someone who has truly seen the darkest parts of humanity only to emerge empowered and motivated to advocate for social justice and human rights. These inspiring individuals are everywhere and all deserve to have their stories told and their voices heard. We are glad to support Emmanuel Jal’s We Want Peace Tour in Kenya.