Shane Stricker Proposal Assignment Wisconsin’s Natural Resources Project
Objective and Purpose The objective of this project is to create a video explaining why Wisconsin’s natural resources are so important and why they should be protected. Through general distribution on television and online, Shane Stricker Films hopes to raise awareness of these issues in Wisconsin. Time is of the essence. In the past, Wisconsin has led the country in environmental initiatives including the formation of Earth Day, and the founding of the Sierra Club and the Wilderness Society. In the current political environment, with issues like jobs and healthcare taking the forefront, it’s easy for the public forget why natural resources are so important to hold on to. Under the current Governor, Scott Walker, many environmental regulations have been rolled back or removed. Walker’s administration has made changes such as increasing the amount of phosphorus which can be dumped by a corporation into waterways and withdrawing a number of green energy projects in favor of environmentally damaging energy like coal and natural gas. Using the funds from the Non-Profit Organization Member Grant, we could produce a persuasive documentary-style video which could swing potential voters toward a more environmentally friendly candidate and could convince many Wisconsinites to take action against the damage that’s being done to our beautiful state. Our video will avoid taking a stark political stance. Remaining neutral will allow us to drum up support on both sides of the political line. The issue of natural resources is one that could unite the people of Wisconsin.
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The Video: Wisconsin’s Natural Resources This video will be made for the people of Wisconsin about the people of Wisconsin. Most of the video will be documentary style, following the stories of families living all across Wisconsin and their respective connection to the local natural resources. We could spend a portion of the video, for instance, with a grandfather in a Milwaukee suburb watching his kid playing in the small back yard. The grandfather could be telling a story of his own childhood, painting a picture of wide-open fields and nature everywhere. This is just an example, but we hope through interviews to find many subjects who could help us represent the whole gamut of reasons why Wisconsin’s natural resources are so special and personally important. The video won’t all be nostalgia. We will use the interviews as a springboard for talking about current issues surrounding natural resources in Wisconsin. Once the audience understands the immense value of these resources, we want to strongly suggest that these resources are worth defending. Using statistics and voice-over along with interviews with experts, we will compare the meager short-term gain of exploiting these resources through mining and other similar operations against the long-term value of protecting and maintaining the resources. Through personal stories, we will introduce the threat to our environment as the corporations who are directly polluting and the political loopholes and laws that allow this. The focus will be on specific instances of corporate pollution in Wisconsin and how the public can get involved in fighting against the polluters and resource-exploiting lawmakers.
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Expected Outcome With this video, we hope to accomplish the following goals: 1. Make clear how valuable Wisconsin’s resources are. 2. Compare the short term and long term values of the resources. 3. Convince the audience to act against corporations by contacting their public officials or joining an environmental movement.
Audience Analysis Although our video project will be careful not to alienate anyone, our target group will be people who are politically moderate to left-wing, over the age of 30 (due to the themes of nostalgia), who range from moderate to no previous knowledge about the issue. The greatest reaction is expected from older folks who have noticed environmental changes in their lifetime and will be upset and motivated to act when they realize how deep the damage goes. The second group of people who may show results are the young, educated people. Although the video’s style won’t be fast and flashy, enough young people, especially those of college age, will be interested enough in the issue to watch and donate their energies to helping solve the problems.
Utilization Strategies The longevity of this video will be outstanding. Most of the interviews and, in fact, most of the video could be used for years to come. The latter third of the video, which focuses on current events could easily be updated and remixed for release in the future if the material becomes dated. Along with airing on cable and online, this video could be used in classrooms as a teaching tool. Any class which touches on environmental impact would easily benefit from the video.
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Benefits Along with raising awareness for environmental issues, educating our youth, and convincing the public to take action, the Wisconsin’s Natural Resources Project will benefit the Open Media Foundation by including the Open Media Foundation’s logo and name in the video and giving your Foundation full rights to use the video any way you’d like.
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