FEATURE
MEDIUM
MY CITY LISTENS
THE LOOK UP FILM CHALLENGE WINNER
by Ian Merker, AIA. Foreword by Peter Exley, FAIA. Sidebar Q & A with Robert Ivy, FAIA
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he quest to precipitate Monday morning water cooler conversations on the topic of architecture has long frustrated the architect. AIA’s recent launch of the #ilookup public awareness campaign begins to rectify that from within the profession as never before. An initial film capitalizing on our imaginative dexterity and capacity to look up was launched via social media, digital marketing, broadcast and print advertising in early 2015. The follow up, introduced at Convention in Atlanta, tells the story of architect Chris Downey, AIA, who lost his sight in 2008; Downey demonstrates his vision, and that of all architects, to engage, collaborate and make positive change in our communities. It’s a magnificent and uplifting narrative on the power and impact of architecture.
The subsequent Look Up Film Challenge, a contest open to all AIA members, invited architects to tell the stories of our projects and communities through our eyes. It’s a shrewd tactic leveraging our natural capacity to tell stories of building, place and the impact they have on the health and well-being of our communities. The Film Challenge firmly puts the opportunity to tell our tales in our hands - the AIA member. The winning film, My City Listens, by architect Soha Momeni, and filmmaker Andrew Jeric, is the poetic reflection of a young woman looking up to her city and the buildings that define it. Alongside thirty or so other entries (13 finalists available to view HERE), architects collectively demonstrate our passion, skills and storytelling abilities across a spectacular range of relevant and topical issues in the built environment. It makes for compelling and entertaining viewing. As architects, we are determined, ambitious and imaginative; we possess tools and skills that heighten our efficiency and proficiency to tell stories, and share them widely. The Film Challenge is a great provocation to get us to tell our stories and nudge the conversation of architecture into the popular lexicon, around the water cooler. - Peter Exley, FAIA
he Grand Prize winners of the Look Up Film Challenge, Soha Momeni and Andrew Jeric created an inspiring film with an unlikely group of friends.
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Think of Pixar films where they make lamps come to life with full personalities- Soha does the same thing with buildings. They really become friends and an emotional counterpart for her. After talking about it we said, well, that’s the story!
Soha graduated from the University of Southern California in 2014. She currently works with CO Architects in Los Angeles, the 2014 AIA California Council Firm of the Year, and is working on a medical school in Tucson.
IM: How do you express a friendship between a building and a person?
Andrew joined us from a passenger van heading to Silicon Valley for a film shoot. He recently completed a documentary, commercials for Sony, Crystal Cruises and SanDisk, is writing a feature film, and filming another feature in China. He also graduated from USC, in the school of Cinematic Arts. IM: How did you develop the idea for the film? SM: When we first came up with the idea to do the film, I didn’t come up with this particular story. To be honest, it was Andrew's background that helped us choose the right story. AJ: We ended up brainstorming some ideas. When it comes to architecture, it seemed very limiting as a form in terms of telling a story, but once you get beyond the surface it was easy to start throwing ideas out there. We brainstormed about famous L.A. landmarks and thought that wasn’t very stimulating. Then I asked Soha what was interesting to her and how she got into architecture. Her story was unique in that she finds personalities in inanimate objects.
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CONNECTION
THE ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN JOURNAL OF THE YOUNG ARCHITECTS FORUM
AJ: Her story is one of a foreigner coming to a foreign land, not knowing a lot of people, feeling isolated, and finding love, comfort and meaning in her surroundings. It’s about Soha, but also about what it’s like to be alone in a place, looking and finding meaning in the world around you.
What advice do you have for the architect, with no video experience, who wants to participate in the release of the second edition?
Partner with filmmakers that have a true appreciation for design, and throughout the filmmaking process: always be mindful of how to portray your work in terms of solving real-world problems. Consider how to tell the story through characters, whether they be people or your buildings.