MDIA and CIS celebrate partnership with first International Student Documentary Film Festival

As a part of Ohio University’s Center for International Studies (CIS) 60th Anniversary Celebration, the School of Media Arts and Studies (MDIA) and the Scripps College of Communication are hosting the first International Student Documentary Film Festival. The free, open to the public event will be held on Sunday, Nov. 17, from 7 to 9 p.m. in Schoonover Center 145.  Doors open at 6:30 p.m. 

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The festival will showcase short documentary films made by Ohio University international students that focus on the international student experience over the last decade. Several filmmakers will be in attendance and honored at the end of the screening. 

“I have been teaching MDIA 6100, Intro to Audio and Video, for the CIS for 10 years,” said MDIA Associate Professor Brian Plow. “I teach international students to make short documentaries for the first time. About 180 international students have taken the course. For the 60th anniversary of CIS, I thought it would be great to curate a show of all the best short documentaries that international students have made that highlight the enriching international spirit of Ohio University. We have films ranging back to 2017 and up to the present moment. Through this evening of films, we are representing 19 countries on five continents.”

Plow was recently recognized for his work with a 2023-24 CIS Excellence in Teaching award. 

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“Brian has done incredible work with the Center for International Studies in his course teaching international students how to create compelling documentaries,” said Scripps College Dean Scott Titsworth. “This opportunity to highlight the work of students is a visible representation of the richness brought to Ohio University through our international student colleagues. Brian’s commitment to supporting international students through his courses is distinctive, and we in Scripps and CIS are proud that he was recognized by CIS for excellence in teaching last year.”

Two special screenings will be featured during the event: “Aftershock of a Trauma” is an award-winning film, directed by OHIO's own Zohal Nasrat, and features her experience watching her home country of Afghanistan fall to the Taliban just weeks after arriving at Ohio University as a Fulbright student. The film recently won Best Short Documentary at the DC South Asian Film Festival and was featured by the New Jersey Documentary Film Festival, the International Social Change Film Festival and the Lane Doc Fest in 2024.  

“Finding Freire” is the story of CIS faculty member, Dr. Saumya Pant, and eight graduate students from all over the world, who make the pilgrimage to Brazil to connect with the legacy of legendary social change philosopher, Paolo Freire. They meet and learn from Freire’s 90-year-old widow and internationally recognized scholar, Nita Freire, and travel across Brazil to see Paolo Freire’s ideas take shape in contemporary social change.

“The relationship between Scripps College, CIS and Ohio University’s vibrant international student community is evidenced in research, creative projects and initiatives all over campus and all over the world,” said Plow. “This is just one event that highlights that relationship and shows how special this student community is to us.”