The Summer CHA Programs in Filmmaking, Screenwriting, and Photography

Program Details

Since 2016, the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) has partnered with DePaul’s Jarvis College of Computing and Digital Media to offer youth in public housing valuable skills in filmmaking, screenwriting, photography, and game & graphic design. Through the six-week summer intensives, high school-aged students are trained by our award-winning faculty, mentored by our graduate students, visited by industry guest speakers, and taken on a number of experiential field trips to get inspired by our city’s rich arts culture. At the core, the programs are designed to provide new economic pathways for minority youth and to arm them with the tools to become effective visual storytellers. This year’s programs will be taught in-person on DePaul’s Loop Campus from June 27th through August 4th, 2022.

CDM is looking to hire several DePaul students to serve in various roles including a Graduate Assistant Program Administrator and Graduate Student Mentors with skills in one of the following areas: filmmaking, screenwriting, and photography. The pay is $16/hr.

Deadline to apply: Sunday, May 8th

Role of Student Mentors and Assistant Program Administrator

Each of the CHA youth tracks are designed to be a transformative experience for participants and DePaul student mentors. As a mentor, you’ll spend quality time with youth from across the city learning about their lived experiences while imparting knowledge you’ve acquired through DePaul classes and your own personal development.

The role of the student mentor includes: participating in youth orientation; attending training workshops; being present during all program hours (Mon-Thurs, 9:30 am - 3:30 pm); fostering leadership qualities through team-building and conflict resolution exercises; and building self-esteem and self-agency through the vehicle of socially conscious storytelling in a narrative film, screenwriting, or photography format.

The Student Assistant Program Administrator role will work closely with the program director in overseeing the success of all three programs. Overseeing planning and logistics, they will interact with youth from the three concentration areas and Chicago Housing Authority youth representatives. They’ll also be asked to attend some of their field trips and onsite production days.

Become a Filmmaker | Narrative Film Production

After six years of facilitating documentary intensives, we are shifting to a narrative film track this summer! We will produce a script written by 17-yr old Isis Gullette, a talented CHA youth who participated in our Movie & TV scripts program. Her short film, “I Am Not Your Token” centers on two black teen girls navigating their identity and friendship in the ruthless world of highschool labels. It will be a fully professional production directed by powerhouse writer, director, actor McKenzie Chinn.

Movie & TV Scripts | Screenwriting

The School of Cinematic Arts six-week screenwriting program provides CHA youth with the skills to write screenplays designed for television or digital streaming platforms. Through a series of lectures and discussions, participants are introduced to the formal art of screenwriting. The topics covered include screenplay format, visual writing style, scene craft, story structure, character development, and dialogue. Supported by accomplished filmmakers and graduate student mentors, CHA teens will each write an individual original short screenplay and then workshop a group screenplay written in teams of four or five. Throughout the program, participants will screen a variety of curated short films with social themes relevant to youth for story analysis and discussion.

Next Level Photography

Through two lenses—the lens of a camera and the lens of their life experiences—CHA participants gain technical photography skills and learn the power of their personal narratives. The program is designed to expose participants to photography as a career option in several genres including portraiture, commercial, fine art and journalism. This will include a variety of guest speakers and onsite photography workshops. Every assignment will utilize a new skill to develop cumulative knowledge of professional standards in imaging. Students will be challenged to think conceptually about their own visual development while acquiring technical skills. The program culminates with a final portfolio showcasing their artistry and original voice.

For additional questions email CHASummerProgram@depaul.edu

Faculty Bios

Michael X. Flores

Principle Investigator/Program Administrator

Michael worked as an assistant editor on Tamra Davis’s documentary Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Radiant Child (2010), which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival; on Lisa Leeman’s documentary One Lucky Elephant (2010), which premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival; and on Bess Kargman’s documentary First Position (2011), which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival. He then edited Nick Broomfield’s documentary Sarah Palin: You Betcha! (2011), which premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival; Terri Hanauer’s narrative feature Sweet Talk (2012); Lisa and Laura Wilson’s documentary Last Will. & Testament(2012), which was executive produced by Roland Emmerich; and Kimberly Bautista’s documentary Justice for My Sister (2012), which won Best Documentary at the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival. He also worked on Tommy O'Haver's music video for Matthew Dear; on Eddie Alcazar’s documentary Tapia (2013), which premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival; and on Neil Berkeley’s documentary Harmontown (2014), which premiered at South By Southwest.

Contact Michael

Liliane Calfee

Program Director

Founder of Soleil Media, Liliane Calfee has crafted storytelling campaigns via film and photography for over a decade. In 2015, she accepted a faculty position at DePaul. The CHA program in documentary filmmaking was designed based on her experience successfully employing digital media to raise awareness on important issues affecting underserved populations and her conviction that a gender approach to community development is essential to creating lasting change. This viewpoint was cultivated through years of working in regions as diverse as the immigrant rich projects of Paris, the crowded city of Dakar, Senegal, and small rural villages of Eastern Kenya.

Contact Liliane

James Choi

Filmmaking Program Faculty Mentor

James Choi is a prolific, award-winning filmmaker with over a decade of film industry experience in Los Angeles having worked in representation (Innovative Artists and The Firm), production (Sarkissian Productions, Rush Hour) and digital media (Ifilm.com/MTV Networks). As an independent producer, James has produced two feature films from first time directors that have premiered at South by Southwest. “Made in China” which won the Grand Jury Award for Best Film and distributed by IFC Films and “Saint Frances” which makes its world premiere at South by Southwest in 2019. James was selected as one of Newcity’s Film 50 – the leaders of Chicago’s film culture of 2018. Having been in the forefront of the micro independent film movement in the last decade, James has produced and directed numerous films that have screen widely all around the world, winning awards and receiving distribution. James has a deep passion for independent films and constantly working to break new ground in our digital age.

Contact James

Patrick Wimp

Screenwriting Program Faculty Mentor

Patrick has written and produced films, commercials, and TV series all over the world. He is a co-founder and owner of Digital Hydra, an Emmy award-winning production company that has crafted creative content for a variety of companies including Facebook, HBO, McDonald's, Nike, and Netflix. His work has screened at the Chicago International TV Festival, New York Television Festival, Cannes International Short Film Corner, and others. Pat was named Best Writer at SeriesFest Season 3 and Best of Fest at the 2017 International Television Festival as writer and co-creator of the indie TV series "Public Housing Unit." Pat's work focuses on creating emotionally impactful, commercially viable stories built around authentic and diverse characters.

Contact Patrick

CHA Summer Youth Program Graduate Student Mentor/Student Assistant Program Administrator Application

The Documentary, Screenwriting, and Photography Programs are six week intensives designed for Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) youth participating in One Summer Chicago jobs. This year’s intensive will be held in-person from June 27 to August 4, 2022.

CDM is looking to hire a graduate Student Assistant Program Administrator and several Graduate Student Mentors with skills in one of the following areas: filmmaking, screenwriting, and photography.

Priority will be given to students currently enrolled in one of the following graduate CDM programs: MFA or MS Film and Television, MFA Documentary, MFA Screenwriting, and MA Digital Communication and Media Arts. However, undergraduate students with great enthusiasm for the program and position are welcome to apply.

Specific skills required for each of the positions can be found below.

Applicants must be available for all days and times of the program schedule.

Program Schedule

Applicant Must Be Available for All Program Days
Program hours are 9:30 am to 3:30 pm.
For the narrative filmmaking track, hours will vary during production days.

• Week 1: Mon, June 27 through Thurs, June 30
• Week 2: Tues, July 5 through Thurs, July 7
• Week 3: Mon, July 11 through Thurs, July 14
• Week 4: Mon, July 18 through Thurs, July 21
• Week 5: Mon, July 25 through Thurs, July 28
• Week 6: Mon, Aug 1 through Thurs, Aug 4

Required Skills

Student Assistant Program Administrator

This position requires strong organizational skills and production knowledge. The student assistant program administrator will work directly with the program director to support the three CHA programs in a variety of logistical capacities including updating rosters, submitting payroll information, setting up potential field trips, processing expenses, and potentially coordinating graduation day activities.

Filmmaking Graduate Student Mentor

We are hiring six student positions to work across film departments (production, camera, editing, set design). Ideally, students will have competencies in all aspects of production: pre-production, production (camera, lights, sound), and post-production (editing software). Along with supporting key crew roles, mentors will lead workshops and training exercises for twelve Chicago-area, female-identifying youth participants.

Screenwriting Graduate Student Mentor

Student mentors should have a strong handle on the craft of screenwriting. They should be comfortable working within a group to provide guidance and ensure projects are completed on time.

Photography Mentors

Student mentors should have a strong command of DSLR cameras including how to manually control ISO, aperture, and shutter speed. They should also have working knowledge in Lightroom and/or Photoshop.

Compensation

Student mentors and assistants will be paid $16.00 per hour and must be available all dates/times of the program.

For additional questions email CHASummerProgram@depaul.edu.

Applications for Summer 2022 are due Sunday, May 8th, 2022.