Getting to Know our Newest Team Member & Youth Media Instructor

Meet Carla! Carla joins BAYCAT as a Media Producer and Mentor, working with the youth and young adults teaching filmmaking skills. A documentary filmmaker, artist and educator, Carla has taught filmmaking classes with hundreds of young people in collaboration with organizations throughout Los Angeles and the Bay Area, and is excited to use her skills to inspire a new group of students.

Where are you from? 

I was born in Hollywood and raised in Los Angeles. I mostly grew up in Reseda- which is in the San Fernando Valley, 30 miles northwest of LA. The Valley is where the term “Valley Girl” comes from, so I guess that makes me one! The neighborhood I grew up in is a diverse, working-class Latino, Asian, and Eastern European immigrant community with lots of families and many languages spoken. The landscape consists of auto body shops and horse stalls and the subject of the Tom Petty song, “Free Fallin.”  Reseda is also where the movie Karate Kid takes place.

Why the Bay Area? 

The Bay Area has always been this place of possibility- there is a spirit of challenging the status quo through art and politics that is very inspiring to me. I have always been drawn to the legacies of radical activism here in the Bay Area- from the Black Panthers, to the student activism for Ethnic Studies at SF State, to queer activism of ACT UP during the AIDS crisis. What I love most are the people here- the many faces that I see become familiar in a city full of neighborhoods, each with their own histories.
The reality of living in the Bay Area, specifically in San Francisco, has been harsh. The cost of living, the struggle for housing, and the fight to remain in the city affects all of us- whether you are a teacher, a businessman, a mother, a city worker, or a young person just trying to get by. We are all connected and have a real impact on each others’ lives, and we need to make it right for all the families, the elders, and young people who call San Francisco their home.

What made you want to work with youth?

Growing up as a queer mixed-race girl, I didn’t see myself in the movies or TV shows I watched, or the books I read. Thankfully, I had some amazing teachers in high school who encouraged me to develop my own perspective as an artist and an activist- it was the first time I began to take my own ideas seriously. My hope, as an educator, is to challenge this dominant culture of profit and level the playing field where young people recognize their power as creators, decision makers, and full and complete human beings with something important and valuable to share with the world.

What is your favorite part of working with youth?

I love the way young people breathe life into a room, into your lesson plans, take the theme and the concepts we’re working with and make it their own. Young people will always surprise you. They keep it real too. I’m grateful to always be learning from the experiences of young people. Oh! They also make me laugh and tend to find the humor in all things.

Have you had and fun or memorable experiences with youth in your career so far?

So many! I will never forget shutting down the 2nd Street tunnel in Los Angeles with 40 young people to film an opening scene on Halloween a few years back. Working on the set of a Margaret Cho music video with a team of teen girls was amazing. Seeing young people off to college or writing recommendations for jobs in their dream field has been extremely rewarding as well.

What has working with young people taught you?

Working with youth has reminded me to never give up on the 15 year-old girl that resides in me and to tell her to never give up on her dreams.

Why is youth media important?

Seeing the world through the eyes of young people will change the way you look at the world. Young people hold vision and they have really solid ideas about how to make the world a better and more inclusive place for all people. I have seen youth media inform curriculum, affect policy, and remind us of what it means to bring out our best for our communities and ourselves.

What do you do when you’re not at BAYCAT?

You can find me swimming, climbing trees, reading books, watching movies in old theaters, going for long walks through the city, and working on my own documentary projects.

Quickies:

Last book read? Spitboy Rule: Tales of a Xicana in a Female Punk Band by Michelle Cruz Gonzales

On Your iPod? Kendrick Lamar’s good kid m.A.A.D city forever, on repeat.

Favorite movie: Shadows by John Cassavetes

Favorite restaurant: The Old Clam House in Bayview

Favorite meal of all time: Sopa de Mani is a potato and peanut based stew from Bolivia, where my mom is from. It’s cooked slowly over hours with beef ribs and garnished with parsley fries on top- so delicious!

The post Inside BAYCAT: Carla Orendorff, BAYCAT Media Producer & Mentor appeared first on BAYCAT.

We got a chance to sit down last week with D’Arion and talk about how BAYCAT is shaping his career and influencing his life. We are so fortunate to have young people like him in our program and in the world. Get to know D’Arion and see BAYCAT’s programming in action!

Q: Tell me about school. Do you enjoy it? What parts do you like the most?

A: I’m in high school right now and a lot of times I hear kids say, “I’m not going to use this in life, so what’s the point?” But I don’t think so. I love learning. English is a big part of what we do in film production. We have to write scripts. We have to critically think. That leads to science and exploring and testing. Which leads to math where you have to problem solve. All of these skills can be related to different topics in your life and used. I love school.

D’Arion (left) in action.

Q: What brought you to BAYCAT?

A: I’ve been here for about three years. I always wanted to go to summer camp but we could never afford it. For just a week it was $2,000! I was at a summer camp fair with my Mom and saw a sign that said, “Free” at the BAYCAT booth. When I talked to the lady there I could tell she liked me and wanted me to be at BAYCAT. Then I met Zara, my BAYCAT teacher. She showed me what Villy and everyone else here believes, that through film you can express yourself because personal stories matter. I got put in documentary class and I really didn’t want to do it. I thought it would be boring. Just some guy who keeps talking. The main question people have asked me since I was 12 is what do you want to be? I want to do something I love and get paid for it. That’s why I got more into documentary making. That’s when I got to use my skills in English. Because you had to critically think on what the topic should be for Zoom In. You had to thoughtfully write out questions to get to the main point. You had to have group discussions and use conversational skills and critical thinking skills. I use those skills every single day. Zara showed me how to be realistic in what I was thinking. If my big picture goal is to interview President Obama, how would I do that? I learned business skills and planning. Each semester that class would bring me back again and again.

Q: What’s it like to be working in a real studio?

A: Initially, I thought it would be very school oriented. Write this down. Listen to this. Lessons upon lessons. Then Zara explained the program to us and showed us that it was our space. That we were limitless in what we could learn and it was all up to us.

Q: What did you think about all of the tools/hardware/software?

A: The first time I was really intimidated by all of the mechanicals. I had never worked on a Mac before. I’ve always been a PC person. Learning really basic skills was so helpful. I feel like I’m on the same level as anyone else coming out of a great high school because of the technology and tools that we have at BAYCAT. Because of that, I know technical language. When I was at the Arts Academy they asked what kind of equipment we used. The teacher was shocked to know what I’ve used. I know how to use Illustrator, and Photoshop and that gave me the advantage over people. I’ve been learning these skills at BAYCAT since I was 14.

This space makes me feel like I’m in a professional production studio. You see people making business calls. You see them editing and working on projects. I feel like I’ve already made it. I feel like I’m living my dream. But, I know I have more work to do though and that’s what keeps me coming back to BAYCAT.

I recommend this program every single day. I got one of my friends to sign up. He couldn’t come back this semester because he had to get a job. I think if he could be paid here he would have come back. My teachers are very supportive of my work at BAYCAT. I brought every teacher from my school here for Zoom in. My Biology teacher at school got me all the interviews with John Hafernik who is the scientist featured in Zoom in 34, “ZomBees” which won 3rd prize at San Francisco Green Film Festival.

Q: Once you leave BAYCAT, can you paint me the picture of your dream career?

A: I don’t think I’ll stop coming until my age is over the limit and they won’t let me come back. Until they get sick of me, I’m going to keep coming back! I’ve made so many connections with other students connected to this industry. We talk all the time about things that we could produce together: Phil, Ginger, Stella, Hugo and many others who are passionate about being in this industry and are doing things they love and giving back to the world. I love to be around positive people. I like to surround myself with people who are good.

I’m already planning to go to college for film production. I am trying to plan how to make that happen. I want the hands on experience of learning and doing during the same time that I am in school. I took a class at the Academy of San Francisco in TV and movie production. The teacher said having a degree is good and will get you recognition, but, the main thing that will get you hired is having the skills. Most students know things in theory, but they don’t have the skills for practical application. I’ve learned all those skills at BAYCAT.

Q: What’s your favorite piece you did at BAYCAT?  

A: I would say, that’s like asking a parent to pick their favorite child! You can’t ask that! But, probably, “Why Ask Me?” I came up with the concept. It was the closest to my heart because it dealt with all the big issues that I care about, like education. Taking the time out to ask a person what do you want out of life? It benefits you as much as them because you end up on the same page.

Q: If a stranger read this–what would you want his/her takeaway thought of you to be?  

A: That I love to learn. I’m a young man trying to find his way through life and spread peace, love and positivity through film and other mediums. Because for me, that is what I get out of other artists.

A lot of other African American kids feel like they have two options: Do good and learn, or have friends and be “true” to your race. I want those options to change. Have your friends, and have an education and have a career, own a home and support your family. For me, having options–I really dedicate that to my mother because she is very supportive of me and what I want to do with my life. Because of BAYCAT, I’m involved with other activities that she supports too. I was part of Vote16 which tried to let 16 and 17 year olds vote in local elections here. And, I’m a part of the SF Public Library’s Youth Advisory Program. I teach others how to use Adobe Premier and do film production. It’s at The Mix in the new Teen Center. They have everything BAYCAT has in the library. Because I learned it at BAYCAT, I get to teach it to other kids who don’t go there. If no one taught me or gave me the chance I would never have known this is what I wanted to do in life. I would just have a regular 9-5 job. Passing stuff on is important to me. If everyone did that the world would be a better place.

The post Q&A with BAYCAT Academy Film Student D’Arion, 17 appeared first on BAYCAT.

Because our educational and training programs bring diverse talent to the tech, media and creative industries.

Make their dream jobs come true. Help us reach our $85,000 goal today.

In light of all that has occurred in the past months and especially in this past week, BAYCAT stands strong and committed to equality, social justice and opportunities for all. For the last 12 years, we have served those most misrepresented in our country: 100% low-income youth, youth of color, young women and unemployed young adults. Last year, 300 applicants applied for our 100 positions. It is a myth that there aren’t enough diverse, talented and qualified candidates who are female or of color, and passionate about working in the creative industry.

We’re here to tell the real story and their stories. The pipeline of qualified young people is here in San Francisco and the Bay Area, and that is why we want to solidify the path between education and employment for more qualified youth-in-need.

BAYCAT gets real and sustainable results. 80% of BAYCAT Studio interns get hired after graduating from BAYCAT at companies like Autodesk, Lucasfilm, HBO, Hulu, Netflix, Pixar, Sephora and WIRED. Our transitional-age young adult graduates are on the path to careers with livable wage salaries that will keep these talented digital media creatives in the Bay Area. These 18-24 year olds are 100% low-income, unemployed or underemployed and predominately of color and female. They are the solution to keeping San Francisco diverse, inclusive, and vibrant.

BAYCAT Studio is an important part of our unique hybrid business model. Working with nationally-recognized and socially responsible clients like The Golden State Warriors and National Parks Service makes the internship and on-the-job experience for our students real and relevant, while building their resumes for success. Although in this last year, our Studio helped to bring in 40% of our annual income, the revenue from our Studio alone does NOT pay for all the educational and on-the-job training costs. Every dollar earned supports our ability to keep our Academy and internship pipeline going, but we also need your donations to keep our youth classes free, and to allow us to pay and train our interns on-the-job.

Many of our Academy students grow with us through the years and become graduates of our Studio Internship Program because the mentoring they receive keeps them focused and on-track. 100% of our youth of color who have taken more than two BAYCAT Academy classes continue their education in school. For many BAYCAT students, our facility is the only place they have to access industry-grade equipment to teach them professional tech and storytelling skills in conjunction with a safe and nurturing environment that teaches them skills every employer is looking for: the ability to problem solve, to collaborate, critically think, communicate and actively listen and learn.

Turning 200 students away last year was extremely difficult. With growing demand from our youth and from the tech, media and creative industries for increased diversity, now is the time to build our reserves so that we can strategically plan to scale what we do best to bring more diverse youth into the education to employment pipeline.

BAYCAT students are diverse. Help us change the face(s) of the tech, media and creative industries, literally.

Want to meet some of our graduates in person? Join us and our youth on December 8th from 6pm-8pm, for the World Premiere of Zoom In: Episode 36 – The Media Effect at the recently renovated, historic Bayview Opera House. Witness and listen to our students’ stories as they address the role of race, gender and new technologies in the media.

More than 3,500 BAYCAT low-income students and interns found success with our model. You can be a part of the solution that our region, and this country, needs to see and hear. You can give them the support and tools they need to become skilled, qualified, educated, digital media artists.

You can help them find their dream jobs and not just survive, but thrive. Please donate today.

Interested in going the extra mile and doing more this year? Set up your own fundraising page and goal. Go to our donate page, and click Become a Supporter. Start Your Own Campaign Page.

Let’s get students to dream big, get hired and repeat!

The post Why Donate to BAYCAT Today? appeared first on BAYCAT.

Four days before the fatal deaths and tragedy in Charlottesville, Virginia, 24 of BAYCAT’s young filmmakers, ages 11-16, put themselves on the line in a nonviolent and expressive way on the stage of the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema here in San Francisco. Building together a series of short films and animations on the theme of innovation, they premiered to the world, their stories and inventions to inspire us to rethink the social issues that they grow up with every single day: gun violence, racism, gender inequality, gentrification, immigration, incarceration, and the need for safe spaces– while sprinkling the show with their sense of humor with things like an indestructible juice box.

Then Heather Heyer made the news, along with others who lost their lives or were injured by putting themselves on the line. Even more disheartening to witness throughout this week of tweets and headlines is the growing hate, fear and anxiety, and for me personally, the lack of moral leadership from the President.

“I want you, the audience, to reflect on how you can make a change to help social injustices through innovation. I believe you out there can be part of the social innovation that is now occurring, and that you can be the change you want to see.” – Jamahl Edwards, 14, Award-Winning Youth Media Producer

Rather than dividing our communities, our government and business leaders, it is the wisdom of BAYCAT’s teenagers I would rather follow. Working with our youth every day and watching these films reminds me that “out of the mouths of babes,” these youth, our own kids are urging us to INNOVATE. We need a new way to talk to each other. To work with each other. To be with each other. To share who we are, what we value, what we are afraid of, and what our dreams are. Safely.

Jamahl also said to the live audience during the premiere, “I don’t want to be a statistic.” We don’t want you to be either.  Not one of those stereotypical ones, where young African-American teenagers are destined for jail or the streets.

Last year in my TED Talk, I confronted one of my deepest fears, my own racism. Part of my healing journey was to start a business to end racism and social inequality, one untold story at a time.

If you are like us, and want to rewrite America’s narrative, or help us to build our safe space that allows  young people to fully express themselves and to innovate new ways we can work together, then join our community. Join the conversation. Watch their work below. Comment. Tell them you believe in them. Share. Invest.

Love,

Villy

The post Harness Hope Not Hate: BAYCAT’s Response appeared first on BAYCAT.

I don’t know about you, but I was an awkward 13-year old. Like many young teenagers, I was dealing with a changing body, growing out my bangs, trying to fit into a new high school and finding my unique place in the world. Mom made enough money to move us from the housing projects on the Lower East Side to a house in Queens. That opened up a world of possibilities  for my future, but I was the shy and quiet kid, afraid that I was too stupid, naive, or too Chinese to ever make it.  I didn’t feel like I belonged. My appearance, hand-made clothes and demeanor clearly showed that I wasn’t one of the “cool” kids. I always thought that these floundering experiences would help me be a better Mom some day when I raise my own kids.

Here I am now, watching BAYCAT turn 13-years old.

Is BAYCAT the child I never had?

a shy, young Villy

As the Founder, and with my innate instinct to nurture, it certainly feels like it. I’ve watched BAYCAT stumble and flourish from a mere crazy idea in my head, to crawling through multiple start up phases, to becoming a full-fledged organization making an undeniable impact on the world. I’ve witnessed BAYCAT emerge from a confusing but curious childhood, to a brave adolescence, ready to face the troubles of the world.

Sometimes it’s been two steps forward and one step back, sometimes it’s given me gray hairs, but BAYCAT has weathered the storms.

I’m proud of what BAYCAT has become, that it still exists, and for everything it has accomplished as a teenager:

educating 4000+ young people

employing 200+ diverse creatives

creating 1000’s of stories

building capacity for 150+ nonprofits.

Not bad for a 13-year, huh?

As with every Mom, I worry daily about the long-term viability of my child in an often precarious world. Natural disasters, a divisive political climate, and daily news that centers around the very real racial and economic pain of our society makes me wonder what can I do to protect and prepare BAYCAT, to not just survive but thrive. Parents worry ourselves silly over things that are out of our control, but in the end all we can do is our best to provide enough nutrients and resources to have faith that our kids will be ok. No, better than just ok.

My expectations, like most parents, are high and may even seem lofty. I expect BAYCAT to keep growing, to build a strong corpus and to fulfill its purpose to make the world an even better place. A safer place, a more inclusive place, a more diverse, creative, loving and joyful place. To help quiet these negative fearful feelings for those who don’t feel they belong, and to pave pathways to success. To end racism, person by person, story by story. I struggle to make sure that there is enough sustenance, treasure and talent to help BAYCAT reach its full potential. I will continue to be there for BAYCAT, to have faith and to swallow my own fears of whether BAYCAT belongs.

Because we do, we all do.

And most of all, I’m grateful for the village of people who have adopted, co-parented, fed, provided for and helped to raise BAYCAT together with me. Thank YOU! I share this birthday with you and I look forward to continuing this adventure together into BAYCAT’s adulthood!

Happy 13th Birthday, BAYCAT!

Ribbon-cutting ceremony at BAYCAT, 13 years ago

May you continue to enlarge your family, develop more jobs for diverse creative talent, create more stories about critical social justice issues, and change the 21st century workforce to bring greater racial and social equity to our society!

Love,

Villy

The post The Child I Never Had appeared first on BAYCAT.

Social media and digital technology have accelerated the speed in which we receive news, good and bad. My mornings often start with a jolt of anxiety as I watch the headlines roll across my phone screen. The barrage of recent bad news – natural disasters, violent tragedies and violations of human rights, makes me grieve for human suffering and lives lost. I fear, “what’s next?”

But instead of scrolling through the bad news, I can also scroll through my photo album of selfies. If you’ve been to BAYCAT, you know that nobody walks out our doors without a Villy selfie. Honestly, it’s not about vanity, it’s about collecting memories. My Dad had severe dementia and Alzheimer’s, and I witnessed the pain of his fading memories. I don’t ever want to forget this feeling of gratitude that I carry not just on Thanksgiving, but every day at BAYCAT.

Here are some of my favorite moments of 2017 captured in selfies:

Our new storytellers give me hope!

Jamahl, age 15 says, “I do this because I know my voice matters.” He blew my mind when he told me that innovation wasn’t just about technology, it was about finding new ways of being together and forming community. His film, Safe Spaces, along with Jovani’s film on Prison Labor were selected for the 2017 RYSE Film Festival Truth Be Told: Justice Through My Eyes.

Besides being a fellow Snoopy fan, 12 year old Kaliyah couldn’t believe that she and Chevy won 1st Prize at the same festival with their first animation ever that tackles the issue of gun violence, “The Decision!”

Our youth also keep me young and teach me how to take time to play as we did this Summer at our annual Fun in the Sun day! We had a scavenger hunt, water balloon toss, face paint, color dust and more. I’m grateful 17 year old filmmaker Terrence FINALLY (and begrudgingly) let me take a selfie with him.

We are changing the face(s) of the creative industry. Literally!

It’s always exhilarating when we receive news of our BAYCAT intern graduates getting their dream jobs! From Aisha Davis, a Reporter at Fusion Media Group to Brasilia Morales a Production Assistant at The Relish, it gives me a sense of hope to know these talented young women of color are not only growing in creative careers, but also acting as role models for our youth. 

It was an extra special surprise when I saw them working on the other side of the camera to film us! Here’s Latajh Weaver and Melissa Perez filming the BAYCAT story for the SF Foundation’s Community Leadership Award in Innovation! Small world joys!

Our young people inspire me every single day. It’s taken a village of supporters to create daily doses of hopeful news here at BAYCAT. Stay tuned for Part 2 to see all the faces who make BAYCAT possible.

We couldn’t do this without you.

Love,

Villy

PS. Here’s Part 2!

The post Gratitude Through BAYCAT Selfies Part 1 appeared first on BAYCAT.

Did Part 1 of our BAYCAT selfies bring gratitude, peace and joy to your heart? We hope so. It’s taken a village of supporters to create daily doses of hopeful news here at BAYCAT, and here are just a few more of the many faces who inspired gratitude with us this year:

A Village of Volunteers

I’m grateful for our village, and how it grows from one BAYCAT family member to the next. Take TED Speaker and opportunity maker, Kare Anderson, whom I met at TED@IBM. She introduced me to Sandra Zoratti who invited BAYCAT to present at the CMO Club. That’s where I met Richard Kylberg, CMO for Arrow Electronics who brought Hugo Meyer, Global Brand Management Director to BAYCAT to visit earlier this year. Inspired by Arrow’s innovation with FiveYearsOut, BAYCAT youth created their own award-winning short animations and films on what innovation means to them.

Selfies Here: Kare Anderson (top left), Sandra Zoratti (lower right), Richard Kylberg & Hugo Meyer with Senait Hailemariam at BAYCAT (lower left)

This year we added Pixar, AirBnB, Yelp, Microsoft, Fusion, The Relish, ad agency Eleven, to our employer list. Former BAYCAT graduates are working at SF Giants Production, Lucasfilm, Wired Magazine, the Golden State Warriors, HBO, Netflix, and others. We deeply appreciate our village of volunteers and champions who are dedicated to giving back and bringing diversity and inclusion to the creative industries.

Volunteers, Mentors & Supporters Selfies Here: MKTG (top left), Weber Shandwick (top middle), PIXAR animator, Becki Tower w/ Board Chair, Eric Pearson (top right), Portal A (center left), Bay Area Artists for Group Chat at BAYCAT (center), PIXAR senior scientist, Dominic Glynn w/ BAYCAT animators (center right), LEND UP (lower left), Conscious Capitalism Forum at Exygy w/ Carolyn Tate, Mylea Charvat, Zach Berke, Vince Siciliano & Steve Havill (bottom middle), GitHub Fundraiser for BAYCAT w/ Marc Lohoury & BAYCAT Board members, Oliver de Albuquerque & Craig Peters (bottom right).

(S)Heroes – Living Legends and Top Business Women

From meeting one of the Most Influential People in the World like Valerie Jarrett to being named by the SF Business Times as one of 129  Most Influential Women in Business  alongside former BAYCAT Board Member, Melissa Tidwell, I’m honored and grateful to have inspiring Sheroes as part of BAYCAT’s village of supporters. Thanks to long-time advisor of BAYCAT, Peter Bratt we got to meet Dolores Huerta and watch the premiere of Dolores The Movie. Another highlight was watching Sally Osaki interviewed by an all-women BAYCAT youth crew for their film, Witness: Immigration Now and Then. These women have changed history by sharing their stories.

Selfies Here: Valerie Jarrett w/ BAYCAT Board Member, Marianne Wilman at BAWS (top left), Sally Osaki with her son, Jon Osaki and BAYCAT Crew (top right), Dolores Huerta w/ BAYCAT Senior Producer, Jose Alfaro (lower left), Melissa Tidwell (lower right)

Inspiring BAYCAT Board and Team – The BEST Behind The Scenes

When I started BAYCAT, I wanted to wake up every day and LOVE the creative and dedicated people I work with. Today, that’s a dream come true for me. I’m grateful for our Board and team members who give 1,000% to build BAYCAT from the inside out to further our mission to bring racial and gender equity and social justice. One story at a time.

Selfies Here: BAYCAT Board, Shana Stanton, Oliver de Albuquerque, Eric Pearson, Craig Peters, Marianne Wilman w/ Advisor Brett Egan & BAYCAT’s Katie Cruz (top left), Jason Robinson, BAYCAT’s newest Board Member (top right), BAYCAT Studio crew with our new Development Director, Jessica Pullano and Marge & Kate Hamilton, from DRA, our new client (middle left), BAYCAT team is 80% women-led team (lower left), BAYCAT team for Halloween w/ our new Grants and Development Coordinator, Nicole Bellott, and new mentors/producers, Nina Reyes Rosenberg and Tomás Reyes (lower right)

Happy Thanksgiving from the BAYCAT family!

Love,

Villy

PS. As you take your Thanksgiving selfies, don’t forget us: donate.baycat.org

The post Gratitude Through BAYCAT Selfies Part 2 appeared first on BAYCAT.

Alex Sorto immigrated from Honduras when he was 16 years old and is now a dynamic entrepreneur, an incredible filmmaker, rapper, graphic artist, and his signature on his email says, “Future CEO.” With English as his second language, he found his way to BAYCAT through one of our programs at San Francisco International High School and has since inspired our own CEO Villy Wang to do a TED Talk. After directing award-winning music video ‘Hard Times,’ Alex began college at California State University, East Bay where he’s studying Multimedia, Marketing and Advertising full time. Yet despite his success, Alex says that when other people look at him, they won’t necessarily see him as a filmmaker or a music maker.

“We’re always portrayed as the gang members, the drug dealers, the maids, the Spanish speakers who don’t know English,” says Alex. “On TV, we’re never the main actors. We aren’t portrayed as being successful.” So in the eyes of other people, Alex doesn’t feel seen for who he truly is or, the values he represents or the future he imagines for himself. “They never show a Latino who is a CEO, never.” Instead Alex sees the media industry profiting by villianizing his culture.

Like Angela, Alex carries the burden of misrepresentation by the media every day. He recalls how he went to a job interview and the first thing they asked was, “How good is your English?” Though he is bilingual, Alex wants the world to know that not all Latinos only speak Spanish.

Before BAYCAT, Alex wanted to be a musician. He remembers thinking, “it doesn’t matter what I’ve been through, nobody cares about Alex. But then I came to BAYCAT and they said, it does matter, and people need to hear it, people need to know who you are. Without BAYCAT I wouldn’t be who I am today.” At BAYCAT he learned English, filmmaking, music production and most of all, that his own story matters.

“The media always make us feel like we aren’t worth being represented in a positive way. It’s sad, that we are always seen as the bad guys.”

Alex might attribute his success as a creative to BAYCAT, but BAYCAT owes our success just as much to young people like Alex. CEO Villy remembers, “We were talking and dreaming about doing a TED Talk, and he showed me his draft of what his would look like. Seeing his fearlessness to tell his story, he inspired me to pitch his story and then mine. I wouldn’t have been invited to do a TED Talk if it wasn’t for Alex.”

Alex makes media to change the way people think. He is sick of the lack of diversity in media creation. He imagines a world where communities represent themselves in media. Only then, he says, will people see the reality of diverse communities from their own point of view, without stereotypes or bias. Alex’s simple solution: 1. Be the change you wish to see AND 2. Donate to BAYCAT

Sick of the Same Stories?

Your New Storytellers Are Here. Join Us!

Donate to support creative powerhouses and future CEOs like Alex Sorto!

The post “I Only See the Typical Stereotypes,” Meet Alex Sorto appeared first on BAYCAT.

As a Chinese-American teenage girl, Saleen Lee describes how being misrepresented and underrepresented in media is an isolating experience. When she walks down the street or watches TV and sees people in ads and popular televisions shows, she doesn’t see someone who looks like her. “I feel like I’m always left out. I am always looking for someone who looks like me in all the media I see. I’m always yearning for that person I can relate to.”

When Saleen was a kid, her mom watched Charlie’s Angels. Saleen felt like really empowered, seeing Lucy Lui, a powerful woman, fighting villains and defying stereotypes set for Asian American women. This positive role model made a huge impact on Saleen, who notes that Asian women are often left in the shadows.“People who look like me are often background characters, secondary characters, or have non-speaking roles. Asian women are portrayed as two dimensional characters that aren’t relatable or likable.” As a result of discouraging media representation, Saleen feels she is seen through this lens by the world.

“Media stereotypes tell me that I am supposed to be quiet and submissive. I am supposed to be a secondary character in someone else’s life. I am not supposed to have my own troubles or feelings. It puts me in a place where I feel like I am a background character in my own life. I feel invisible because I have no one to relate to. It makes me feel like because my story isn’t told, it isn’t valid.”

Saleen believes that the sharing of diverse stories is the vehicle to validate people’s unique and authentic experiences in the world. Far too often, the storytellers come from outside of the community they tell stories about. Saleen thinks instead, people need to listen. Let communities speak for themselves and represent themselves!

”The fact that there are so many stories throughout history that could involve people of color, that could involve people that look like me, but that aren’t being told is really disheartening.” Growing up at BAYCAT, Saleen says that she was exposed to the most amazing work she’s ever seen, produced by women and people of color. Yet in Hollywood, it’s still mostly movies made by white men.

“I know that women and people of color produce amazing work, but we aren’t given the resources to be filmmakers.” Saleen sees BAYCAT as the solution. At 12 years old Saleen was put in front of a camera and behind a camera for the first time. “BAYCAT really helped me discover my talent and passion for filmmaking. At my school, I don’t have this type of equipment or programs. When I went into BAYCAT it was like entering a whole new world. We worked with a camera on the very first day.” Saleen says that because of BAYCAT she’s gone from a shy student in the back of the class to a leader creating her own independent films.

Through a BAYCAT partnership, Saleen was hired by UCSF to make films for two annual Young Women’s Health Summit, where she was able to impact thousands of diverse young women by shedding light on critical issues like body image, rape culture, female empowerment and social media. You can watch one of her videos here. Saleen says, “The most important lesson is that whatever stories I create deserve to be told.”

Saleen’s message is loud and clear: Stop portraying people of color and women as background characters!

Sick of the Same Stories? Your New Storytellers Are Here.

Join us to support young women like Saleen, who refuse to be silent.

The post “Don’t Leave Her Out,” Meet Saleen Lee appeared first on BAYCAT.

BAYCAT is proud to take a bold stand on racial issues, especially in our 15th year of operation. BAYCAT Studio partnered with the Golden State Warriors to ditch your average run-of-the-mill Black History Month campaign. Instead we’re taking a deep dive into nuanced conversations around black culture and what resilience looks like in 2019.

“BLACK AS WE ARE” is not just about celebrating Black leaders of the past, but honoring what the Black experience feels like, right here, right now. These are conversation starters, so please share them with someone in your life!

Warriors players Andre Iguodala and Shaun Livingston discuss social media platforms and the responsibility that comes with being a professional athlete:

Black Panther Ericka Huggins explores the cultural and political climate in the Black community:

Writer Pendarvis Harshaw defines Black culture and its influence on American culture:

BAYCAT STUDIO is the go-to professional media production company for socially conscious clients who want high quality video production and branding services in the Bay Area. More than half of our Studio team are diverse graduates of BAYCAT’s Young Adult Internship Program. Learn more about BAYCAT Studio here.

The post Going Beyond Black History appeared first on BAYCAT.