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The Active Voice Lab develops new models for creating, “street testing” and leveraging social-issue media. Many “experiments” bubble up from our own work, but you too can bring projects to the Lab.

Projects include:

Harvest
In California’s Napa Valley—a region flush with the success of the wine industry, and rife with economic and cultural contradictions—a small group of people are building a public “zone” where everyone has a voice. In collaboration with local leadership organization On the Move, the Whitman Institute and filmmaker Theo Rigby, Active Voice is working to document their story. Online and face-to-face, Harvest seeks to help sustain community engagement as generations and demographics shift.

The Prenups

What should filmmakers and funders talk about before they “tie the knot”? The Prenups offer guidelines to improve communications and collaborations among filmmakers, funders, strategists and advocates—and help avoid the pitfalls that come with unmanaged expectations and incomplete understanding. Visit our microsite for a snapshot and download.

Global Lives
Since 2003, Active Voice has been curating a series of powerful narratives—including dozens of documentaries, a feature film, a TV movie and a museum exhibit—and developing discussion resources that help communities address issues of immigration.

Beyond the Choir
Some films tap into human values that transcend “red vs. blue,” “urban vs. rural” and other divides. Beyond the Choir is a process that offers resources and support for filmmakers who want to engage—rather than dismiss—hard-to-reach audiences. Read our case study to learn more.

Shelbyville Multimedia
Weaving together our expertise in immigrant issues, our passion for intimate storytelling, our commitment to reach “Beyond the Choir,” our “Prenup” practice and most of all, our “Ecosystem of Change” model, Shelbyville Multimedia is also Active Voice’s first transmedia Story + Strategy project. Click here to learn more.

"Nothing is more powerful than making an abstract idea real by showing its human dimension—and that's where Active Voice excels."

Robert Moore
Managing Partner, Lipman Hearne