by: Marissa Denman
Tuesday, April 12th, 2016, Franklin Pierce University took a stand against sexual assault on college campuses. FPU premiered their video project for It’s On Us. It’s On Us is a national movement endorsed by President Obama and many other celebrities. The goal is to promote awareness of sexual assault and encourage bystander awareness to stop sexual assaults on college campuses.
Many other universities are making videos to show support and raise awareness on the issue of sexual assault. Franklin Pierce wanted to get the community involved and was able to incorporate 100 students and faculty into a one and a half minute video. Faculty advisor for the project, Heather Tullio decided to use students to direct, edit, and promote the film. Seniors Claire Dew and Sam Hulme each directed half of the project. The video features all the participants speaking out against sexual assault. The main idea is to get everyone involved and start a movement to say something and act if you see an assault taking place. It encourages everyone to intervene in situations when consent is not or cannot be given.
Senior Claire Dew states, “The most rewarding part of working on this project was just knowing that we were not only creating a video with such an amazing message behind it, but a video that actually meant something to all of us. It wasn’t a meaningless project that we just wanted to finish, it was a production we were all dedicated to and volunteered our time because we believe so strongly in the message being promoted.”
The project was well received at the premiere but did not go without challenges. Senior Cat Purdy worked with Sam Hulme on the video editing, and says they both worked over fifty hours over the course of four months to make sure the video was put together properly. Dew explained this was one of the biggest challenges with the project because it was extremely difficult for Purdy and Hulme to fit that many people into such a short video.
Although the film was a challenging project for the team, it was well presented and held a strong message about sexual assault on college campuses. Senior Brian Girardo who was featured in the film said he is glad he participated because, “It’s a very important message for everyone to hear and it needs to be spread.”
The video can be viewed on FPU’s eraven site, as well as the Franklin Pierce University YouTube page.
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