UAB Media Studies students work in partnership with community members in the Greater Birmingham area to share stories about their lives and experiences.
Disclaimer: The films presented here are the work of a student or students enrolled in an ethnographic filmmaking course at UAB. The subject of the film and any views expressed in the film are solely the work of student(s) and are neither endorsed by nor represent the views of UAB.
Also available in the UAB Libraries Digital Collections.
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Are You Still There?
Raeann Alexander, Cam McClinton, and Elizabeth Okunbor
Duration: 11:13
Dating in the digital age promises convenience, but how much has really changed?
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Brookwood Village
Emily Copeland and Jake Smith
Duration: 10:36
What’s happening at the shuttered mall that was the place to be in the 1970s and 1980s?
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heArt of the Magic City
Justus Anderson, Priya Mantraratnam, and Audrey Womack
Duration: 11:09
A portrait of the Alabama Symphony and the Alabama Ballet, world-class performing arts organizations, right here in Birmingham
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On the Banks
Grace Jones, Anna Varghese, and Daniel Viles
Duration: 9:22
An adventure down the Cahaba reveals its beauty and all the human impacts that can threaten its -and our- health.
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Peak Physique
Ramsey Morris and Angelica Vercher
Duration: 9:21
Bodybuilding has exploded in popularity as a competitive fitness hobby, and with it a rise in male body image issues.
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Starting Small
Will Hecker
Duration: 8:40
Birmingham’s entrepreneurs follow their passions with the help of Alabama Launchpad and Innovation
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The Spectrum of Art
Oliver Carlisle and Jonathan Purlee
Duration: 9:35
Artists on the autism spectrum find a space for self-expression and a gallery to support their careers.
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Treehugger
Braden Fine, Elliott Hamilton, and Mac Wagstaff
Duration: 9:47
Alabama is the southernmost home of the Eastern Hemlock, a special grove of trees protected by Wild Alabama.
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Continuum
Hannah Enskat, Yeachan Park, and Lane Stefurak
Duration: 10:20
Coordinating care for the Birmingham homeless community requires the work of a number of organizations and committed individuals, but the needs are great.
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Mental
Madison Le and Madi Moon
Duration: 10:20
Recent years have seen an increase in adolescent mental health concerns, and this film examines the resources in Birmingham to meet the need.
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Start-Up
Adam Ingah and Noorullah Imran
Duration: 8:28
Birmingham’s entrepreneurial growth is fueled by UAB and its wealth of biomedical engineering and medical research.
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Up in Smoke
Annie Foreman and Olivia Hall
Duration: 13:59
An unregulated landfill caught on fire, with over 25 acres burning 100 feet underground for months. Who in Alabama is responsible for ensuring the health and safety of residents exposed to the smoke and toxic chemicals from the dump? My name is Olivia Hall and I’m a Junior Professional Writing major with a minor in Media Studies. Our film, “Up In Smoke,” is about a landfill fire in Moody, a city about 20 minutes east of Birmingham; it documents the community’s response to the situation and the government’s “efforts” to contain the flames. The fire was reported in late November 2022 and there is still an ongoing effort to understand the fire and put it out. We heard about this topic when deciding on film subjects in class at the start of the semester, almost 2 months after the fire was reported. We had no idea about it before then and we decided to pursue this subject because of the urgency and importance of the situation. And I’m so glad we did. The community out in Moody and Trussville have been more than supportive at every step of the way. I want to thank everyone who helped and encouraged us through the making of our project. Through making this film, I got to meet some awesome people working to give a voice to the community and advocate for greater environmental protections in Alabama. In these conversations, I learned about the pitfalls of our state’s environmental management agency not only for this situation but for issues all across the state. From lugging camera equipment through the woods and the mud to attending an environmental rally down in Montgomery, every moment of this semester has been beyond rewarding. This is the first film for both of us but it absolutely won’t be the last. I’m Annie Foreman and I’m a junior Computer Science major with a minor in film. Prior to this project, I was completely uninterested in landfills, as most people are. Through talking to people who have been affected by this fire, I have learned about illegal dumping and its effects on the environment and community. Landfill fires are not uncommon, but the fire in Moody is unusual due to its composition, size, and duration. The landfill that caught fire in Moody was permitted as an unregulated green waste landfill, but illegally accepted solid waste, meaning that hazardous materials were present. The Alabama Department of Environmental Management repeatedly ignored complaints about the landfill’s illegal operations. This is only one example of what happens statewide. When starting this film, we wanted to focus on the community’s experiences. We reached out in a Facebook group dedicated to the fire, and the support we got from the community was overwhelming. We met some amazing people who have been advocating for their community, and their work isn’t over. Green waste landfills remain unregulated in Alabama, posing a risk to the entire state. This film is meant to provide a voice for a community that has felt ignored by the agencies in place to protect them. In making this film, I have begun to further appreciate Alabama’s environment and the people working to protect it. This has been an extremely eye-opening and fulfilling experience, and I’m excited to further explore this issue this summer with Southern Exposure.
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Worn Out
Kekeli Doamekpor, Trevor Mastro, and Sophia Tamburello
Duration: 9:45
Vintage fashion culture celebrates personal expression and offers a more environmentally-friendly way to shop
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A New Normal
Britney Le and Victoria Sutton
Duration: 9:49
Childhood cancer survivors face many longterm challenges—physical, mental, financial, and social. This film represents the transition from diagnosis and undergoing treatment into a new chapter of remission and survivorship.
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Another World Right Here
Sage Lucia
Duration: 3:05
A deep dive into Birmingham’s punk music and culture scene, now decades-long.
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Barriers for Entry
Connor Campbell and Ritika Samant
Duration: 9:56
The Disability Rights Movement has changed society in the last 50 years. Doctors and med students share their experience of working within the medical profession with their disabilities. Connor Campbell: I am three years into completing my Neuroscience degree, along with minors in Chemistry and Film. We decided to focus on physicians with disabilities to emphasize how these doctors can better relate to their patients, even though they face an array of obstacles during medical training. Although the scope of accommodations for people with disabilities is growing, there are still significant barriers discouraging potentially amazing physicians from pursuing the field. Through engaging in conversations with healthcare workers from diverse disability backgrounds, we were shocked to realize how the unrealistic culture of perfection within medicine discourages inclusivity and holistic patient treatment. Nevertheless, each interviewee revealed how choosing to embrace flaws and considering the strengths of disability can contribute to more intimate connections, as they can easily empathize with the patient's perspective. The opportunity to participate in ethnographic filmmaking has afforded new insights into how history can shape narratives from multiple perspectives and push policies in more equitable directions. Ritika Samant: I’m a rising senior, majoring in Neuroscience and also fast tracking a Master's in Public Health. In the summer of 2021, I shadowed a pediatrician. To listen to a child’s heartbeat, she used an electronic stethoscope which amplified the sound. A member of the hard of hearing community, Dr. Snehal Khatri opened my eyes to the world of doctors with disabilities and served as the main inspiration for this film and the main reason why the films this year have closed captioning. My hope is that this film breaks down the illusion of perfection in medicine. Much of the beauty of medicine lies in the deeply human aspect of it: We are all perfectly imperfect, and our ability to fall sick and die reflects that. Additionally, at the end of the day, medicine is more than just helping people. It's about really caring for people--loving people where they're at--and that's only possible when we make sure that all people can participate in it.
