The My Hero Project

The MY HERO Project is a United States based non-profit organization that hosts stories on heroes and heroism. People all over the world write, produce and post written and video stories and works of art about their personal heroes on the MY HERO web site (http://www.myhero.com). The MY HERO Project provides a curriculum for teachers and afterschool instructors to bring the study of heroes into the classroom and offers educational media workshops in the U.S. and other countries to help teachers, students and adults to share the stories of the people who have helped shape their lives. A Cultural Arts Exchange Grant from the U.S. State Department helped MY HERO send teaching teams to conduct media and video workshops in the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. Additional workshops are beginning in Senegal and Jordan. The MY HERO Short Film Festival, held once a year, showcases the films submitted from children and adults and recognizes commercial media that calls attention to real life heroes.

History:

The MY HERO Project began in 1995 when a group of parents wanted to lessen the effects of negative media by calling attention to uplifting stories and stories of people who make a difference in the world. Television producer Jeanne Meyers [ [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2287670/ Myers at IMDB] ] , philanthropist Karen Pritzker and documentary film producer Rita Stern started a web site that would serve as a gathering place for stories of heroes and heroism from everyday people around the world. They built an interface that was simple to use and opened up space for students, teachers and adults to share the stories of the people who have helped shape their lives. The web site has grown to include stories from people in 166 countries.

Education:

About 5,000 teachers from countries as far away as Tasmania use the MY HERO web site in their classrooms each month. The web site offers a detailed set of instructions for teachers who in turn help their students create and post web pages about their personal heroes. Teachers can have kids work together on a group project or help individual build a web page devoted to their hero.

After-School Program:

There is a separate curriculum for after school educators that is designed to supplement classroom learning and includes the use of digital video to tell hero stories. The after-school program allows students with limited access to the Internet and digital technology to gain skill and experience they may not have access to otherwise.

MY HERO Short Film Festival:

As YouTube and other outlets for digital video gained popularity, the MY HERO Project launched an online festival for short hero films. The MY HERO Short Film Festival showcases stories of heroes around the world created by filmmakers of all ages. Categories include documentary, narrative, musical/experimental and animation. Films may be up to 10 minutes in length and are grouped in the levels of; elementary school, middle school, high school, college, community, filmmaker, professional and feature segments. Each year, prizes are awarded the winning films.

Global Exchange Program:

A Cultural Arts Exchange Grant from the United States Department of State funds The MY HERO Global Exchange Program. The program sends teaching teams to conduct media and video workshops in countries that include Macedonia, Kosovo, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, Senegal and Jordan. The video stories that come from the workshops are shown on the MY HERO web site and are entered into the MY HERO Short Film Festival.

Gallery:

The MY HERO Gallery displays hero-based art projects created by artists and student artists of all ages. The work submitted by artists must be original and must portray heroes, heroism or heroic deeds.

Mi Heroe:

A smaller version of the MY HERO web site is presented in Spanish. The web address is: http://www.miheroe.org

Newswire:

The MY HERO web site’s newswire section presents stories and photographs of current news stories that are hero or humanitarian based. The stories and photos are the work of Associated Press writers and photographers.

References:

Putting their heroes on filmSarah Noone - Laguna Coastline PilotJuly 31, 2008 [http://www.coastlinepilot.com/articles/2008/08/01/top_stories/cpt-myhero080108.txt]

My Hero - Extraordinary People on the Heroes Who Inspire Them 2005, Published by Simon and SchusterISBN-10: 0-7432-9240-5ISBN-13: 978-0-7432-9240-5

The MyHero Project 2nd Annual Short Film FestivalComputers In Entertainment (CIENewton Lee - AuthorJuly 2006, Vol. 4, Issue 3, Article 16Publisher - ACM New YorkISSN:1544-3574

Those Who Inspired Seen as Real PeopleWendy Koch, USA Today [http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2007-05-28-top25-people-cover_N.htm]

Naming and Honoring Laguna's HeroesBarbara Diamond - Laguna Coastline Pilot, June 5, 2008 [http://www.coastlinepilot.com/articles/2008/06/06/blogs_and_columns/our_laguna/cpt-ourlaguna060608.txt]

Heroes Next Door Remind of Life's GiftsJames Pribram - Laguna Coastline Pilot, June 5, 2008 [http://www.coastlinepilot.com/articles/2008/06/06/blogs_and_columns/surfing_soapbox/cpt-surfingsoapbox060608.txt]

Arts and EntertainmentSuzie Harrison - The Laguna Beach Independent, May 30, 2008 [http://www.lagunabeachindependent.com/news/2008/0530/arts_ent/049.html]

Documentary Captures Joey Masella's Heroic LegacyChrista Woodall - The Orange County Register, January 31, 2008 [http://www.ocregister.com/news/joey-film-people-1969770-macgillivray-life]

Masella short film wins My Hero awardThe Laguna Beach Coastline Pilot, January 24, 2008 [http://www.coastlinepilot.com/articles/2008/01/25/entertainment/cpt-artentbrfs25.txt]

From Superhero to Real-Life Hero: Encouraging Healthy PlayShelley Butler and Deb Kratz, Early Childhood News [http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.aspx?ArticleID=567]

An internet nod to Dean and StewartMedia Life Magazine, April 21, 2004 [http://www.medialifemagazine.com/news2004/apr04/apr19/3_wed/news5Awednesday.html]

My Hero: Jean-Michel CousteauMoving Pictures Magazine [http://www.movingpicturesmagazine.com/shorts/shortshighlights/myherojeanmichelcousteau]

Local group on Hero DVDDowntown Express [http://www.downtownexpress.com/de_207/undercover.html]

Learning Montage with AA GymBritish Council [http://www.britishcouncil.org/print-page?id=424000]