Jessica Kizorek is the creator of Eyes on Your Mission, which Knight Foundation supports to expand economic opportunity and promote civic engagement in South Florida. Today, Knight is announcing $20,000 in funding for the project to help nonprofits tell their stories with video, and to train students to produce the videos.  

Video is the new vernacular for effectively telling stories, for everyone from news organizations to corporations. For nonprofits, it is an effective language they can use to advance the causes they care about, and turn supporters into donors. Video production, for its part, is a fast-growing field, offering career opportunities to talented, ambitious people from a range of backgrounds. But for many nonprofits, and young people from less-privileged backgrounds, both opportunities can be out of reach.

The Eyes on Your Mission (EOYM) Project changes both equations. We offer free video production and storytelling to help nonprofits get more eyes on their mission, and train high school and college students from diverse backgrounds to produce those videos to professional standards. Now, Knight Foundation is investing $20,000 to help us engage more nonprofits and students across South Florida.

I created Eyes on Your Mission through my company, Two Parrot Productions, to help close these gaps. We have partnered with Moses Shumow, Ph.D., an associate professor at the Florida International University School of Communication + Journalism. From his perspective, “Eyes on Your Mission is a powerful combination of community awareness, citizen journalism, technical training, and change-making strategy; but most of all teaching the critical thinking that is sorely needed in a society increasingly shaped by hyper-information and media distrust.”

New programs will build on the 2016 Eyes on Your Mission pilot, where students from Miami Northwestern High School in Liberty City and Florida International University produced videos for five nonprofits selected in a contest. Knight funding will allow us to expand to more high schools and colleges and serve additional nonprofits, as well as upgrade equipment to include 360-degree virtual reality cameras and other immersive storytelling tools.

Here’s how to get involved: For nonprofits, Eyes on Your Mission video grant applications will be open through April at eyesonyourmission.org/grants. For questions contact [email protected] or by phone at 305-912-3937. We look forward to helping you to tell your story and to learn new skills.