2008 Northeastern University Grad Debuts Film at Roxbury Film Festival

Student documentary explores the state of HIV/AIDS today

Boston, Mass. – Few films are lucky enough to be chosen to premier at film festivals and it is an even larger feat when the premiering films are created by college students. Meagan Redman, a 2008 graduate of Northeastern University has defied the odds and will debut her documentary, “Sharpening Our Oyster Knives: Living with HIV/AIDS today” this Saturday, August 2, at the Roxbury Film Festival.

HIV/AIDS has maintained an unsettling tight grasp on communities of color in Boston. Redman’s documentary examines the issues around that fact, while highlighting some of the personal journeys of people infected and affected by this disease. Under the tutelage of her faculty advisor David Monje, Assistant Professor of Communication Studies, she produced, narrated and edited the piece herself.

Created and filmed during a directed study course at Northeastern University, Redman came up with the idea for her documentary after hearing from a guest speaker in her journalism class. She was moved by a series of photographs the photographer had taken at the Boston Living Center.

“I learned that HIV/AIDS has an increasingly disproportionate impact on communities of color in Boston and throughout the country,” said Redman. “I decided that my documentary would address the epidemic and bring attention to other issues intertwined in this reality including socioeconomic factors, funding, government policy, and developments in programmatic approaches.”

On May 2, the day of Redman’s graduation, the Communications Study major submitted the rough-cut of her documentary to the Roxbury Film Festival. The piece was accepted soon thereafter and Redman learned that the film would debut where the project began, at Northeastern University.

“Working on this documentary has been an amazing experience,” said Redman. “I am honored to have it premier at the John D. O’Bryant African-American Institute as a part of the Roxbury Film Festival.”

Currently a multimedia producer at “From the Top,” a non-profit organization and NPR radio show that celebrates the personal stories of the nation’s outstanding young classical musicians, Redman is a testament to her go-getter ways. During her time at Northeastern she was the co-founder and chair of the Media Literacy Project (MLP), a community outreach initiative of the Communications Club. The MLP gives Boston public high school students the tools and information to begin to critically examine the media messages that surround them. Over the last two years, the MLP has engaged almost 200 students at the John D. O’Bryant School of Mathematics and Science in Roxbury with an interactive, participatory lesson on the media.

“Sharpening Our Oyster Knives: Living with HIV/AIDS today”

Produced, Narrated, and Edited by Meagan C. Redman

Premiers: Saturday, August 2, at 3:15 p.m.

Location: Northeastern University, John D. O’Bryant African-American Institute, 40 Leon St., Boston, MA 02115

For more information, please contact Samantha Fodrowski at 617-373-5427 or at s.fodrowski@neu.edu.

About Northeastern

Founded in 1898, Northeastern University is a private research university located in the heart of Boston. Northeastern is a leader in interdisciplinary research, urban engagement, and the integration of classroom learning with real-world experience. The university’s distinctive cooperative education program, where students alternate semesters of full-time study with semesters of paid work in fields relevant to their professional interests and major, is one of the largest and most innovative in the world. The University offers a comprehensive range of undergraduate and graduate programs leading to degrees through the doctorate in six undergraduate colleges, eight graduate schools, and two part-time divisions. For more information, please visit www.northeastern.edu.