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Wow! Robert West, the executive director of Working Films is a super smart guy. His whole thing is helping filmmakers create powerful audience engagement campaigns and he is really good at it. Working Films has facilitated outreach campaigns for films such as The Ghosts of Abu Ghraib, Garbage Dreams (about two young garbage collectors in Cairo), and No Impact Man (about a family who lives one year with minimal harm to the earth). Working Films helps get documentaries that should be out there making a difference, out there making a difference. How cool is that?

This is some of what Robert suggested for Girlworld.

First that our goal for having Girlworld distributed to schools with a curriculum component is maybe too optimistic. I knew this, but it was really good to have him tell me this. I was a teacher for ten years. Getting new content into schools is difficult. I remember I rarely had time/ money to include new material into my year.

Robert suggested I look for our target audience, teen girls, in other places  like through orgs like  Girls, Inc. that runs after school programs in urban, underserved areas. Girls, Inc. is all about empowering girls through innovative programs. It is all over the United States and they have two chapters here in Washington. One in Seattle and one in Aberdeen.

Today I wrote a letter to the Executive Director of the Seattle branch to ask for an informational interview. I want to ask her how a organization like Girls, Inc. could use Girlworld. What would they want their girls to get out of the film? How would it fit their goals? Fit their mission? What would be an appropriate length of video for them to show a group of girls? What kind of activities could they see going with it? Basically, does Girl, Inc have a need for Girlworld?

Also, private girls schools could also be a good bet. Private schools are easier to get into, are part of a bigger organization, and have all girls. I immediately contacted the art teacher from the Seattle Girls School whose class I screened our trailer for last year and she is setting up a round table of teachers for me to talk to next week. (I love when things come together so quickly.)

But wait, there’s more. Robert had another really interesting, very specific, intriguing BIG IDEA that made me swoon a little bit when I pictured it: What if Girlworld were a catalyst to bring girls from (say) Girls, Inc together with girls from different kinds of private schools like  Seattle Girls School and Holy Names. Girls from different Seattle neighborhoods coming together to watch Girlworld and talking about what they can do to help girls a zillion miles away get an education. We could have a summit, a Girlworld Seattle Girls Summit! (Goose bumps!) My inner teacher just came out. It does from time to time.

Robert’s advice: Listen. Listen to those who are a likely audience.

This includes listening to the NGO’s who are already doing the work and the messaging around girls education. We are doing that already. Can’t wait to do more of it.

More Robert advice: Set yourself up for measurable results.

Funders want to give money to a film that is going to make a difference in the world. We need to be able to SHOW that Girlworld is making a difference. Like with metrics.

Part of this is not going too BROAD with our outreach—we may need to scale back a bit. Not only is having every organization working toward  empowering women linked to our website (which we talk about in our current outreach plan) cumbersome, it also may be ineffective.

Robert pointed me to the ‘How to Help’ link on the website for WarDance (incredibly beautiful, emotional film about a kids’ singing competition in Uganda—It is Mad Hot Ballroom with a Rip your Heart out and Step on it component.) WarDance focuses on one org for donations it generates—to the organization that runs the singing program in the film. Intriguing.

I know in my own life there is a lot to be said for focusing. More gets done. Hmmmm.

It was good. The consultation was really good. I am so grateful and learning so much.

Robert encouraged me