Those involved in media arts as an academic pursuit or just as a hobby know that it can be very expensive and tedious; film and video equipment can cost thousands of dollars, but experience is necessary to develop an individual vision. Despite these setbacks, there is at least one place in Buffalo where amateur filmmakers and media artists can realize their dreams: The Squeaky Wheel Media Coalition.
The Squeaky Wheel Media Coalition, located at 175 Elmwood Ave., was founded in 1985 and offers low cost equipment rentals and workshops not readily available anywhere else, including on campus. It is a non-profit artist-ran organization that was founded as a venue for avant-garde and independent artist to showcase their works.
According to the Squeaky Wheel's Web site, the organization is funded in part through the public fund of the National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts Challenge America Fast Track Program, Buffalo and Erie County Workforce Investment Board, New York State Council on the Arts, and Erie County Cultural.
Senior digital arts major Ryan Schoelerman took a video editing class at the Squeaky Wheel and performed in the electronic arts festival.
"The learning environment was quick," he said. "(Squeaky Wheel) had a direct impact on me coming back to school. It made me realize that (digital arts) was what I wanted to do."
Squeaky Wheel allows relatively low budget films unlikely to receive mainstream attention to have a forum and create community support. UB students can also take advantage of this to show their work outside the classroom.
"We give hands-on experience in the field. We provide an opportunity for students to screen their work and develop their media portfolio, and the residencies provide workshops that the students can participate in," said Squeaky Wheel's Executive Director Kara Olidge, who is also pursuing her doctorate in urban education at UB.
UB, together with the Department of English and the Department of Media Studies, serves as a co-sponsor for Squeaky Wheel screenings and provides them with interns, as well.
"My internship there gave me some knowledge about media, as well as how non-profit organizations are run. Getting to edit my final project for free was pretty good too," said Michelle Ogden, a senior video arts major.
For the past two years, Squeaky Wheel has partnered with the UB Graduate Group in Marxist Studies and hosts their film festival called "Alternate Visions."
The festival was held every Friday in October and showed independent political films about the violence and desperate state of Middle Eastern countries that are on the brink of war.
"I saw 'Close, Closed, Closure,' and it gave me a different worldview than the one that is offered on TV," said senior Kate Elliot, an art history and fine arts major. "I think it's good that the students have taken advantage of the screening space and used it to educate people."
"We support the UB Marxist group and promote academic success," said Olidge.
Both students and professors take part in the programs offered at Squeaky Wheel; professor of media studies Meg Knowles is on the Squeaky Wheel board of directors and some of the workshop instructors are UB alumni. Media studies professor Beatrice Flores screened her work on Nov. 2 during "CLICK! Buffalo: Screening and Media Installations From Western and Southern N.Y. Media Artists."
Aside from catering to the UB film community, Squeaky Wheel holds educational outreach programs throughout the Buffalo area. The organization has begun a yearlong media literacy program with "YO! Buffalo" called "Buffalo Urban Youth Become Cultural Media Producers." This program is designed for participants to create film, video arts, and documentaries.
Squeaky Wheel worked in collaboration with the African-American Cultural center to create "techArts," a program for girls ages nine to 15 that teaches digital arts. Future programs include open screenings every second Wednesday, each month at 8 p.m. Filmmakers are encouraged to bring new works, less than 15 minutes in length, to take part in group-critiques.
Axlegrease, another Squeaky Wheel program, is a public access cable show that airs Fridays at midnight. Filmmakers can submit their work to be aired during the commercial-free show. Both local and international artists are welcome to submit their work of 28 minutes maximum.
A media studies major is not required for involvement with Squeaky Wheel; workshops and equipment are available to anyone willing to learn. For more information call 884-7172 or visit http://www.squeaky.org.
