Some students have a background or story that is so central to their identity that they
believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please
share your story (650 words).
I could hear the soft whir of the AC unit. Louder, though, was the crunching of the Fruit
Loops cereal I was having for breakfast. Suddenly my peaceful solitude was interrupted by the
garage squeaking. Someone was home. I first saw the striking red “Borders” label on the black
bag. Oh, hi dad. With a sinister smile on his face, he withdrew three brick-like books, smacking
them down next to me. My favorite breakfast jumped out of the bowl, as though it too
experienced the fright rippling through my body. The smile plastered across Baba’s face was one
every child recognized, the one that says destruction is about to take place.
“Beta, you are going to read these three books over the next month.”
The Scarlet Letter.
The Man in the Iron Mask.
The Count of Monte Cristo.
They were all classics – books I have historically hated, a fact my dad knew well. I thought this
was going to be about the fight my brother and I had gotten into last night, but it was much
worse.
While at first I forced myself to read the books line-by-grueling-line, my interest grew with the
word count. As my mind was sucked into the page, I moved from the less-than-comfortable sofa
to my bed, my physical comfort reflecting my new comfort with reading. From the dull start of
Dantès’ forced stop at the Isle to his crazy prison break, I devoured each chapter with increasing
hunger.
Fast forward a month. I was at Melbourne Airport navigating through interesting debates and
analyses with my father over the books we both have read. Despite our disagreements, I felt
increasingly poised in my responses to his questions about morality, ethics and literary devices.
It seemed like our relationship had entered a new era, one where intellectual debate was the new
norm. But it was more than that…
Two days later, I rode a bike off a 170-foot platform and scuba dived to the floor of the Great
Barrier Reef.
Then, summer was over, and I was back in my Literature class raising my hand, answering and
asking questions left and right. Before, I felt like I didn’t belong – completely clueless, hesitant to
participate in class discussions. Now, it felt like I was back in the airport, merely having a heated
conversation with my dad. Soon after, my father bought me the book Great Expectations.
Engrossed in Pip’s story and connecting it to my own, it finally hit me. Through our shared
interest in literature, my father had instilled in me something critical that I had been missing:
confidence.
By powering through these classic books, I gradually realized the importance of risk-taking and
self-growth. It seemed as if I was coming out of my shell. Whether it was on the basketball court
or in a social setting, I had shattered my restrictive mental ceiling, which frequently pushed me
to shy away from the unknown. Then came my extensive trek through the Karakoram mountain
range in my home country of Pakistan, and of course my life-altering switch from Fruit Loops to
Cheerios.
Literature gave me a new language to speak to my dad in, a language that I did not know existed,
one that taught me how to take on the world. I finally understood how liberating it is to have an
opinion. A few years ago, I was set to pursue higher education close to home because of my fear
of failure and lack of confidence in my abilities. Now, I can’t wait to head to college in the United
States, brave whatever culture shock awaits me, improve my debating and public speaking skills,
and tackle classes I would never imagine even existed – just as I did with those three bricks that
landed on the kitchen table next to me on a hot summer day in Dubai.
CALL FOR APPLICATIONS:
2022 5C FLAHERTY SUMMER
The Five College Film Council is now accepting applications for 5C FLAHERTY SUMMER, a
week-long intensive summer program for Five College students in partnership with the Flaherty,
a nonprofit media arts institution recognized as a leader in its support of documentary and
independent film and media. The application deadline is February 28, 2022. Details below.
What is the Robert Flaherty Film Seminar?
With a storied history dating back to 1954, the Robert Flaherty Film Seminar (aka “The Flaherty
Seminar”) is an annual, week-long program devoted to non-fiction film and media. The Flaherty
Seminar brings together filmmakers, artists, curators, media professionals, film students,
teachers, and enthusiasts for a curated program of films in an intimate, immersive environment.
Participants gather for a communal experience that includes housing, meals, social hours, and
special events. Each day of the week is organized around at least three screening sessions
followed by discussion.
When does the Flaherty Seminar take place?
This year, the Flaherty Seminar will be held June 25 – July 1, 2022 at Colgate University in
Hamilton, NY. Each year the seminar is organized by a different programmer. The 2022 seminar,
which is titled “Continents of Drifting Clouds,” will be programmed collaboratively by Almudena
Escobar López and Sky Hopinka. Almudena Escobar López is a curator, archivist, and
researcher from Galicia, who works as the Assistant Curator of Media Arts at the Memorial Art
Gallery (MAG) in Rochester, NY. Sky Hopinka (Ho-Chunk Nation/Pechanga Band of Luiseño
Indians) is an artist working in video, photo, and text, whose practice centers around personal
positions of Indigenous homeland and landscape, and designs of language as containers of
culture expressed through personal, documentary, and non-fictional forms of media. For more
details on the program see https://theflaherty.org/news/flaherty-2022-newsletter-february.
Information about the Seminar’s history can also be found on https://flahertyseminar.org/. For
additional information about the Flaherty’s activities see https://theflaherty.org/.
What is Flaherty Summer?
The 5C FLAHERTY SUMMER program, now in its fourth year, aims to foster diversity and
inclusion in the fields of film and media by creating opportunities for students from
underrepresented backgrounds. We are currently seeking applicants interested in attending the
2022 Flaherty Seminar as part of this program.
Eligibility:
The goal of this guided program—qualitatively different from an internship or work
experience—is to cultivate learning and networking opportunities for students from
constituencies that are underrepresented in leadership positions in film and media, including
women, LGBTQ persons, ethnic minorities, students with disabilities, students with financial
need, and undocumented students. This program is best suited for students who will be entering
their third and fourth year in Fall 2022. However, we will also consider graduating seniors and
first year students.
What we are looking for:
We are searching for applicants who have demonstrated passion and inclination for creative and
critical work in film and media, with a special interest in nonfiction, and who can integrate
themselves respectfully into non-academic venues for discussing nonfiction film and filmmaking.
Applicants should demonstrate that they have taken some time to acquaint themselves with the
structure and history of the Flaherty Seminar. Applicants should effectively convey reasons why
they would like to attend the Flaherty Seminar and also how they feel they can contribute to the
In addition, please answer the following questions:
Question 1: In 200 words or less, please tell us a little bit about some of the experiences
that have shaped your sense of yourself and/or your community as marginalized in
relation to the film and media industry. Please feel free to address issues of access,
representation, mentorship, or any other obstacles to professional advancement that you
may have encountered.
Experiences that have shaped my sense of myself: growing up as an expat not in their
home country was a bit difficult as people already had their own ideas of what it is to be
a pakistani muslim girl who is an expat living in dubai, which was not my home country,
found it difficult to adapt to finding people who were in the same boat as me or went
through the same cultural struggles growing up. Film became a healthy outlet for me and
scriptwriting. It allowed me to build my own stories and help me better understand myself
(i dont know how but obviously you can dwell into this point and talk about how you
would think a kid would adjust to the place they grew up their whole life but i had not to
me still when someone asks what is home i dont have a solid answer), growing up i was
really grateful to have such an excellent academic background being able to go to top
schools in dubai and have the experience to take courses during my last few years of
highschool such courses like media studies. Contrast this to then when i would visit
family back home and i would see so many girls get robbed of the chance to get an
education in pakistan and pursue the creative arts as this was looked down upon. I still
remember in dubai alot of my friends would see me as this girl who got strict parents and
have all these cultural and religious norms weighing down on me. Whereas it was
nothing like that my parents fully supported me to go beyond my interests and pursue
each passion i just wish i had an opportunity or outlet to talk to other kids with my same
background in dubai who did not have the same family background as me where they
felt they couldn’t speak to their parents because they had to pursue subjects that were
more of their parents liking than theirs. I also wished to bring more attention on the
issues in pakistan about how girls don’t get the education they need. I wish i could also
bring attention of the struggles of being an expat living somewhere which isn’t home and
having these cultural struggles through your life with school or friends and especially
parents all the misunderstanding and miscommunication when your finding yourself.
Question 2: In 500 words or less, please write a short statement about why you are
applying to the 5C Flaherty Summer Program and why you would be a good candidate
for the program, addressing: (A) What are your relevant interests in and experiences
with film and media, both academic and otherwise? What work do you hope to do in the
future, related to these fields? (B) How will participating in the 2022 Flaherty Seminar
contribute to your personal and professional goals in and beyond college? (C) What
skills/experience will you bring that can contribute to discussions and community at the
Seminar?
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Applying to the program because I think it is an amazing opportunity to allow individuals
to gain hands-on experience with other filmmakers and have insightful discussions and
gain knowledge …. Etc (also talk about what the program offers and how it will benefit
me as an individual)
Relevant interests: love writing scripts they have been mainly crime fiction scripts but i
am now leaning towards writing scripts based on documentaries i would like to create
soon and scripts based on the action genre and academically ive previously take a video
production and screenwriting class which both helped me and allowed me to learn more
about editing my own films and shooting them and the screenwriting class helped me
expand my stories and structure them better it was a good learning experience that i
would love to expand more on through this program (talk about how this program would
help me expand my knowledge and my creative flows/passions)
I would love to work with HBO Max or netflix producing scripts or even shooting them
would be a dream come true, also working with the film industry in NY would be
amazing, or becoming an independent film maker producing my own short films or
documentaries to raise awareness in Pakistan about girls education and then move onto
possibly working with companies such as HBO Max or netflix.
Contribute to my personal and professional goals as it allows me as an individual to
become more of an open minded and extroverted person to chase after my passions
when being surrounded by an unfamiliar environment with new people who come from
different cultures and being able to have intellectual and mindful conversations and build
relations and network with these people cause these people i meet may just help me or
collaborate with me to make a very new film or help be branch out to new places where
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they think that may benefit me like for scriptwriting … and how it will help me
professionally pls expand on that and think of good ideas for this when writing the essay
In terms of skills and experience talk about storywriting and how i think me being a
scriptwriter and coming up with good stories will be helpful and etc (idk what to say so
pls think of good ideas for this last point)

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