Greetings to All!

I feel quite honored to have been chosen by the Board of Directors to help lead
Film/Video Arts into the future. My career and passion for independent film got started
in 1981 when I knocked on the door of Boston Film and Video Foundation (sister organization to F/VA) and started working there. After nine years of unforgettable memories, creative media projects, people and working relationships the sad moment of good bye came as I packed up and moved to the Big Apple. Once in New York I could not help knocking on the door of F/VA and peeking inside hoping to find that same welcoming, warm feeling of a ‘community club’ dedicated to the creation of film and video projects.  The purpose was not necessarily to make money, but to exercise the creative ‘muscle’ and collaborate with like minded humans and just have fun, to play, without compromise.

The idea of not-for-profit media centers created in the 60’s was a vital and revolutionary period in media history, allowing millions of people to get access to the tools for media production, then mostly restricted to Hollywood, its satellites and commercial television.  Film/Video Arts was there and still is now doing the same thing; helping people make films since 1968.

The independent filmmakers mission is to get the project DONE , sometimes staying up all night (or nights), using your apartment rent money to buy film or video stock or to pay for renting a camera or editing equipment. The passion for realizing your film/video project without expecting a monetary compensation for it, ‘Small Films’ as Goddard use to say. That is our mission!

As we head forward into the 21st century and Film/Video Arts 40th year of ‘helping people make films’, our mission, purpose, and history as a not-for-profit media center, has gone through various phases to the point where it could use some re-thinking, re-purposing, some adapting to the new media infrastructure, technologies and human resources that are being used and developed.

I need all your patience and assistance as we all search to redefining and strengthen our purpose and goal to create one of the ‘hippest’, ‘coolest’ ‘film clubs’ on the planet!

Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Please contact me anytime.

Lets go for it!

Best wishes,

Mario Paoli