Alana DeJoseph (Mali) wins Best Director Award at Mumbai Film Festival
Congratulations on this latest award, Alana. from Mumbai, my favorite film festival! I had the privilege and was proud to…
From 1992 to 1994 Peace Corps Volunteer Alana DeJoseph was an enterprise development advisor in a small town in Mali, West Africa, consistently one of the 10 poorest nations in the world. Being a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer she understood that as walls are being built and nations are turning inward, a comprehensive documentary of this globally engaged American agency was urgently needed.
Alana DeJoseph
Alana says: “In a time when the American public either has a very antiquated notion of the Peace Corps, informed by an almost mythological awe of the 60s, or is not even aware that the agency still exists, it is high time to bring this unique organization back into the public discourse, to raise the level of the discussion from quaint to crucial.”
Alana has worked in video and film production for nearly 40 years. She began her career as a 10-year-old actress. Since then, she has worn many hats as producer, director, videographer, and editor, but her heart has always been in documentaries. Between 2003 and 20013, she was associate producer of the PBS documentaries The Greatest Good (about the U.S. Forest Service) and Green Fire (about conservationist Aldo Leopold).
In 2013 Alana began working on the first feature documentary about the history of the Peace Corps: A Towering Task. On September 22nd, 2019 the film premiered to a full house at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. In December 2020 she won the Best Director award in the feature documentary category at the Indo Global International Film Festival in Mumbai.
Congratulations Alana. I’m glad to see this well-deserved recognition.
Thank you, Liz!
Alena. congratulations on the Mumbai Film award and your efforts on behalf of the PC STORY. I would like to chat with you about how to give it a wider audience when u have a moment would u
Mind giving me a call 202 369 6037 thanks
John Chromy. PCV India. 1063-65
John, yes, let’s definitely talk. Can you, please, send me an email through our website at http://www.peacecorpsdocumentary.com so we can set up a date and time for a call?
Warmly,
Alana
Alana,
Congratulations on your product and its international recognition. How might one see it now?
Bob Morris
(PCV and then Asst. Dir, Pakistan, 1961-65; seconded by PC to Intl. Secretariat for Vol Service, ’67; author of book on national overseas volunteer programs of other countries, Lexington,1973).
The best for individuals to watch is through our virtual theatrical release:
http://www.firstrunfeatures.com/toweringtask_playdates.html
You can get your ticket from any theater and then stream the film online.
And maybe there is a possibility of getting the Pakistan RPCVs together for a virtual community screening and Q&A. Please, send me an email through our website at http://www.peacecorpsdocumentary.com.
Warmly,
Alana
I am over the moon on this well-deserved recognition! Alana, you are putting Peace Corps and our mission and our history on the map! The film is so good that I kept thinking it was bound to win awards, and this may the first of many. We all owe you a debt of gratitude. What great news for the new year! Happy New Year everyone–may 2021 be full of peace and
wonder for all.
Thank you for your kind words, Corey!
Congratulations Alana! A well deserved recognition. I am encouraging the Friends of the Dominican Republic to look into a virtual showing in early 2021. Again, thanks for making this documentary,
Kim Herman
President Friends of the Dominican Republic
And thank you to all of the support from you and Friends of the DR!
Congratulations Alana,
I was so privileged to view this wonderful film earlier this year. Your deserve this and more. Peace Corps has been enshrined in this documentary and we must keep placing the face of Peace Corps in the public eye. Friends of Liberia (FOL) is adding to your endeavor by publishing our Anthology of Liberian stories in 2022. We want our PC stories to reach beyond the volunteer and staff who know our narrative too well. Thanks again, Alana, for keeping Peace Corps in the limelight just when we needed it the most.
RPCV Liberia 1971-73, Tonga 1973-74. FOL Anthology Lead.
Thank you, Susan! And thank you to Friends of Liberia for contributing to the archives of the Peace Corps’ history!
Congratulations !!! Your vision, your perseverance, your hard work, your winning disposition and enthusiasm in the face of the resistance that a Peace Corps documentary had never been created/produced in ~ 50 years – “so why do we need one now? You kept going – and did not leave a stone unturned despite the barriers and challenges along the way. You brought the Peace Corps to the public enriching the world ad infinitum. Onward…..With gratitude, Geri Critchley, Senegal 71-72
Such kind words, Geri! Thank you for all of your support along the way!
CONGRATULATIONS, ALANA. YOU CONTINUE TO MAKE ALL OF US WHO SUPPORTED THIS EFFORT PROUD.
Congratulations on this latest award, Alana. from Mumbai, my favorite film festival! I had the privilege and was proud to attend the premier at the Kennedy Center on behalf of Friends of Nepal! And I just viewed your interview with Bill Miller on GCTV. You are such an eloquent spokesperson for the Peace Corps! Thank you for that.