So Wednesday we had Jen Marlowe speak on her both her works in Sudan and Darfur and her new film, Rebuilding Hope, a documentary film about South Sudan She is the co-author of The Darfur Diaries which was actually a film first then worked into a print format.
Ms. Marlowe is a wonderful woman who speaks with such depth and conviction about her works. But most importantly she gets “it”. She understands the interconnectivity of not just the situation in Sudan, Darfur, Iraq, etc but that these are not compartmentalized pockets of unrest that don’t exist in their own little silos and once one problem is “fixed” you just move on to the next and eventually things are good once again.
We were shown a clip from her upcoming film and then I was invited along to dinner with Jen, my boss Joe K, one of our AVP’s Carol M and my International Admission Colleague Toni C. It was a great night, because there was no pretense, but great conversation on topics from Jen’s ongoing work, how she got into the countries she’s been to film etc. On Joe’s work in Zimbabwe and experiences he’s had along the way.
All in all it was a wonderful evening, with great people. I’m glad I’ve met Jen Marlowe and even more glad that we were able to give her an evening with our students, staff and faculty to talk about the important issues she’s documenting, and helping to show people. I’m glad we had a good turn out and that people asked such good questions.
The first and most important question was “What can I/we do to get involved, to help?” and I loved Jen’s answer on this. I just wish I could remember it verbatim. But I do leave you with a link to the Blog that she and David kept while in South Sudan, filming “Rebuilding Hope”
More about Jen from the Darfur Diaries site:
Jen Marlowe is currently directing “Rebuilding Hope”, a documentary film about South Sudan and is writing a book and a play about Palestine and Israel. She is on the board of directors for Friends of the Jenin Freedom Theatre, and is a founding member of the “Rachel’s Words” initiative. From 2000-2004, she coordinated and directed a conflict transformation program in Jerusalem, creating and implementing co-existence programs for hundreds of Palestinian and Israeli youth. In addition, she worked in conflict resolution with youth in Afghanistan, and facilitated dialogue groups between youth from Bosnia-Herzegovina, India and Pakistan, and Turkish and Greek Cypriot youth. Her writing can be found online in The Nation, Alternet and Counterpunch
A follow up post just on the Rebuilding Hope project in a bit…
Published by cypheroftyr
Tanya DePass is the founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago, which is dedicated to better diversification of all aspects of gaming. I Need Diverse Games serves the community by supporting marginalized developers, attendance at the Game Developer Conference by participating in the GDC Scholarship program, helps assist attendance at other industry events, and is seeking partnership with organizations and initiatives. Tanya is a lifelong Chicagoan who loves everything about gaming, #INeedDiverseGames spawn point, and wants to make the industry better and more inclusive for everyone. She’s part of the Rivals of Waterdeep actual play stream on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep, a partnered Twitch variety broadcaster; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics online, at conventions and as a public speaker..
She’s also contributed to publications at Green Ronin, Paizo and Monte Cook Games and is the co-developer for the Fifth Season RPG based on N.K. Jemisin’s three time Hugo award winning Broken Earth trilogy. She’s the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a Twitch supported RPG and Actual Play stream, airing weekly on her channel, twitch.tv/cypheroftyr. Additionally, she is a Senior Annenberg labs Civic Media Fellow at USC. She’s also the creator and Creative Director of Into the Mother Lands, a new sci fi afro-futurist RPG developed with a team of all POC and Black creators; live streamed on her twitch channel, /cypheroftyr.
She’s named as one of The Game Awards Future Class 2020, a diverse group of builders, thinkers and dreamers whose voices elevate and diversify our artform. It recognizes individuals around the world who represent the bright, bold and inclusive future for video games. She was also named as one of Gamers of the Year 2020 by Kotaku along with three of her contemporaries. She was also invited to the Xbox MVP program in February 2021.
Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021.
Tanya is the programming & diversity coordinator for OrcaCon and GaymerX. She also serves on the Board of Directors for OrcaCon and was named the Chair for Take This in January 2023. She often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. Her writing about games and games critique appears in Uncanny Magazine, Polygon, Wiscon Chronicles, Vice Gaming, Paste Games, Mic, and other publications. She’s the editor of Game Devs and Others: Tales from the Margins (2018, CRC Press) and contributed to The Advanced Game Narrative Toolbox. (2019, CRC Press)
Writer Bio for pubs: Tanya is the Founder and Director of I Need Diverse Games, a not-for-profit organization based in Chicago. She’s part of Rivals of Waterdeep, an actual play D&D show on twitch.tv/rivalsofwaterdeep; the programming coordinator for OrcaCon & GaymerX; and often speaks on issues of diversity, feminism, race, intersectionality & other topics at conventions. She’s on the Board of Take This as well as a Stream Ambassador, and was part of the inaugural cohort of The Game Awards Future Class. Her work to make the industry more inclusive has been highlighted in Game Changer, Directed by Tina Charles, WNBA star & olympian as well as filmmaker. The short documentary premiered at Tribeca 2021, as part of the Queen Collective; an initiative started by Queen Latifah, supported by Proctor & Gamble in an effort to get more Black women into film making. Game Changer was also featured as part of BETHer’s 2021 Juneteenth Programming on 19 June 2021.
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I’m not Jen Marlowe herself. I had dinner with her and wrote about it. Ms. Marlowe has a blog on Darfur Diaries.
Dear Jen Marlowe:
I read your account of the work you were doing in Darfur and I was very moved by your involvement and commitment to trying to mediate and work out connections among people in overwhelmingly difficult situations. Are you perhaps Jennifer Marlowe, Allen Marlowe’s daughter. He appeared in a number of my radio plays on WBAI FM and in other play readings of mine in the mid-seventies in New York. He was an extraordinary jazz pianist. If you are his daughter Id like to reconnect with you after these many years. If you are not, keep up the important work you are doing. I look forward to hearing from you.
Best,
Howard Pflanzer