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KALAMAZOO, Mich.—Western Michigan University's Dr. Lusike Mukhongo is redefining service-learning through her film and media production courses, emphasizing non-extractive and non-intrusive approaches to filmmaking. 

Non-extractive and non-intrusive media production practices are at the heart of Mukhongo’s curriculum, promoting respect and mutually beneficial relationships between filmmakers and communities. A recipient of a 51������ experience-driven learning grant along with Wendy Swalla, senior instructional designer, and Shawn Tenney, director of service learning, Mukhongo encourages students to be mindful of what filmmakers extract from communities and challenges them to critically consider how they represent the people, stories and knowledge they encounter.

Her courses partner students with various local organizations, such as Loaves and Fishes, Kalamazoo Literacy Council and Peace Jam, to elevate their stories and provide film students with a new outlook on non-fiction video production.

“For a very long time, thinking about service-learning, I thought, 'What do students get out of it?' It was always very University-centered,” says Mukhongo, an associate professor in the School of Communication. “My approach has been thinking how mutually beneficial is it for that partner when we leave those spaces.”

A non-intrusive approach urges students to be aware of how they physically enter these spaces, especially with their equipment, and be mindful of how they interact with others’ homes, environments and communities.

“The communities we choose to work with are often under represented, historically under served; and by that fact, they’ve been under the glare of the camera for much longer. That’s where journalists go; that’s where filmmakers go,” she says. “These communities are constantly under surveillance, and their stories are constantly being taken.”

Students in Mukhongo’s classes typically spend one day a week in the classroom reading, learning, and reflecting on filmmaking and storytelling theory. For the rest of the week, they engage with their community at their partnership locations. Sometimes, students forgo equipment, focusing instead on getting to know the people they work with on a deeper level, building foundational trust and relationships before even picking up a camera.

In Mukhongo's fall 2024 class, Digital Video Production-Non-Fiction, students are creating short films centered on intergenerational dialogue. Each film will be five to seven minutes long, and the project is inspired by filmmaker Sky Bergman’s documentary “.” Partnering with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, Ecumenical Senior Center and Public Media Network, students are conducting interviews with seniors to explore what a "life well lived" looks like to them.

“It’s been amazing to see how students embrace it; they just sit there and soak in the stories,” Mukhongo said.

The students’ films will be showcased at the Public Media Network on Friday, Dec. 6. In the spring, Bergman is set to visit the students for a scholarly talk and another screening of their projects. 

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