A new project affiliated with New York University is looking for real-life  “Rosie the Riveters” in Michigan, reports the Associated Press.

Filmmakers Anne de Mare and Kirsten Kelly are recording the oral histories of women who went to work in America’s defense plants and munitions factories during World War II.

The filmmakers will be in Michigan at the end of next month to interview  “Michigan Rosies.”

They hope to have completed a documentary by the spring of 2011 and are working with the Tamiment Labor Archives at NYU, which contains archival, print, photograph, film and oral history collections documenting the history of the labor movement.

 If you or someone you know was a Rosie and is interested in participating, please contact: Kirsten Kelly (646-526-4407) or Sacha Schwimmer at (212) 925-5980 or via email at spargelfilms@gmail.com

Get more info at this link

Something new for students interested in a career in a variety of growing fields, including health care and entertainment.   

Stautzenberger College of Ohio Friday opened its new Michigan campus at the Unity Studios Complex in Allen Park, where students will be trained for those jobs.  

Oakwood Healthcare is the first major employer to partner with the college and will provide education, training and employment opportunities for students and graduates. The studio and campus is on Southfield Road near I-94. 

A statement from the college says classes, which will be taught for medical billing and coding, medical administrative technology, massage therapy, medical assisting, personal fitness training, and phlebotomy technician, start April 12th for the first 150 students.

“We will provide the training and curricula to enable our students to assume careers in professions that are growing in Michigan, including health care,” said Stautzenberger College President George Simon.

Unity Studios is a studio and entertainment complex project that was announced in 2009 and is expected to open soon with feature sound stages, production services, post audio dub stages, music recording stages and post video services where films, TV ads and other similar productions can be completed.

Financial aid is available for students who qualify.

Click here for enrollment and other information about the Stautzenberger Institute.

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A Fraser company needs workers and plan to hire hundreds over the next year and a half. It used to be known as “Scenic Design,” but is now “Scenic Prop and Design,” and company officials say, these days, there’s a lot of demand for what they produce.

It’s making props for film, TV, and other uses in the entertainment industry — and may mean from 200 to 300 new jobs.  The firm has been around for awhile, coming up with props for Black Sabbath, and TV shows like Extreme Makeover.

Potential candidates will need to be trained for the jobs, and to find out where and how visit www.centerforfilmstudies.com or call (248) 545-2648.

Sink your teeth into a movie role! Detnews.com reports a casting call will be held for an upcoming flick called “Vampire Tales” from 1-2:30 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 9,  at 1515 Broadway Theater, 1515 Broadway St., Detroit.

The film is about a vampire trying to make it big on a reality TV show. The film will be shot in New York City. Roles available: a male and female vampire, ages 20 to early 30s, any ethnicity or race. Also needed are six male and female reality show contestants, ages 20 to 45, and extras ages 12 to 45.

For information, visit http://www.timgreenefilms.com/.

Lights, camera, action! At Risk Entertainment is holding a casting call on January 2, 2010 at Summit on the Park in Canton at 1 p.m.

The casting call is for the latest film by the production company titled “Locked in a room”. The movie will begin filming in Michigan in February.

Click here for the production company’s website.

Think you’re the ultimate Survivor? Then head to WWJ-TV’s open call for Survivor on Thursday, December 17th, from 3-7pm, at Gardner White Furniture in Canton, for your chance to audition!
Location:
Gardner White Furniture
39453 Ford Road
CANTON, MI 48187

Date: Thursday, December 17, 2009

Time: 3 – 7pm

Applicants must be 18 and over. Please review the official application and eligibility requirements before attending and bring a copy of the COMPLETED application, and a valid Driver’s License with you to the open call. You will not be considered without these items.  You can get all the forms you need at this link.

Upon receiving these items from you, THEY will film your application video, live, on site.

Questions? Call WWJ-TV at (248) 355-7000.

Does your family need to lose 30 or more pounds? Do you want the country watching as you lose it? Jillian Michaels was the health expert on NBC’s The Biggest Loser–and now, she’s looking for Michigan families to whip into shape for her new show, Losing it With Jillian.

There a casting call today and tomorrow from 3-8 p.m. at the Gardner White store at 45300 Hayes Road in Macomb Township.

In the series, Michaels invades a different family every week to give them tough love. She will get to the bottom of the issues each family member faces – ones that affect their health and happiness – and will arm them with the tools necessary to make life-altering changes.

“When your health is out of balance everything else suffers – finances, relationships, work and family dynamics. I’m moving in with families across the country, getting down and dirty and rooting out bad habits in every corner of their lives that are preventing them from health and happiness,” says Michaels.

For more, click here or send an email to jodicasting@gmail.com.

What’s on the minds of students in Michigan and across the country?  C-SPAN is in Metro Detroit this week, letting middle and high school students know about The network’s Student Cam Documentary Competition. Rebecca Stewart is C-Span’s Community Representative.

“We ask them to film documentaries that are five to eight minutes long about an issue of their choice. And, we want them to show multiple perspectives and multiple points of view,” Stewart told WWJ’s Greg Bowman. “They’ll send those into us, along with some C-Span footage, and we’ll judge them,” she said.

This year’s theme is either one of the country’s greatest strengths, or a challenge that the country is currently facing.

What is Stewart expecting to see  from students who enter the competition? 

“Last year we got almost a thousand entries from across the country, and even some international entries. The topics spanned from health care and the economy, to colony collapse disorder. As a matter of fact, one of our winners was about water conservation, and another was the honey beer and what’s going on with them in the United States,” she said.

A total of $50 thousand dollars will be awarded in cash prizes, including 75 student awards and 11 teacher awards .  The best overall entry will be awarded the $5,000 grand prize. 

The deadline for entries is January 20, 2010.

Get details on how you can enter the competition at this link.

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The Michigan film and television industry needs trained men and women for over 1,000 jobs in production roles behind the scenes. Marygrove College in Detroit is offering the course and experience that interested individuals need to get those jobs.

The Urban Film Institute will be conducting classes at two Detroit College campus locations: Eastern Michigan University Campus (Detroit Campus), 18100 Meyers Rd., Detroit, MI 48235; and, Marygrove College, 8425 McNichols, Detroit, MI 48221.

The classwork is presented by industry professional and native Detroiter, Philip (Kojo) Vaden. “The purpose of this class is to train students in production assisting so that they can obtain entry-level jobs in the growing film industry here in Michigan,” explained Vaden. The eight-week course offers a wide variety of creative and technology-based programming.

Get more info at this link.

“Movies in Michigan – What’s in it for you?” is the topic of IABC Detroit’s meeting from 11:45 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 30, at the Detroit Opera House.

Insiders will discuss Michigan film industry happenings and how communication skills can transfer into the growing business field. Speakers are Erica Hill, director of the Detroit Film Office, and Mike Mosallum, director of the Wayne County Film Initiative. The event includes lunch and a backstage tour. Free parking is included with advance registration via PayPal.

Admission is $25 for IABC members or $35 for nonmembers. Register via PayPal at iabcdetroit.com. A PayPal account is not needed. The Detroit Opera House, 1526 Broadway St., is off Grand Circus Park east of Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit.
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