Patrick, Nick and Brian, the Factory filmmakers collaborating with the Huey P. Newton Foundation, were moved by the tour and were disappointed by the lack of recognition the City of Oakland has accorded sites of such historical significance. They decided to create a virtual walking tour to raise visibility of the Black Panthers and their importance to the West Oakland community and to provide an opportunity for individuals outside of Oakland to learn the history.
These projects were made possible through Popcorn Maker, an open source tool by Mozilla. Popcorn Maker is a program that allows filmmakers with only a minimal grasp of HTML to integrate the limitless resources of the Internet into new film experiences. Click here to learn more about Popcorn Maker.
The subjects of the web-native videos were four non-profit organizations who participated in The Factory's annual Community Filmmaking Partnerships. Factory youth spend time volunteering for the organization, learning their values and goals, and then collaborate with the non-profit to produce media content that supports their mission. This year's CFPs are City Slicker Farms, the Huey P. Newton Foundation, Inspire USA, and Creative Growth.