Neighborhood public media

Wes Tank of Milwaukee and Dewey Tron of Arlington, Virginia have left traditional, corporate video directing behind in favor of showcasing their cities’ neighborhoods. As government funding for traditional public media and secondary media classes becomes uncertain, could such private media expertise at the local and micro-local levels create new means of audio and video expression in public spaces?

Above: Still from Reimagine Milwaukee Day | Imagine MKE, video by Wes Tank.

Our first video episode includes a ten-minute introduction highlighting Wes’s and Dewey’s community video work. The episode moves into an hour-long conversation among Wes, Dewey, and Bryce about their media work, their communities’ needs, and the trends in media production that affect communities at the neighborhood level. The conversation is also sprinkled with relevant portions of more media from these local talents, Dewey and Wes.

Wes owns Tank Think, a media production company that supports Milwaukee’s arts, literacy, government, health, and social justice. He also co-owns with Sara Daleiden the Washington Park Media Center, which trains neighborhood media people through an audio-visual club and mentoring. Catch Wes’s Vimeo channel for his professional videos and his YouTube channel for his more insane videos, including his viral videos setting Dr. Seuss’s work to rap. You can watch the complete version of Reimagine Milwaukee Day / Imagine MKE here.

Dewey is a director at Studio PAUSE, which serves two communities in Arlington with art studios, galleries, and educational centers for the public. Dewey has documented the diverse Columbia Pike corridor for many years as a member of the Columbia Pike Documentary Project. He recently directed the “We Are Barcroft” video series celebrating the lives of several Barcroft residents from different backgrounds. Check out his work on his professional site as well as his experimental work on his YouTube channel. You can watch the complete version of the Columbia Pike Documentary Project Video here.

Above: still from Nazneen Aktar — Like a memory in a frame from the “We Are Barcroft” oral history video series by Dewey Tron.

Above: Still from Reimagine Milwaukee Day | Imagine MKE, video by Wes Tank.

Above, still from Ronald J. Smith — The thing I learned to do is relax from the “We Are Barcroft” oral history video series by Dewey Tron.