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Seeking Submissions for
Finding Hope: I am a Survivor
(a video project)

Introduction

Pandora's Project is creating a video for our website that shows that survivors are real people, struggling but also healing and emerging. We believe that seeing other people's faces will help survivors who find Pandora's Project realize that they are not alone.

Of course, we can't do this project on our own so we are asking you to participate. We'd like to include as many photos in this video as possible, people of different ages, races and ethnicities, and genders.

Information for Participants

To participate, you take a standard sheet of paper and complete this simple sentence: I am ___________.

You can complete the sentences with a noun, like "I am a survivor" or "I am a man." Or it can be verb like "I am healing" or "I am thriving". However you want to finish that sentence - we want to show that survivor are real and varied people so we don't want to put many limitations on this. We'd like for this video to help people find hope, but it's okay to be honest too. "I am still struggling" for example is totally fine. Choose something meaningful to yourself and indicative of healing.

Once you've selected your sentence, have a photo of yourself taken holding that piece of paper. Then, email your photo to shannon[at]pandys.org and we'll include it in the video.

Here are some examples of photos we've received:

Some Guidelines

- Write your sentence on a standard sheet of paper. It can be white or colored. It can be plain or decorated. The words can be typed or handwritten. Just make sure that we can read what your sheet says. Your words need not be in English; use whatever language you are most comfortable with.

- Take your photo in front of a plain colored wall, or in a place that is meaningful to you.

- If you want to appear with a friend or family member, that is fine - we just ask that you are both survivors of sexual violence.

- Send a high quality photo, but please resize it so that it is under 3mb.


Legal Stuff

- This is limited to people who can sign a photo release, so that means you must be 18 or older. If you're under 18 and want to participate, contact shannon[at]pandys.org; we'd need a signature from a parent or legal guardian.

- We will need a photo release in order to use your photo. Submissions must come with this release. We will not include your name or email address with your photo. We will use your photo only for this project, but that might mean display online or, for example, if we loop the video while at a conference or something of that nature.

- The release below is irrevocable. That means that once you've given us permission to use your photo, we're not legally obligated to remove it if you change your mind. We will do our best to remove it in the future though if possible, especially if you're in an unsafe situation and need it removed for that reason.

Any questions, please let us know!  You can email shannon[at]pandys.org.




Photo Release

Send your photo to shannon[at]pandys.org and include this release in the body of the email:

I can be changed by what happens to me, but I refuse to be reduced by it.
- Maya Angelou