Regent Park Focus

On tonight’s Catch da Flava, we talked about the recent string of violence that has hit Toronto in the past week and a half; there have been incidents ranging from stabbings, shootings and bodies being found in places of worship. It is still early in 2016, at least in my opinion it is, I personally thought the violence in Toronto had slowed down since the huge burst earlier in January, where Toronto saw over 20 gun related incidents take place which resulted in 10 deaths. On a similar topic, we talked about the Toronto Police’s plan to ban random instances of carding. The plan is to make sure every civilian is informed of the situation before being carded, and to ensure that Police Officers write a report about the reason for carding. Many of us at Catch da Flava have had incidents where we were carded without reason so naturally we would be in favour of this. However there is always a downside because it makes the police officers job a little more difficult and some real criminals ...

This past week was probably one of the most sad and violent weeks of 2016. First off, there were the bombings in Brussels, which is a city in Belgium, which claimed the lives of 35 people and injured over 250. ISIS claimed responsibility and it was linked to the same group that carried out the Paris attacks. Secondly there was the death of Toronto mayor Rob Ford after his long battle with cancer. Personally it affected me greatly because I’ve met him before he became mayor and got to see what a kind person he is. He had done great things for the city of Toronto and the citizens who do not have a voice. Sadly during his term as mayor, he got more attention for the wrongs in his life rather than the good things he had done but he will always be appreciated as a down to earth and fearless person who just wanted fairness and equality. We talked about culture appropriation and culture vultures in popular media. We talked about the difference between being inspired by other cultures or art...

Divas Media Group Blog Last week the Divas Media Group met and the ladies had Muna from Gashanti Unity guest speak. The ladies participated in a “Bingo” activity based on Black History Month. The ladies learned new terms and took turns facilitating the activity. Later, the ladies along with Muna had a group discussion on how their social identities would be different if black people were not granted civil rights. The girls reflected on their lives and identified privileges that they have that were not granted to females and black people during the slave trade. At the end of the meeting, the ladies spoke with Muna about shadeism and its origin. The ladies are excited to watch the short documentary Shadeism in the next couple of weeks. By: Tusma Sulieman Date: February 25, 2016

Last Week, here at Regent Park Focus we had seven students come from the University of Toronto – involved in the Alternative Reading Week Program. These students participated in the collaboration for three days; each day different tasks were assigned to the students. On day one we welcomed the students to the space by introducing them to the two programs: RPTV and Radio Regent. They were shown what happens behind the close doors in terms of production. After the walk through we had an icebreaker called snowball to get better acquainted with each other. After the warm up, we went through the agenda for the day. On the same day we had the students create and research topics related to community media access, they were told that this material would be used on Catch Da Flava, and that they also would be hosting the segment for that week. It went GREAT and the students were complete naturals at hosting their own radio segment. On the second day, we distributed pre-made poster of each of ou...

On tonight’s catch da flava, we talked about one of the biggest issues that impact everyone young and old. Online harassment is one of the most serious types of bullying in the entire world. It has lead to many young teens taking their own lives as well as taking the lives of others on a large scale (school shootings). Online Harassment or cyber bullying is not the same as face-to-face bullying. Online Harassment opens up the door for literally everyone in the world with access to the Internet, to either be bullies or heroes. The Internet is a place for people to express themselves and their thoughts but obviously everyone will not agree with everyone else. It is a place for people to express their right to freedom of speech which extends to the internet world however at times, freedom of speech allows people to say the nastiest things imaginable without facing much prosecution other than that of the internet world. Recently employers have been making it a habit to filter out cyber b...

Last week, the girls from the Diva Media Group had to concentrate on writing a journal entry in honor of black history month. The girls had the choice to write either about their favorite black history role model or why black history is important to them. This exercise allowed the girls to reflect upon historic facts and the significance of black leaders that have positively influenced the movement of human rights for minorities. The ladies participated in a brief discussion to share their thoughts and views about this revolutionary month. The diva’s underlined some stimulating opinions about history and included some thoughts on inspirational leaders such as Martin Luther King. Additionally, the ladies also participated in a Regent Park Focus meeting about the progression of the Mobile Media Bike, in which two special guests were invite to share their ideas and experiences working with media mobility on bicycles. By: Anne-Julie Guerrier

On tonight’s Catch da Flava, we talked about the crisis currently going on in Toronto and the GTA. It has only been a month since the New Year and there have already been 12 homicides with the youngest victim being a 17-year-old boy. It is frightening that there have been this many homicides so early into the year. What could be causing this? One CBC article talks about the weather and how it may be to blame. This isn’t as ridiculous as it sounds, since more people are outside on the streets when it is warm outside. Speaking of weather, Super Bowl 50 was hot this year. Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos defeated Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers 24-10; It was a good day for most fans. However what really caught fire was Beyoncé’s halftime performance. The two previous performances by Bruno Mars and Coldplay were pretty solid, however Beyoncé caught the world’s attention. She performed her newest song called “Formation” and the song basically highlighted the issues many black p...

Last week the Divas Media Group met and the ladies outlined their goals/objectives for the next couple of months. The ladies participated in a “time capsule” workshop where they wrote letters to themselves. The letters were then sealed and will be opened at the end of the program. The ladies and the tobacco youth mentors printed multiple copies of the Tobacco prevention PSA. The ladies then got into their characters and practiced their lines. At the end of the meeting, the ladies lead a small group discussion surrounding Black History Month and its importance. By: Tusma Sulieman and Julie Guerrier January 29, 2016

On tonights catch da flava, we discuss a couple of very interesting topics, few but interesting. We found a story about a woman who had been keeping two children as slaves for the past 6 years. I guess most children feel like slaves when their parents tell them to clean the dishes or take out the trash. The case in New York was a case of actual slavery where the children's freedoms and liberty were taken away. It raises questions at to how much of that is actually going on? We also talked about the environment and how it is drastically changing for the worse. We talked about a massive glacier in the western region of Antarctica that could potentially cause global distress. Vice news claims that if this giant piece of ice melts, it could increase water levels up to 10 feet. Meaning many island nations and coastal towns will be left underwater. Finally we talked about the $1.3bn powerball in the U.S.A. and the hysteria it has caused. It is the highest payout on US history and ha...

Divas in Media Group Blog Last week, the Divas Media Group met and discussed the Tobacco PSA radio segment. The ladies made a few changes and focused on assigning roles to each of its members. We had two past Divas (now youth leaders) visit and give guidance to the ladies while leading the discussion. The ladies are enthusiastic and eager to begin taping. At the end of the meeting the ladies engaged each other in a conversation around the upcoming Black History Month. The ladies have brainstormed various activities/videos that they would like to be apart of in honour of their Black heritage. Next week, the ladies will expand more on their brainstorms. Stay tuned for some more exciting and creative projects from the Divas Media Group. By: Tusma Sulieman Date: January 22, 2016

This past week, The Divas in Media Group met and finalized their roles and obligations in the upcoming PSA’s. The ladies made a realistic timeline and created steps to ensure that they remain on track. They discussed possible future career choices and aspirations. Their career choices ranged from science related to arts based. The ladies were interested in having a speaker in each of their chosen career fields hold a workshop. The ladies partook in an opinion activity based on current social trends in the media. The ladies made concise statements and gave examples from the media when arguing their choices. They eventually went on to lead the discussion themselves and come up with social issues that they regard to be controversial. The ladies finished the day off with a peer lead discussion on activities they wish to do throughout the year. By: Tusma S.

Last week, the ladies of the Diva's Media Group gathered together to discuss and brainstorm their upcoming media project. The goal was to underline an important topic for a public service announcement. There were recurring subjects such as the Muslim religion, Isis, hijabs, radicalization etc. Accordingly, the girls decided to narrow their public service announcement on the misleading perception and preconceived notions of Muslims. Their intentions were to highlight the current issues of radicalization within communities. The PSA is a scenario that shows the negative influence that the media and the community has had on the younger generation, leading them to follow in others footsteps by mistreating Muslims. The PSA will express the issues of this new epidemic. The Divas had the opportunity to share and add their input to the scenario. As we discussed and developed the screenplay, different character roles were separated within the group. As an initiative, the girls thought it wo...

With today being the final Catch da Flava radio show of the year, the team decided to keep things light and enjoyable. We chose not to focus on negative news, we chose to freestyle the show and it turned out great. We shared a lot of laughs and laughter is always good. We spoke about UFC 194: Connor McGregor vs Jose Aldo and whether it was a waste of money for people who paid to watch it. McGregor and Aldo were the main event and their fight only lasted about 13 seconds. Do people pay for a good fight? Or a quick 10-second knock out? Today was also the first day that grocery stores in Ontario could sell alcohol. Not all groceries stores are participating, however having alcohol available at grocery stores could be convenient for people as well as damaging to store owners and the surrounding communities. On a similar note, Premier Kathleen Wynne believes that marijuana should be legalized and only sold by the LCBO. Is this a good or bad decision? What will legalization mean for the t...

Catch Da Flava On tonights Catch Da Flava, we had a special 30-minute interview for our Youth at Work Safety segment. We had two guests; Catherine is a lawyer with the injured workers consultants and Heather who is a victim of workplace injury and also works with and advocates for injured workers. Heather actually had a very unique injury due to the fact that she has an invisible injury. Heather had a tough experience with workers compensation because it is hard to prove that her injury was something that came from her place of work. It is usually easier to receive compensation if you have a visible injury such as, a broken arm or leg. Catherine explained some of the hidden details in workers compensations rules/policies and what is being done to change workers comp to accommodate invisible injuries. Later on in the show, we talked about more Donald trump! Usually the only time we talk about the same topic nearly everyweek was with Uber, but these days news on uber has been quiete...

The Crossroads Punjabi Cultural Show Blog On December 8th we had our first Crossroads with Punjabi Cultural show take place. We had a guest on our show who calls himself SB, who is upcoming musician within the Punjabi community. The music SB creates in the category of Rap/Hip-Hop music. SB has been making music for a few years as he was explaining his story of high school having a huge influence on him creating music. SB is from the Punjabi descent and emphasized that his diverse cultural had a huge impact on his music in a positive way. SB told us a story about his first musical experiences with his friends which lead him to record his first song. We also discussed the current issues of the state of Punjab in India. SB mentioned how music can be empowering and in sense advocate for social issues in India. Later on in the show we talked about how the government in India started funding programs that supported arts & culture programs. We concluded on how powerful music can be and ...

DIVA’S MEDIA GROUP This week the girls from the Diva’s Media Group focused on enforcing positive affirmations and images through the creation of unique vision boards. This activity motivated the girls to strengthen their self-esteem. The idea of a vision board allows the girls to be surround themselves with positive images of who they want to become, where they want to travel, their desires, dream careers and much more. In order to create this vision board, the girls had to cut out pictures in magazines, newspapers and create drawings. They were able to extend their creative abilities and critically think of their future aspirations. The girls will also have the opportunity to apply this activity to their upcoming Girls Talk video, where they will engage in discussion and present their vision boards.  The divas were able to enjoy creating and developing their own unique vision boards. By: Anne-Julie Guerrier

Last week, the ladies from the Diva’s Media Group attended the second meeting involving members who are actively working with Regent Park Focus, to discuss the upcoming project of the Mobile Media Bike. This project will encourage the development of new media ideas that will promote Regent Park Focus. The meeting allowed members to underline the main advantages and disadvantages that were listed at the previous meeting, to now form concrete ideas that will narrow down the Mobile Media Bike’s purpose. The Divas were able to participate and give ideas on the focus of the utility of the bike within the community. The girls chose to present a specific event, in which the bike can be utilized. The “Sunday In The Park” is an event in July that occurs in the Regent Park community, was an excellent choice for the girls as they recognized the volume of families and young girls that participate at the annual fair. The girls explained the ways the Mobile Media Bike could be used with the parti...

This week in Diva’s Media Group, the young ladies explored the themes of beauty and self-confidence. The group had the chance to view “Girls Talk: The Sexualization of Girls in Media”, a video that invited a young group of girls from 11 to 14 years old to advocate for their definition of beauty while analyzing pictures of current women in the media. The Diva’s participated in their own “girls talk”, sharing their views and observations on the media’s perception of beauty. They all had unique definitions of the term beauty, pointing out key words such as friendliness, pure hearth, personality, awesomeness and more. The girls also identified their role models and offered individual explanations for their choices. The Diva’s expressed their advocacy for girls as they defined and acknowledged true inner beauty.

On tonight's Catch da Flava, We decided to introduce a new 5-minute music/art segment to the show. We thought that talking about depressing news all the time would eventually get pretty stale so every week from this day onward, we will feature some sort of art/music element to the show. We talked a little bit about the new kitchen library that will be opening on November 5th in Daniel Spectrum, as well as the tragic Russian airline crash that claimed the lives of 224 civilians, what could have brought the plane down? To listen to this show, go to: http://www.regentparkfocus.com/radio/2015.html

On tonights Catch Da Flava, we talk about our new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the future of Canada. We talked about voter turnout, and the controversial Bill-C51 and how it will affect people in Canada. We also talked about something that many people are worried about..World War 3!, how will it start? How will thw world end?

On October 16th 2015, the student leaders from the Youth Talk Collective had the opportunity to present a project proposal at Toronto Metro City Hall for The Investment in Youth Engagement Initiative. The Youth Talk Collective is made of a youth alumni of the Regent Park Focus Media Arts Centre’s training program. The Investment in Youth Engagement Initiative, led by Toronto Public Health, was established to encourage youth engagement work on Health topics, with an emphasis on tobacco. The initiative creates various opportunities for youth to advocate for healthy lifestyles, develop leadership skills and engage in local communities. A youth panel for the Investment in Youth Engagement greeted Julia Pham and Maeshah Haque, two student leaders from the Youth Talk Team to speak on their plan to bring awareness on tobacco. The young ladies proposed to create a media project underlining tobacco prevention and awareness with a focus on radio broadcasting. In the past year, students explored ...

On tonight's show, we focus on the upcoming elections and talk about the importance of voting with our special guests Asma and Aya who both volunteer with the Canadian Arab Institute. We touched on subjects regarding how Arab youth are affected by western lifestyle, as well as possible reasons why many youth in Canada do not vote. We discussed many interesting topics that everybody should hear about, especially our political representatives. Check it out at http://www.regentparkfocus.com/radio/media/2015-10-06.mp3

On tonights Catch Da Flava, we talked about the vaughn car crash that claimed the lives of 4 people including 3 young children. A drunk driver who sped through an intersection and slammed into the van that contained the 3 young children and their grandfather killed them. We also spoke about driverless cars and how they would impact the masses, as well as how they would the taxi industry and other businesses. We touched on the Uber vs Taxi drivers’ fiasco and how uber should be regulated. To conclude the show we talked about our “favourite” person, Donald Trump and what he would do for american citizens if he did end up becoming president of the United States of America

On tonights Catch Da Flava, we talked about the wrongful arrest of 14 year-old Ahmed Mohammed who made international headlines after he was arrested for bringing a homemade clock to school. His teacher assumed it was a bomb and reported Ahmed. We discussed racial profiling and stereotyping and how it affects people in their day-to-day lives, we also briefly talked about how Ahmed’s situation could have been handled differently.

On tonight's show we talk about Youtube comedian Nicole Arbour's "Dear: Fat People" video which has generated a lot of controversy and backlash for promoting fat-shaming. Are Youtubers role models? Should they uphold a level of responsibility over the type of messages they produce to their young audience? We also talk about the recent interview with Ellen and Caitlyn Jenner which exposes her views on gay-marriage; of which she doesn't 100% currently support. We also touched on TIFF and Arnold Schwarzenegger to replace Donald Trump in Celebrity Apprentice. Hosted by Alex, Tyrone and Judd.

On Tuesday, August 25, Catcha Da Flava was co-hosted by Maeashah, Sarah, Tyrone, and Judd. To start off the show, Maeashah and Sarah covered a story out of Taiwan where a 12 year old boy had tripped while visiting a museum, and fallen into a 1.5 million dollar painting. The girls discussed other famous cases of people damaging expensive art work, and what happens when you break something that costs millions of dollars! The topic then turned to the CNE, and the great events and crazy foods that are being showcased this year. The theme this year seems to be deep fried- popular items include chicken waffle on a stick, tidbits piton, frosted flake battered chicken, poutine balls, and bacon wrapped grilled cheese. That made an interesting segue to the next item up for discussion- health and wellness! Tyrone joined in for a conversation on new research that claims people do not need to drink 8 glasses of water a day. The panel found this a little hard to believe, since they and the rest of ...

When we don’t have any workshops running so we continue working on our independent work. All of us are doing different things. One group had a radio interview scheduled this morning which went very well. The rest of us where editing more episodes and as soon as you were done a new project we would be assigned a new one. This way we all stay productive and get the episodes and radio shows done on time. One of the groups was working on a script for a mock trial to teach youth about the Landlord and Tennant issues. By the end of the day we gathered together a crew and filmed the whole mock trial. Even though we had to stay longer we all stayed supportive and helped each other out to feel comfortable on set and behind the cameras so everything is done smoothly and quick. Instead of using the studio we filmed in the big common area. It was a fun new experience because we had different backgrounds to work with and a lot more angles we could fill from. Since the lighting workshop we all are...

Today we focused mainly on just getting a lot of work done, which was great!! Kerry had scheduled for us to have someone from CBC come in to talk to all of us but because of an emergency, they weren’t able to come in today. So, instead we just continued editing our unfinished projects. I got a lot done on the Family Fuze project with Adonis which should be 100% finished within the next couple days. Everyone else was working on their various projects. Stephanie was continuing her episode of French TV. By: Pierce Holmes

Today was definitely a very productive and busy day. Around 1:30PM the Pablito Greco from Life X came in again! We continued our lighting work shop but this time we got in depth. He started the workshop by giving us a review of what we learned the previous session and then told us what we’d be doing today which is getting hands on with our lighting technique. After he finished his short lecture, we all entered the studio. He told us what we have to do to improve our lighting in our productions by showing us the effectiveness of Key, Fill and Back lighting. Also told us that we should always turn of the room lights when shooting, and only focus primarily on our Key, Fill and Back lights. Was very informative and I hope will have some effect on our productions from now on. Our day didn’t end there though! Afterwards, Me, Stephanie, and Maeashah had to go out to do our radio show at the farmers market. For the sake of attraction, we also brought with us the Mammal bike. Our show top...

The morning started with all of us editing. I have come very close to finalizing the family fuze episode! Once the afternoon started, we were told that we are going to have someone come in to do a workshop on lighting! His name was Pablito Greco. I immediately recognized him from one of our shows, Life X. Which I actually edited! He has a very engaging and enthusiastic vibe which made it much easier to stay engaged and interested rather than staring off into space. The thing I liked about him the most is that he gets everyone involved. He taught us a variety of things about the types of lighting, what certain types of lighting are used for, and a whole lot of other interesting stuff. By: Pierce Holmes

Shellana, Sarah, Emmanual, Tyrone, and Judd co-hosted Catch Da Flava on August 18th. To start off, Shellana filled everyone in on the ‘Tim Mortons’ that was found in South Korea. Apparently, Canadians living in South Korea were excited at what they thought was the opening of their beloved Canadian coffee house, but to their disappointment it turned out to only be a knock off. The panel decided they would not be interested in trying Tim Mortons coffee. Next, the discussion turned to youtube prankster Coby Persin, whose latest ‘child luring’ prank has gone viral. In the prank, Coby convinced three sets of parents to let him pose as a 15 year old boy on social media, and contact their teenage daughters to see if they would agree to meet him. All three girls fell for his prank, and he lured them into different scenarios where their very angry parents were waiting for them. The hosts discussed this case, and other pranks that have gone too far, and if it’s time for some restrictions on wh...

Today, we had a researcher who specialized in temp work, Ellen MacEachon come in because we had to get a show done with her since it follows our August theme of workers rights. When she came in, we had to start getting ready to shoot the show, so we all sat down and had her tell us what she does and the ethics of temp work. I have to say, I learned a lot during that conversation. Afterwards, we began shooting the show when came out to be a great success without any errors. Very informative day! By: Pierce Holmes

The editors stuck to their work and the majority of us have edited very successful shows and in a quick time period. I personally am editing 4 shows at the moment it’s a lot of work but very rewarding when you finish and can show it to people. We had a lot of new participants starting to learn how to edit and they caught on very quick. Another group was brainstorming for a new radio show topic and contacting people to bring on as guests. The third group had a script already prepared to portray social justice issues. They brainstormed on who should play what character and added in some additional information to make sure the idea will clearly come across to the audience and easy to understand. As well as deciding the props they were going to use to make the situation as realistic as possible. Overall we were a hard working team this week.

This week the focus really was on completing your independent work or group radio shows. It was a very focused day where the editors continued to get their work done. With the radio groups everyone was adding their last few touches to their projects. They also researched more about their next topic they are to be doing which is a live radio show. So the main focus of today was to just get a better understanding and practice creating storyboards and scripts for our videos and radio shows.

We all have our own assigned projects now so today we mostly did independent work. Some of us are working on editing projects while others are working on their radio shows. We all worked for the most day getting what we needed done. By the end of the day one group did a radio show. We set it up so that all the rest of the participants could watch them and listen to their topic on the thought of Toronto hosting the 2024 Olympic games and what it means to be a Canadian. Afterwards we all helped give them feedback to improve their show.

This week our main focus is getting up to speed with all of our editing projects. All the other participants that are not editing are working on their radio show topics. Either editing their audio or researching more about their topic to add to their show. We have a guy that comes in every so often, his name is Andrew he’s the director of the music program. He started to teach us more about Garage Band, and how to create our own music. We learnt how to add different instruments that already have a certain rhythm and also how to create our own rhythm with certain instruments. The goal in the end is to create our own piece of music for our radio show to make it more fun and exciting.

Last week we had Linda from the Toronto Workers’ Health & Safety Legal Clinic come in, so today she came in again with a few more guests. We filmed two episodes about their organization and the rights youth have to refusing unsafe work. We did a quick recap listening to them and writing down notes for the show. We were all assigned our individual roles in the studio so as they were talking we would think about how the TV show should be produced.   It was my first time hosting today, it’s a nerve-racking experience if you haven’t been on camera a lot. What is so great about FOCUS is that we all help each other out. We all have our own jobs but we are there to guide each other.

On August 9th, Regent Park Focus broadcasted live at Sunday in the Park, Regent Park’s annual community festival. The youth summer media group prepared two radio shows and some live music for the day. Maeashah and Aidan rode the mobile media lab from Focus over to Regent Park, attracting quite a bit of attention along the way. Once they arrived at the park, the group started their first radio show, a live interview with Beixi Liu from the Workers’ Action Centre, which was hosted by Sadie and Sarah. Beixi answered questions about workers’ rights, youth rights at work, and told the crowd all about Ontario’s fight for $15 and fairness, which is a campaign to raise the minimum wage in Ontario to $15. The next show was about Canada’s upcoming election, and how to get Canada’s youth more involved, hosted by Vina and Sarah. The first guest was Toronto Centre NDP candidate Linda McQuaig. Linda answered Vina and Sarah’s questions and gave her perspective on how to get youth more involved...

We all brainstormed today as a team about different topics we should talk about at the radio show at “Sunday in the park.” We came up with the topics: Workers Action Centre, what it means to be Canadian, the elections coming up etc. We all got to work and started researching a lot about our independent topics so we are prepared for Sunday. We also discussed how we are going to be doing a live radio show in the park. We planned how we should introduce the show and how we should sit so the audience can watch and stay engaged. It was a very helpful and productive day overall getting all the work done and making sure we are all on the same page.

Beixi Liu from the Workers Action Centre came to talk to us about Youth Rights at Work and the Employment Standards Act (ESA). He talked to us about the rights we have as an employer and when we can refuse unsafe work. It was also interesting to hear about when we can/ can’t get paid for vacation. It was also interesting to find out that Ontario has no sick days. Beixi thought that it was unfair too because when your sick you have no control, either you stay home and lose pay or you go to work and contaminate everyone. By the end of the workshop he talked to us about Fight For $15 and Fairness. This campaign wants to bring up the minimum wage to $15 so it raises us right above the poverty line. It was a very informative workshop we were all engaged and asking a lot of questions. It is a great workshop to have for youth because it reminds us and teaches us about our rights, which usually go ignored. - Sadie

Today we had Linda Vannucci a lawyer / director of the Toronto Workers’ Health & Safety Legal Clinic come talk to us about workers safety. She told us about some of the cases she had to work with and the bad situations that we could find ourselves in. She described to us the rights we have to refusing unsafe work and the options we have to contacting people other than your employer. It was a very informative workshop. Most of us may have learnt some of this information in school but now that we are all in a workplace environment it was helpful to remind us of our rights that we have, and that we need to be cautious of our surroundings while still getting the job done. - Sadie

July 20th Today renowned chiropractor, Scott Levine came back to film a small series of TV shows on how to stay healthy and what we should do to stay healthy. July 21st Today, the youth planned for their radio shows and we discussed their topics further. They set up interviews with guests and continued to plan out the rest of their radio shows. July 22nd Today, the youth got to experience what it’s like to to be in the Landlord and Tenant board. The youth witnessed many different trials and expanded their knowledge of how to advocate for themselves and how being prepared is very important. July 23rd The youth planned for radio and continued to broaden their understanding of the subjects. They continued to find guests. Some of the youth edited their radio PSA’s while others worked on other projects such as editing past TV shows. July 24th Today, OJEN came back in to talk to the youth about tenant issues. They also took part in a mock trial where...

So, the morning started off with us all getting together talking about the plan for that day and as usual we began with just editing unfinished projects. I finished editing the PANAMAZING program and have just about finished the intro. All we need to do now is add some visuals. Afterlunch we got together to discuss the current status of everyone’s radio shows. There are still people remaining (including myself) who need to do street interviews. Because my partner, Sarah was absent, I wasn’t able to do mine. However, Danny’s partner was also away and he really wanted to get started on his streeters. I volunteered to help him. We took out all the equipment we required, signed it out and went on our street interview journey. We decided to go to around the Yonge and Dundas intersection since there tend to be a lot of people around there. When we got there, Danny seemed to be very under pressure when trying to approach people since it was his first time. But I helped him out. And rejection...

Today we discussed various topics from giant robots to sexist tweets from soccer clubs. It was an eventful time on air this week with many lively discussions and opinions getting thrown about. We had new voices join us this week on air such as Tyrone and Faben. We also discussed the upcoming Pan Am / Para Pan games that are being held in Toronto this year! We had a really fun and lively discussion this week!

Members of the Summer Media Training Program interviewed two members of Toronto’s Food Security movement as part of their Radio Program on Food Justice. The first guest was Justine Barone, the Community Advocacy Coordinator, from CRC Regent Park Community Food Centre. Justine told us all about Regent Park Community Food Centre and the programs that run there, like their Community Meal Program, Food Skills Programs, and Community Gardens. Justine told us all about the important role food plays in community development, and gave us advice about how youth can become involved in the food justice movement. Our second guest was Andrew Antonio, who is the Coordinator at the Riverside Good Food Market. He told us about how the Riverside Good Food Market provides fresh, affordable food to the Riverside community at a very low price point. The organization is volunteer run, so it really brings the entire community together. Andrew’s advice to youth was that we should learn how to cook. He sa...

Today, OJEN brought three special guests for a panel Q&A. We had Melissa Huntley - a 51-Ddivision police officer, Serena – a A Regent Park crisis counselor -- and Samira, – a lawyer who represents youth under 18. We also had a panel discussion where youthwe asked the guests a variety of questions ranging from their choice of career, their passions, their challenges and what they have accomplished for the community. It was a very informative day!

Members of the summer youth media training program are working on developing radio segments that focus on social justice issues. The topics being covered are food justice, the dispute between UBER vs. taxi, the new sex-ed curriculum, and the concept of true beauty. Most of the shows are currently in the pre-production stage, volunteers are working on booking guests to interview, as well as creating several Public Service Announcements on each topic. The volunteers will start to record their shows and interview guests next week. Some groups were ready to start recording today, and went out to interview people on the street to get a public perspective on their topic. The group also worked together to create a template for the best way to reach out and contact appropriate guests for their shows. They will be able to use this template for future projects, as well as their radio segments. Finally, the group spent time coming up with questions for the police officers and lawyers who will b...

July 15, 2015 Today, OJEN hosted another Youth and the Law workshop on criminal vs civilian charges. We discussed our knowledge of the law, and participated in an activity to test our understanding and awareness.

Today, our youth participants split up into their radio teams and started their pre-production plans. Some youth reached out to the community to come in for interviews, while others researched facts and information about their topic. They were informed about how to have an organized structure to their radio documentary, and look for guests who normally wouldn’t be interviewed about their area of expertise   ( e.g., if exploring the new Ontario sex ed. Curriculum,-- instead of asking another parent -- , ask a police officer who has dealt with sexual assault cases. )

Today, our group began two media projects – a radio documentary and a health-themed television show. The summer program’s volunteers and staff were divided into smaller groups to plan and produce the audio project with an emphasis on addressing Toronto’s social justice issues. Our topics include: the new sex-ed curriculum in elementary schools, the debate between UBER and licensed/taxi drivers, and food justice in our community. In the afternoon, we had an award-winning chiropractor, Dr. Scott Levine, host a health and fitness workshop to help prevent injuries at work. He gave us an informative, engaging and life-changing advice on how to improve our lifestyle through better posture, inhaling deeper breaths and an emphasis on a healthy high-fat diet (i.e nuts, salmon, avocados, coconut, etc).

Today’s session consisted of two workshops: continuing the camera workshop, and a special presentation from OJEN (Ontario Justice Education Network). Vina and Adonis held the camera workshop focusing on camera functions, shots and angles. We also expanded on the do’s and don’ts of interviewing/hosting. We had guests come in from the Ontario Justice Education Network – they hosted a workshop on community justice, stereotypes and the police enforcement. Everyone had a chance to participate through discussion and post-it activities. The workshop gave everyone an in depth and thought provoking session.

From May 16 th - August 15th 2015, the Pan Am Path will feature art and events in different locations around Toronto. On Saturday, July 4 th , the Diva Girls took Pan Amazing TV to the Pan Am Path to check out the art installations and talk with the many Toronto residents and visitors who were out on the trail.   The first stop was the undercurrent audio installation that sang the river’s Anishinaabemowin name to people passing by on the bridge. On their way to the next feature, the girls ran into Lois Lindsay from Evergreen who gave them an update on the path and all of the great events scheduled throughout the summer. The Divas also got to chat with some passersby who gave their thoughts on what they had seen for the day. Next, the Diva girls took in a live public poetry performance by over 25 participants.   Afterwards, the Divas were lucky enough to bump into some Aboriginal performers who took the time to talk with the girls about the river and their ...

Today, the morning staff got together to create an interactive game for our mobile media lab. Our goal was to interpret the Toronto Health Vital Signs report into a kid-friendly game for the residents of Regent Park. After much research and debate, 'The Toronto Vital Wheel’ was born.   In the afternoon, we had a workshop hosted by OCAD graduates Umar Amanullah and Han Yang. Umar has tremendous experience within the broadcasting industry including creating MTV Pakistan, art direction with various awards show and producing in television news. Han is a filmmaker, animator and CG artist – he was really interactive with groups and even showed us his Oculus glasses!

Today marks the first day of the 2015 Summer Media Training at Regent Park Focus! Our group consisted of former and new volunteers – both eager to learn and enhance their skills. Our first day, we introduced the new volunteers around the studio and taught them how to operate the studio cameras. They practiced by interviewing each other and critiquing their own work.   We have a great group this year – most of them want to learn video editing!

The diva girls participated in a music session with Andrew and Will, they got the chance to remix original songs which included Clocks by Cold Play and Telephone by Lady GaGa. Over the last few weeks the girls have really enjoyed working with Andrew and Will and have found a new love for both music and creating music. The girls have become amazing at using Garage Band and over all have learned so much from this experience. Getting the chance to be apart of building and creating has really encouraged them to continue to use their creativity in a positive, safe outlet. We at Regent Park Focus would like to thank William and Andrew so much for all of their hard work, we had so much fun participating and learning!!!! By: Mellissa Hum

Today we filmed our first Girls Talk show in the studio. Prior to the filming, the girls interviewed their families and friends about their experiences as first-generation immigrants. Most of the girls were born in Canada. Some came at an early age and can barely remember their first day in this new country. Therefore, getting to know how people feel when they first arrived, what motivated them to start a new life here and the difficulties they encountered would enable the girls to look at things from a different perspective. For the first part of the show, we created a short "draw my life" video on the story of the first-generation immigrants in Canada. The girls then discussed some of their findings from the interviewing process. It was the first time they filmed a TV show in the studio, and they were very excited. We hope that you would like it and the other two winter shows that are coming up on RPTV! By: Dan Cai

We opened up with telling each other spooky stories we had heard through out the week. We then went on to talk about fan theories about some of our favourite child hood shows like the Rugrats and Spongebob Squarepants. We then played a game of two truths and one lie with Will and Andrew. The girls had a great time getting to know more about them. Afterwards we brought it back into the Media Lab where we continued to create awesome beats on Garage Band. The girls got to jam out to some of their previous tunes and create new ones. Instead of using prerecorded sounds they got to create their own from the ground up. Using the keyboards they created tunes from instruments on Garage Band. After the session with Will and Andrew they got to create a mini show and tell. Everyone loved hearing their one of a kind songs and over all we all had a great time.

Today, we had our interview for Youth Talk on RPTV. We had a guest named Gursharan a researcher from CAMH come in and discuss her position as well as Mental Health as a whole and the stigmas and steriotypes surrounding mental health as well. Omar interviewed her and got the chance to talk about his own views and expierences with mental health and he helped Gursharan debunk some of the steriotypes and stimags that cause people to not feel comfortable and seek help when dealing with mental health issues. Over all it was an incredible opportunity to learn and educate and gave us the chance to really take a deeper look at mental illness as a whole and understand that so many people deal with mental health issues on a daily basis and need that support so that they feel safe and comfortable seeking assistance. It’s important to create a safe space and really tackle issues head on, we all need help sometimes and this episode makes it clear that you are not alone and that there is help out t...

On the 24th of April we had our annual AGM meeting for the years of 2012 and 2013. The meeting consisted of board members voting on the highlighted key issues as well as the budgets and the steps for the upcoming year. Members of the Board and Regent Park Focus Youth and Media Arts Centre were also recognized for their efforts and hard work they put into the current success of Regent Park Focus. The meeting also served as a platform to welcome and nominate new members to the board. By: Karrisa Davis

I’m here since 3 months and today is my last day and the last episode of my French TV Show “La francophonie”! Today my guest was Arthur, a young men of 27 years old who come from Ivory Coast and since 2006 he lives in Montreal. But now, since 8 months he lives in Toronto and works in financial area. He came in Toronto to discover a new culture and a new English-speaking city, to join some members of his family and also, to gain more opportunities about jobs. It was a great last episode because, it was really different than others. Indeed, is the first guest who doesn't come from France so, his experience was really interesting and unlike the others, he means that Toronto is a great city but he prefers Montreal for several reasons including good atmosphere and a kind of social side. I loved create my own TV show during these 2 weeks, share and discover many experiences, meet many people and especially become a youth producer ! This experience was really unique. I l...

Since one week I create my own French TV Show, this TV show is about experiences of French people who come in Toronto. The goal is to share several experiences and to know the different reasons why french people immigrate here! So, today I produce my second episode of my TV Show ! It was amazing. Indeed, during my first episode I was little stressed and I lost the way of my interview because it was the first time. But, this time was better because I was more comfortable with the topic, the question and with the guest.   My guest was Tresor Otshudi, a french singer and guitar player from Paris, in France, but since 2014, he lives in Toronto. His music style is a mix between R&B and Ndombolo (a kind of African music) and he works between Paris and Toronto to perform his concerts. His last performance was on March 20th at Toronto Police Headquarters to celebrate the Francophone Week. This experience allowed me to meet many people and to demonstrate leadership as y...

Tonight’s show hosted by Stephanie, Kaylin and Judd covered the local news and featured guests Mike Balkwill and Angela Hatala, campaign organizers who are a part of the Put Food in The Budget Campaign. If you would like to find out more about Put Food in The Budget you can visit http://putfoodinthebudget.ca/ and Don’t Forget to tune into Catch Da Flava live every Tuesday 2 6-7pm.If you missed out on the show be sure to listen to this and many others on www.regentparkfocus.com/content/radio.html