Members Marissa Acosta and Tom Cunningham were interviewed via email in June about their recent and in-progress television productions. In this interview Tom admits that "the manipulation of other people is not my goal" and Marissa explains that she was influenced greatly by "the spare change guy". We present this entire interview for the reading pleasure of our other members. Click to read more!

Interview conducted via email June 16^th and 17^th
with CCTV producers Marissa Acosta and Tom Cunningham

Let's start with an easy one, Tom. What's your favorite color right now?

TC: The unseen spectrum.

On a related note, Marissa, is purple a fruit, or should it be?

MA: Is this a trick question?

The national Alliance for Community Media has named Cambridge Community Television number one in the country for the third year in a row (and the fifth time in its history). The "Overall Excellence in Public Access" award will be presented at the Hometown Video Festival awards ceremony in Tampa on July 8.

"CCTV has once again successfully competed against access centers two and three times our size," said Susan Fleischmann, Executive Director of CCTV. "Our success is a result of the rich, dynamic community that we are so privileged to serve. As the mainstream media becomes less and less responsive to local concerns, CCTV and public access centers around the country are a precious resource."

Alfred Fantini, CCTV's President, said " Hard work, consistency, dedication to quality, and love of what you do has served CCTV well. We appreciate the national recognition."

Eli Kao, CCTV's Programming Coordinator, won first place in the Music Video Non-Professional category for his program Sonámbulo and CCTV's web site, designed by Production Coordinator Sean Effel, also placed first.

The Hometown Video Festival, the oldest and largest festival for programming on access and local origination channels of cable TV systems drew almost 1500 entries in 45 categories. CCTV competed in the category for access centers with annual budgets over $500,000. The Overall Excellence Award is given to the center that demonstrates creativity, innovation, and diversity in its programming. CCTV was also the recipient of this award in 1994, 1998, 2002, and 2003.

CCTV has immediate openings for part-time instructors to teach the following subjects: Post-Production: Beginning IMovie, Final Cut Pro (Beginning and Intermediate, Titling), Compression Basics, Streaming Basics, DVD Authoring, Audio Editing. Field Production: Scriptwriting, Guerilla Video Techniques, In-Camera Editing. Studio Production: Chroma/Luma Keying in the Studio

The 2004 Hometown Video Festival is coming again! The Hometown Video Festival honors and promotes community media and local cable programs that are first distributed on Public, Educational, and Governmental (PEG) access or Local Origination (LO), cable television channels. Sponsored by the Alliance for Community Media, this national festival recognizes creative programs that address community needs, develop diverse community involvement, challenge conventional commercial television formats, and move viewers to experience television in a different way. Members of CCTV are encouraged to submit entries to this contest since many of our members have placed in the top ranks in the nation year after year and this is also the festival in which CCTV has won the Overall Best Public Access award for the last two years. As an added incentive, CCTV will pay 1/2 of the entry fee if members submit a tape to us to be sent with the rest of our organizational entries. The fee is reduced from $40 to $20, and must be submitted before February 7, 2004, with completed entry forms. After this date you must submit your tape separately from CCTV‚s entries at the full amount of $70. Read on for more information about submitting programs to this great festival!

All program entries must have been cablecast between January 1 and December 31, 2003. Program entries cannot exceed 30 minutes, if the program is longer than 30 minutes then you must assemble the first and last ten minutes as well as a ten minute sample from the middle. Series programs must select a single episode for entry, compilation tapes are not excepted. Entry tapes are only accepted on 1/2 inch VHS or SHVS in standard play (SP) mode. No MiniDV tapes!