Hi all! I am new to this list and just wanted to drop a few lines to introduce myself and explain some of the reasons I am interested in the discussions going on at [listname]. I am a Graduate student in New York City, studying video and film. I am currently working on my MA production thesis, a documentary dealing with issues of death and the taking of life, and am looking for interview subjects who are interested in sharing their experiences as well a additional avenues for my research in regard to this issue. The project concerned will take shape in form of a video documentary dealing with people who have had cloe experiences with death, Specificially, I am interested in learning about the viewpoints of perons who, at some point or another, were in the position of having taken another person's life. Exploring related issues from the perspective of the actor him or herslef without inherent judgment or politicizing, will be one of the main objectives of the piece. Popular conceptions about poeple taking a life are mostly firm and quick in judgment, leading to a certain level of depersonalization of the issue. Few of us, however, have the chance to actually discuss these issues with people having experiences tham first-hand. In this context, learning about personal and individual stories as well as the perspective of the actor him or herself, cinstitutes one of the main interests pursued by the documentary. One of my main goals in doing so, is to show the experieneces of people as they perceive them without either judging or politicizing the issues at hand. As it might be expected given the sensitive nature of the issue, I am running into quite a bit of resistance in my research. I would deeply appretiate any suggestions anyone might have in terms of research avenues or possible contacts regarding my project and I am looking forward discussing them and other issues with you all. Dana -------------------------------------- Dana Shaw Research Project PMB #268 51 MacDougal Street New York, NY 10012 [log in to unmask] _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com ---- To sign off Screen-L, e-mail [log in to unmask] and put SIGNOFF Screen-L in the message. Problems? Contact [log in to unmask]