The compelling journey of a Holocaust survivor and the struggle of the University’s first two African-American football players are some of the stories that will be showcased tonight at the Oregon Documentary Project screening in room 182 of the Lillis Business Complex.
The Oregon Documentary Project, which consists of the work of electronic media students in the School of Journalism and Communication, has been running for eight years, but this is the first time the documentaries will be screened on campus for the public.
Associate journalism professor Dan Miller said a formal screening has always been a goal for journalism students and faculty, and they made it happen this year because of the high quality of the films and the relevance of the projects’ topics to current events.
Zanne Miller, assistant director of communications at the journalism school, said every film tells a story of a forgotten piece of Oregon history.
“They all highlight an interesting facet of Oregon history or culture,” she said.
One documentary, “Crossing the Abyss: Miriam’s Journey,” traces the experience of Holocaust survivor Miriam Greenstein from Auschwitz to Oregon, and recently aired on Oregon Public Broadcasting. Journalism student Tahira Hayes said it was difficult to schedule interviews with Greenstein and locate photos from her childhood. She also said it was emotionally challenging but very rewarding.
“We had to take this woman’s traumatic life and put 50 to 60 years into eight
minutes,” she said. “It teaches people to look at what she’s gone through and that she overcame it. She teaches us not to hate.”
“Forgotten Ducks,” a documentary about the University’s first two African-American football players, addresses historical issues of racism in Oregon.
“It’s about discrimination and
justice,” Miller said. “These athletes broke the color barrier in University athletics.”
Two other documentaries will be screened: “My Sacred Home,” which chronicles the creation of the University’s Many Nations Longhouse located near the Law Library, and “Faces of Restoration: The Cougar Tower,” a tale of a salmon restoration project on the McKenzie River.
Miller said that each documentary will be submitted to at least five
festivals and contests, including
the Northwest category of the Emmy Awards and the Broadcast
Education Association festival.
Additionally, he would like to get the films out to elementary and middle schools for use as educational tools.
He added that outreach was an
integral part of the process for
student producers.
“Students reached out to the community of Holocaust survivors and educators, and for ‘Forgotten Ducks,’ they talked to African-American historians and found out about discrimination that was happening in Eugene at the time,”
he said.
The event starts at 7 p.m. and is free of charge.

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