VOCAB VIDEO OPENS NEW STUDIO IN
CREATIVE SUITES SECTION OF CITY CLUB BUILDING

Cleveland, Ohio --- March 9, 2010 --- The founder and president of Voices of Cleveland and Beyond Productions, LLC (VOCAB Video), Jeffrey H. Kirkby, announced today that he has relocated his production studio from the West Bank of the Flats to the City Club Building in downtown Cleveland. The new studio should be in full production by the end of March.

Kirkby noted, “We feel that the new location, part of the Creative Suites section of the City Club Building, will help us serve our clients better because it may soon be the epicenter of the filmmaking community in Cleveland.”

VOCAB Video has built a reputation for focusing on election issues on both the city and state levels. In 2006, VOCAB Video provided critical footage for the Emmy-nominated HBO documentary “Hacking Democracy.” Later that year, Kirkby shot and edited a documentary for the Cleveland United Labor Agency on Congresswoman Stephanie Tubbs Jones’ efforts to have the 2004 elections in Ohio investigated. Kirkby’s efforts in documenting the irregularities in the Ohio elections led to several mentions in “Witness to a Crime,” a book by Richard Hayes Phillips on auditing the 2004 presidential election results.

Although VOCAB Video is best known for its focus on social justice issues, it has also produced videos for clients such as the AFL-CIO, who invited Kirkby to screen footage at their national conference, to better inform young people about union apprenticeship programs in Northeast Ohio.

He has also worked with church groups and other non-profit organizations like the Salvation Army. In fact, his latest project, “New Step Forward” is part of a new web-based video service, designed to assist the homeless in the Cleveland area in obtaining jobs by providing them with digital video resumes at no cost. VOCAB Video has already created video resumes for five individuals and is planning to continue serving the homeless in this way throughout the remainder of 2010. “This new location should help us broaden our client base as we continue to focus on the important social issues that affect those living in the Greater Cleveland area,” said Kirkby.

Photos taken at old Location

See video prepared for Anthony Fink

The New Step Forward project is a two part project. The first part, which we are working on now, involves shooting individual, self-contained videos of jobless/homeless subjects in an interview fashion, so that the finished DVD can be used as a type of "video resume" or "video business card" by that particular jobless/homeless individual. It really serves no other purpose other than being a technological tool that will hopefully enhance the subject's ability to get a job (quickly). We are also exploring the possibility of showcasing these videos on a special website, where they can be streamed to interested/prospective employers. The second part of the project, which will depend in part upon the effectiveness of what we are doing in Part One, will involve making a documentary film of the entire project. The purpose will be to show that with the proper tools and support that homeless individuals do want to work and can contribute to society because of their skills and life experiences. The completion of Part Two will most likely depend on the availability and receipt of grant money for that purpose

###