Dear IDA Members:
IDA depends on volunteers to accomplish our goals and carry out our programs throughout the year. During any given year, we call on members and non-members alike to participate as seminar panelists, awards jury members, screening Q&A moderators, contributing writers to the magazine and the like. We have volunteer committees that serve in an advisory capacity and work with staff to implement our programs. A member of the board of directors chairs each committee.
Committee members offer flesh voices, experience and varied perspectives to help guide our programs and services. Here are this year's committees and the board members who have taken on leadership positions by serving as chairs:
Awards—Two-term board member John Mason has served on the Awards Committee for a number of years. In addition to reviewing our awards categories and procedures each year, this committee also selects the awards jury chairs and recommends changes in awards policies to the board.
Awards Gala—Newly elected board member Rick Trank has volunteered to lead our Awards Gala Committee this year. This committee has oversight on every aspect of our annual awards ceremony. The Gala poses a tough challenge as it is both our annual tribute to outstanding documentary work and IDA's only fundraising event.
Internet—Mary Schaffer, our resident internet guru, is leading a newly formed and very vital committee charged with utilizing the internet and the IDA web-site to our best advantage. We have already seen a surge in membership from website downloads and early entries for the 2000 awards are also coming from web-available entry forms.
Lotrg Runge Plunning-Board vice presidcnt Michael Donaldson is leading a planning comtrittee this year that has the challenge of lookin-t ahead at the opportunities and challenges that IDA will lace in the future. We look ttlrward to a report later this year that honors our heritage, serves the membership and embraces the future of the documentary.
Membership—Sven Berkemeier is in his second year chairing a growing committee that is working with members to identify their needs and with the field to identify opportunities and benefits for the membership. High on its priority list is developing relationships with festivals and vendors.
Outreach—For a number of years. Thelma Vickroy has been actively engaged in IDA's outreach efforts through the public schools in the Los Angeles area. Activities have been as varied as in-school production courses and field trips for students to documentary screenings during DOCtober.
Publications—Joan Owens-Meyerson is in her second year chairing our publications committee, which works with the magazine editorial and sales staff to chart the course for this magazine. As readers know, International Documentary has made great strides forward in recent years. We anticipate that this will continue in the future with the enthusiasm and talent of this committee.
Seminars & Events—For more than two years, Barbara Leigh Gregson has been involved with this committee. Volunteers and staff work together to present our documentary seminar series—a highly anticipated annual event in both Los Angeles and New York—and other special events throughout the year. To all the people behind the scenes that make things happen at the IDA, thank you!
David Haugland
IDA President