The University of the Ozarks' Communication program will present the public premiere of the eight-part video mini-series "Bridging the Past and Future: The Mulberry," on Friday, March 13, in the Rogers Conference Center.
The screening of the series, which focuses on the Mulberry River region, will run from 6-8 p.m. and there is no cost for admission. The public is invited to attend.
The video project was produced by students in the university’s Backpack Journalism class, taught by Susan Edens, in collaboration with the U.S. Forest Service. Officials with the Ouachita & Ozark-St. Francis National Forests plan to use the video on their website and in other media outlets, both regionally and nationally, to promote the Mulberry River and surrounding area.
The project is in conjunction with the recent establishment of the Mulberry River Interpretive Driving Tour by the forest service and several other state and federal agencies. The tour follows Highway 215 as it parallels the river through Franklin and Johnson counties. The grand opening of the Mulberry River Interpretive Driving Trail is expected to take place this spring.
Each of the eight videos are approximately four minutes long and cover a variety of topics, ranging from recreational opportunities in the area, to jobs and careers in the forest service, to historic communities in the Mulberry region, to ecosystem management. The students were given the latitude to put their own creative touch on their productions.
Backpack journalism is an emerging form of journalism that requires a journalist to be a reporter, photographer, and videographer, as well as an editor and producer of stories.