Sally Cloninger

Sally Cloninger

BS, Syracuse University, 1969

MA, Theatre, Ohio State University, 1971

Ph.D, Communications-Film, Ohio State University, 1974

I am a media artist/activist, educator and independent producer who has been a member of the faculty at The Evergreen State College since 1978. My video and film work spans many genres including visual anthropology (ch.a.lat: The Hoh River People), experimental autobiography (Going To My House), performance media (Mind Over Matter: Dr. Barbato Explains the 80s), media activism (The Bangladesh Tapes), and video installation (Shared Site). I have also worked in S.E. and South Asia, collaborating with an international team oftional team of women to produce Into Focus: Changing Media Images of Women, An Asian Resource Kit and training Asian women producers in Malaysia, Bangladesh, the Philippines and Sri Lanka.

My piece Housemaids and Buffalos about my work in Sri Lanka training women television producers from Iran, India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives was part of the group show, "OUTBOUND: Art in the Forefront of International Exchange" that was at the Bank of America Gallery, Columbia Bank of America Center in Seattle last fall. My production work has been funded by The Asia Foundation, the Swedish International Development Authority, U.S.A.I.D., the Washington Commission for the Humanities, On the Boards, the National Endowment for the Arts and the King County Arts Commission.

My most recent project, Your Willing Power is an experimental ethnographic film that I shot in Malaysia in the early 80s. About Thaipucam (a Hindu festival that occurs annually in Kuala Lumpur and is connected to the worship of Lord Murugan), this film examines trance, ritual, acts of devotion and the complexities of making work about other cultures. I other cultures. I collaborated with a number of Evergreen faculty and staff on this project. Llyn De Danaan was involved in the original field research in 1982. Peter Randlette (a composer and sound designer) took on the role of co-producer in the current version of the film and worked closely with me to design sound scapes and original music that reflect the cross-cultural context of their project.

At Evergreen I have been principally involved with the creation and development of the undergraduate media curriculum but have also taught in a wide array of interdisciplinary programs that explored gender studies, visual humor, media ethics, islands, the political economy of media, visual anthropology and performance art.

Sally on location in Sri Lanka during

production of Housemaids and Buffalos,1992

Excerpt from Your Willing Power

If you are using a high speed connection (cable modem or faster), you can click here for a higher quality stream