The 4th Annual , sponsored by the (encompassing those who work with “moving pixels”), was founded by David E. Carter, originator of the well-known Telly Awards for film/video work.

Weaving Life was produced by last spring, in cooperation with . The documentary began airing on ABC-TV affiliates on Oct. 21, with the last airing on Dec. 16.

Weaving Life tells how Terry wove relationships, joy, partnership and understanding into his lifelong work in Afghanistan. Terry, a 64-year-old United Methodist, was among 10 humanitarian aid workers assassinated in Afghanistan in August 2010. was among the slain workers.

The documentary shows the way Terry set out to build bridges where “everyone else was blowing them up,” says production consultant and storyteller Jonathan Larson. “He spans the chasms of suspicion, religious hatred and outright warfare, with patient bonds of trust and openness.”

, media arts and peacebuilding professor at EMU, oversaw the 16 students who produced the documentary, with help from classmates in a motion graphics course taught by , PhD, professor of visual and communication arts. Unable to go to Afghanistan to get new video footage for the documentary, the students relied on photos, numerous motion graphics and effects, and videotaped interviews to illustrate the story.

The highest Pixie award is a platinum award for entries scoring 9 or higher on a 10 point scale; those scoring 7 to 8.9 points qualify for a gold award. More information is available at

Terry’s story is also the focus of a book, . The book is available for $15.99 (25 percent off for group study) and the documentary is available for $14.99 from . More information on the program and book is also available at

MennoMedia, which produces documentaries through participation in the , worked with EMU intern Justin Roth to complete the documentary to meet ABC-TV specifications for airing this fall.

Weaving Life tells how Dan Terry, a United Methodist who worked with numerous Mennonites through the years, wove relationships, joy, partnership and understanding into his lifelong work in Afghanistan. Terry, 64, was among 10 humanitarian aid workers assassinated in Afghanistan in August 2010.

Going against the grain of almost all conventional wisdom, the documentary shows how Terry set out to build bridges where “everyone else was blowing them up,” says production consultant and storyteller Jonathan Larson. “He spans the chasms of suspicion, religious hatred and outright warfare, with patient bonds of trust and openness.”

The production of this film was also a weaving together of opportunity, timing, and willing student production workers through students, who worked on the documentary during the spring 2012 semester and first showed it during EMU’s graduation weekend in April.

, media arts and professor at EMU who oversaw the 16 students who worked on the documentary, says they were drawn to the story because of Terry’s almost 40 years “devoted to the people, the culture, and the landscapes of Afghanistan.” The students were able to interview Terry’s wife and daughter extensively for the documentary.

, and Brian Carderelli, a videographer and resident of Harrisonburg, were among the 10 workers who were killed along with Terry. The team was returning to Kabul from a medical relief trip to northern Afghanistan when they were ambushed.

Larson, an international aid worker who first met Dan Terry as a student at Woodstock boarding school in northern India, tells much of Terry’s story in the film, and is the author of a forthcoming book, Making Friends among the Taliban: A Peacemaker’s Journey in Afghanistan (Herald Press, to be released Oct. 19, 2012).

“Every now and then, a story comes along that seems so improbable, that it causes us to stop and reconsider what we have taken to be settled issues,” says Larson.

, which produces documentaries through participation in the Electronic Programming Committee of the National Council of Churches, worked with EMU intern Justin Roth to complete the documentary to meet ABC-TV specifications for airing this fall.

To find out which ABC stations are planning to air the documentary, check .

For information on encouraging a local ABC station to use the program, call Sheri Hartzler, electronic programming director at MennoMedia at 540-574-4487.

MennoMedia is an agency of and .

Dan Terry devoted his life to helping Afghan people.

For nearly four decades, the humanitarian aid worker coordinated small-scale community development projects throughout the struggling country until his murder in 2010.

“I never know how to describe what my dad did. Every time I called him, he was doing something different,” said his daughter, Anneli Terry-Nelson, 30. “He was a networker. He knew someone who could do something someone needed to be done and could link them up over a cup of tea.”

The 64-year-old was among 10 humanitarian aid workers murdered on Aug. 5, 2010, as they were returning to Kabul from a medical relief trip in the northern part of Afghanistan.

��ݮ���� alum Glen Lapp and Harrisonburg resident Brian Carderelli also were killed in the ambush.

On Friday night at the MainStage Theater in University Commons, 16 EMU students from the university’s visual and communication arts department unveiled a 57-minute documentary, “Weaving Life,” which portrayed Terry’s life.

Paulette Moore, a media arts and peace building professor, thought of the idea for the documentary after one of Terry’s friends, Jonathan Larson, spoke during a university chapel service.

“Those killings affected our community, the Mennonite community, greatly,” Moore said. “We were part of that story.”

Kelby Miller, a 22-year-old senior from Sarasota, Fla., served as the senior producer for the project.

The film depicts Terry’s unique approach to humanitarianism.

“I hope the documentary shows people Dan’s different ways of doing things,” Miller said. “He wasn’t just worried about giving them things but [also] making relationships.”

Justin Roth, a 21-year-old senior from Bettsville, Ohio, served as the project’s editor. Roth said he learned a great deal about Terry’s life during the semester-long project.

“We learned a whole lot about Dan through the stories of other people,” he said.

MennoMedia, which produces documentaries through the National Programming Committee of the National Council of Churches, plans to prepare the film for airing on ABC television stations this fall.

��ݮ���� (EMU) students, intrigued by Terry’s story of commitment and humility, will present a documentary, “Weaving Life,” that explores his life, work and tragic death, Friday, April 27 at 6 p.m. in the .

“Dan and his family spent 40 years devoted to the people, the culture, and the landscapes of Afghanistan,” said , media arts and peacebuilding professor at EMU who oversaw the 16 students who worked on the documentary.

Glen Lapp, , and Brian Carderelli, a videographer and resident of Harrisonburg, were among the 10 workers who were killed along with Terry. The team was returning to Kabul from a medical relief trip to northern Afghanistan when they were ambushed.

Special guests at the Friday showing will include members of the Terry, Lapp and Carderelli families, as well as Jonathan Larson, an international aid worker and life-long friend of Dan Terry.

A talkback after the viewing, which is 57 minutes long, will provide opportunity for audience members to interact with the student producers and special guests.

The student production team spent the spring semester gathering video footage, photos and stories, as well as conducting interviews across the U.S.

The showing is free and open to the public.

This event is jointly hosted by the EMU Visual and Communication Arts department, EMU’s and , also located in Harrisonburg.

MennoMedia, which produces documentaries through participation in the Electronic Programming Committee of the , will prepare the student-produced video for airing on ABC stations in the fall.