PQA Doncaster's Student Stories

When Julie Winokur's 17-year-old son called her the most politically intolerant person he had ever met, she knew she had to prove him wrong. In 'Bring It to The Table,' Winokur hits the road with a small star-spangled table, traveling across America on a mission to understand the roots of personal politics and bridge the partisan divide.

Deserted Diggers chronicles a group of Uighurs who live in man-made caves under the remote Junngar Basin desert floor, as they illegally mine petrified wood. Due to cultural and geographical obstacles, Uighurs, a Muslim ethnic group who speak a Turkish language, have been left out of China's economic boom. For these Uighurs, petrified wood might be their best chance for a better life.

With the debris from the 2011 Japanese tsunami drifting on ocean currents across the Pacific, a small group of skilled sea-kayakers set out to document the flotsam as it began to come ashore along the remote Washington coast. The team is composed of three experienced professional guides, each having a multi-year resume including multiple trips and expeditions to remote coastal environments. Ken Campbell has authored several books on Pacific Northwest kayaking and is a frequent contributor to print and on-line magazines on subjects relating to the outdoors and the environment. Jason Goldstein began his kayaking career in New Zealand and works as a cartographer and GIS specialist. Steve Weileman a photographer and former guide, has experience in Newfoundland, Alaska and coastal British Columbia.

Posh Corps documents the personal stories of Peace Corps volunteers as they help develop rural villages in South Africa. Volunteers in South Africa struggle with extreme economic disparity, exceptional cultural diversity, and the lingering effects of Apartheid. They come to terms with their own expectations, and they speak out against the popular notion that South Africa is an easy assignment.

A town in Quebec did not want to die... For St-Camille, rural exodus was not an option. The villagers did not give up when faced with globalization and the closing of industries. Despite its declining population and the loss of its public services, the residents did not lose heart. They have decided to disregard trendy solutions (tax breaks to attract businesses, etc.) Their key words: cooperation, self-reliance, sustainability, participative democracy, solidarity between generations, culture and creativity. In a 'direct cinema' style, the film witnesses the human and political adventure of these people, shaping the world according to their values, one day at a time. The director followed them over the course of four years with his camera, while facing the many challenges of this venture.

Taylor is the producer of The Jack Riccardi Show on KTSA radio. One day he is sent on a mission to fight cancer with the power of fashion.