I receive funding to initiate the WmD Project

It seemed like a proposal with a dim chance of being funded, but on a bizarre whim of inspiration I decided to apply for a small bit of money so I could initiate a new creative venture that I am calling the WmD Project. It turns out that Pratt’s Faculty Development Fund has a bit of a sense of humor — or maybe believes in longshots — because lo-and-behold I got funded. What is cool about getting this funding is that it will force me to actually do this project.

What is the WmD Project? Well, here’s what I wrote in the synopsis of my proposal:

The WmD Project is a media-based learning tool for teaching about ecology and evolution. Created as a blogged video series “produced” by a fictional character named Wallace [Maynard] Darwin, the project will use character development to allow the viewer to develop a better understanding of how the biological world works, how scientists learn about this world, and what places limitations on scientific knowledge.

The project has been in its nascent state but now that I have the money to actually make it happen I will have to kick it into high gear. I have begun some visual ideation on the WmD Tumblr site that is aimed at figuring out some details of costume and will also use this site to aggregate other sources and media. I also have a lot of ideas about content and sequence of material, but I have a lot of scripting to do to make this loose material into an actual episodic video series. Wish me luck and then stay tuned…