Open Signal

Mission

Open Signal’s mission is to nurture the change-making power of community media in service of a just and equitable world.

Bottom Line for Portland

At Open Signal you can freely access cameras, production studios, equipment and training to bring your film, stream, or tv production to the screen. We operate with a dedication to those who face barriers to accessing the media arts and industry our country and we know that communities of color, especially Black and Indigenous peoples, our neighbors with disabilities, living with low incomes, and those for whom English is a second language continue to have the least access and opportunity, even in a progressive city like Portland.

Quote

“Over the course of five months through Open Signal’s cohort program, I went from having no experience to at the end feeling confident enough to get work as a videographer and create media. By supporting Open Signal, you’re supporting artists like me.”

  Nsayi Matingou, Director/Producer, Speak Your Truth, https://www.opensignalpdx.org/news/speak-your-truth/

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Open Signal understands that holding “equal access", “impartiality” or “first come, first served” as policies for service cannot meaningfully address inequity within a society that is unjust in its structures. Just as to be “color-blind” is not supposedly to see people without race, but rather, to ignore the privileges afforded to whiteness and the disenfranchisement of people of color. To achieve equity, the goal of our service must be to make up for and counterbalance the impact of historical and systemic injustice. We believe that when we center and address the needs of those with lived experience of oppression, we are tipping the balance of power toward equity.

Incentives

All donors who give $150 or more will be entered to win a prize pack valued at $3000 which includes a gently used Canon EOS C300 with LCD Block and Meike S35 T2.1 Prime Lens, an Apple MacBook Pro A1398 2013 running Big Sur with 512GB internal storage, and 24" ViewSonic monitor with HDMI, Display Port, and VGA and a brand new Wacom Cintiq 22. Start your film making journey now!

All new donors will be entered to win a private drive-in style movie screening in Open Signal’s parking lot. 

All donors receive a 1 year Open Signal membership which includes free camera and equipment rentals, members' only workshops and events, and free studio reservations. Training and orientation required!

The first $7000 raised here will be matched by our strategic, collaborating, and community partners: Portland Events and Film Office, Oregon Film Office, Wacom Experience PDX, OMPA, and Outside the Frame.

Partner(s)

Wacom Experience PDX: WacomXPDX is the living room for the creative, tech and start-up communities in Portland, Or.

We are proud to support our non-profit community!

Thank you to Street Roots, Passin' Art Theatre, Native Arts and Culture Foundation, FinAbility, Street Books, Sisters of the Road, Portland Urban Beekeepers, William Temple House, Open Hearts Open Minds, Milk Crate Kitchen, Thimbleberry Collaborative Farm, Outside the Frame, and Third Angle New Music for all you do for our communities and for generously partnering with Open Signal for 2023 Give!Guide!