This week on Full Frame: The awesome episode

Full Frame

Mike Walter with Awesome Foundation and Institute on Awesome StudiesFounders of the Awesome Foundation’s New York chapter and the chancellor of The Institute on Higher Awesome Studies discuss awesome projects.

The word “awesome” has become an almost ubiquitous adjective for describing everything from the latest trending YouTube video to life-changing moments.

But some ideas are simply, well, just awesome.

This week on Full Frame, the awesome episode.

The Awesome Foundation: Investing in the inspirational

Awesome Foundation Panel

The Awesome Foundation’s Lee-Sean Huang and Jesse Chan-Norris join the chancellor of the Institute on Higher Awesome Studies, Christina Xu, to discuss awesome projects around the globe.

From a public hammock, that can hold 15 people, to a cotton candy-shooting cannon, the Awesome Foundation is giving grants to awesome projects around the globe. With 83 chapters in 18 countries, this community-based organization gives “micro-grants” each month, for various projects, on a no-strings-attached basis. The ideas range from the scientific to the sublime. Because the awards are relatively small, the Foundation can take bigger risks and adapt more easily than larger charities.

Organizers call themselves “guerilla philanthropists” who have seen how small ideas can have a big impact. They believe these small ideas are what keep the world moving. By providing financial resources and recognition, they’re turning everyday people into citizen problem-solvers.

Mike Walter will be joined in our New York studio by two of the founders of the New York chapter of The Awesome Foundation, Jesse Chan-Norris and Lee-Sean Huang. Christina Xu, chancellor of The Institute on Higher Awesome Studies, will also be joining the discussion.

Alex Radelich: Pursing kindness

Alex Radelich

Alex Radelich talks about changing the world one random act of kindess at a time.

In the spring of 2012, then-college student, Alex Radelich, couldn’t have imagined that watching a movie would forever change his life. But, thanks to one line, it did.

One of the characters said, “The way to change the world was through one random act of kindness at a time.” That line sparked Alex’s passion for helping others. He and three friends started ‘ARK Project Now’, which stands for ‘Acts of Random Kindness’. Alex says it’s not just a non-profit, it’s a movement.

The ultimate social experiment, the group’s mission is to prove that simple acts of kindness and compassion, no matter how small, can make a difference and change the world.

Alex Radelich joins Mike Walter in our New York City studio to tell us more about ARK Project Now.

Ryan Corcoran: Goals for your life bucket list

Ryan Corcoran

“My Life Bucket” website creator and entrepreneur Ryan Corcoran talks about the concept of keeping a life bucket list.

What are your goals in life? What would you love to explore in this world, and with whom would you like to share that experience? And what if you could keep track of all of that information in one “awesome” place?

That’s where “My Life Bucket” comes in. It’s a social networking site based on the concept of a bucket list. The goal: help users define, share and complete their life’s goals.

“My Life Bucket” website creator and entrepreneur Ryan Corcoran joins Mike Walter in our New York City Studio to tell us more about this awesome site.

No Strings Attached: Puppets supporting children worldwide

No Strings International

Puppets help children, around the world, deal with issues like HIV, Poverty and war.

Helping children cope with difficult situations rarely comes in the form of entertainment. No Strings International is changing that, incorporating captivating storytelling into innovative workshops that help young people understand and process serious issues affecting their daily lives.

When the U.S. became involved in wars in Iraq and Afghanistan in 2001, Kathy Mullens and Michael Frith, the masterminds behind the Muppets and Fraggle Rock, were determined to help children in Afghanistan understand issues of war that had upturned the world around them.

Their organization, No Strings International, films puppets dealing with issues like HIV, poverty and war. The short films are presented to children in countries such as Madagascar, Sierra Leone, and Afghanistan in order to help them cope with the aftermath of natural disasters and other dangerous situations – in short, puppet films that dispense some very valuable “lessons for life.”

In this week’s Full Frame Close Up, we dive into this magical world of storytelling and see how some very lovable puppets are guiding children through traumatic events. This Close Up was also recently honored with a Bronze medal in The Arts category for Television Documentary/Information Program at the 2016 New York Festivals International TV & Film Awards. The competition honors the world’s best in television and film from over 50 countries.