Artemis Media Project

Artemis Media Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation located in Foley, Alabama, was founded by producer Kathie Farnell in 1998. Its mission is to develop and produce quality humanities-based media programming in collaboration with state-of-the-art technical facilities.

Projects

Kathie Farnell

Contact

Swingtime: A One Hour Public Radio Special For 2008
Swingtime, a one-hour music documentary special for Black History Month, 2008, tells the stories of the Bama State Collegians, the Prairie View Coeds and the International Sweethearts of Rhythm. In the 1930s and 1940s, these talented black student musicians spread Swing from coast to coast. They gave us "Tuxedo Junction" and more of the music that defined a generation--and they kept their school doors open.

WC Handy's Blues
“WC Handy’s Blues,” a one-hour special for Black History Month, 2007, produced by Artemis Media Project with Murray Street Productions. Distributed by Public Radio International. Chock-full of Handy’s timeless music and interviews with musicians, historians and the legendary composer of “St. Louis Blues.” Executive producers Kathie Farnell and Steve Rathe.

Alabama Bed and Breakfasts
“Alabama Bed and Breakfasts,” a one-hour special for Alabama Public Television. Experience unique Southern hospitality at an Alabama bed and breakfast inn. From the mountains to the Gulf, these are the best. Produced by Kathie Farnell and Julian Elmore.

Honky Tonks, Hymns and the Blues

"Honky Tonks, Hymns and the Blues," a series of modules for public radio on the social history of country music, produced with Pacific Vista Productions and Murray Street Productions with support from National Endowment for the Humanities, National Endowment for the Arts, Texas Council for the Humanities, Alabama State Council on the Arts and Rounder Records. The modules aired on NPR’s Morning Edition in 2003.

Alabama Musicians
“Alabama Musicians,” three modules for Alabama Public Radio which trace the influence of Alabama musicians on the development of this All-American music. The three pieces focus on sacred harp and shape note singing; old-time fiddling; and the Alabama roots of Hank Williams, who died January 1, 1953. These modules aired concurrently with the national series “Honky Tonks, Hymns and the Blues.”

Honky Tonks, Hymns and the Blues (long-form)
“Honky Tonks, Hymns and the Blues,” a series of two long-form public radio documentaries with music examining the history and evolution of country music, distributed by National Public Radio in summer, 2005. These two hour-long specials offer an in-depth look at the development of country music, utilizing the same combination of narrative, interview, archival and contemporary music which informed the series of Honky Tonks modules for Morning Edition.

Voices of Slavery
"Voices of Slavery," a public television documentary produced in 2004 for Alabama Public Television and the Center for Public Television and Radio with funding support from National Endowment for the Humanities, tells the story of the federal and privately funded national projects to record the recollections of former slaves in their own voices. This landmark project, launched in the 1930s with primitive recording equipment, sent interviewers out all over the country to locate people born under slavery and record the stories of their lives in bondage and freedom. The rare recordings, restored through digital technology, combine with photos to present a compelling look at American history and culture.

Gee's Bend

"Gee’s Bend: Songs from Beyond the River," a public radio music documentary produced with Alabama Public Radio distributed nationally for Black History Month 2001 by Public Radio International with funding support from Alabama State Council on the Arts. Using archival recordings restored through digital technology, "Gee’s Bend" examined the rural all-black farming community of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, as it existed on the Fourth of July, 1941, when folklorist Robert Sonkin arrived in the Bend with a recording machine to capture the music and life of the community.