SB1922 CD1

PART I

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that in 2007, emerging creative media programs at the University of Hawaii academy for creative media, at Waianae high school, or within a broad range of multidisciplinary programs like Project EAST on the neighbor islands have now achieved a specific level of achievements to evaluate their performance in the context of what a globally-integrated economy requires. As pointed out by New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman, in his recent op-ed commentary endorsing the National Center on Education and the Economy’s report: "We need to radically overhaul . . . an education system designed in the 1900’s for people to do 'routine work' and refocus it on producing people who can imagine things that have never been available before, who can create ingenious marketing and sales campaigns, write books, build furniture, make movies and design software that will capture people’s imaginations and become indispensable for millions" (December 13, 2006, New York Times).

Just as Waianae Searider Productions has demonstrated the transformational power of multi-media literacy to engage our most at-risk students, and Project EAST students have distinguished themselves in national competitions with their homegrown science-technology and multimedia skills, Hawaii has the opportunity to establish itself as a true "crossroads of the Pacific" for digital and musical education. It is time for Hawaii to take full advantage of its natural constituency with the countries of the Pacific rim and the rising tide of global popular culture in all its forms, including video games, animation, indigenous film, and music.

PART II

SECTION 2. Since being approved by the University of Hawaii board of regents three years ago, the academy for creative media is the fastest growing new program at the University of Hawaii. For spring 2007, with one hundred seventy-six enrolled students (including sixty majors) who fill two hundred seventy-five seats in twenty of the thirty-two new courses in film production, screenwriting, indigenous filmmaking, computer animation, critical studies, and video game design. More than three hundred fifty original short films and video games have been written, directed, and produced by students that reflect their unique diversity and backgrounds. Over forty-eight student films were screened at film festivals from Atlanta to Shanghai, including the Hawaii International Film Festival 2004-2006. Students are offered internship opportunities with major motion picture productions (Superman Returns) and television shows (LOST and local morning news shows), and have opportunities to showcase their work on local television, such as commercials for Toyota/Scion of Hawaii, which were entirely produced by students.

Since its inception, the academy for creative media has been responsible for raising and funding all of its own operating expenses outside of faculty salaries and basic office overhead. This has meant providing all of the funding for hardware, software, computers, cameras, sound equipment, editing equipment, etc. Overall, the academy for creative media has raised over $1,481,000 to support the students and program.

The school recently received a total of $200,000 that was privately raised or gifts from generous donors and supporters to build and install the school's animation render farm, a bank of over fifty computers that efficiently converts, assigns, and monitors animation projects. The system is available for all campuses on all islands via the Internet, and is currently being used by the Manoa, Leeward, and Kapiolani campuses, as well as Waianae Seariders Production. An additional $146,500 has been raised from the Kellogg Foundation, to quadruple the capacity of the animation render farm project to provide system-wide animation computing power, via the Internet, to digital media programs on all of the University of Hawaii campuses and Hawaii public schools at all levels. Furthermore, a $500,000 federal grant was received for the school to produce an original documentary on statehood, which is currently in post-production.

In spite of its success, the academy for creative media is without a central facility or permanent home on any campus and does not receive any funding for programmatic needs outside of faculty salaries.

The purpose of this part is to:

(1) Authorize the academy for creative media to designate the existing public broadcasting system (PBS Hawaii) facility and studio located on the University of Hawaii at Manoa campus as an interim home; and

(2) Appropriate funds for the purposes of this part.

SECTION 3. (a) The existing public broadcasting facility and studio located on the University of Hawaii at Manoa campus shall be leased to PBS Hawaii for a term of not less than thirty-five years. The lease agreement shall include the following:

(1) PBS Hawaii shall be responsible for renovation and construction of any additional space to the existing facility located at 2350 Dole street;

(2) PBS Hawaii shall provide an interim home for the academy for creative media in space equal to forty per cent of the net usable square footage of the facility, including any newly constructed space; provided that the academy for creative media shall occupy an exclusive space with no common areas with PBS Hawaii and shall be the only subtenant at the facility;

(3) PBS Hawaii shall be responsible for the annual maintenance and operating costs of the building and shall continue to pay for the costs attributed to the academy for creative media based on current allocations of cost to square footage;

(4) The University of Hawaii shall expend at least $4,870,000, as appropriated in section 3 of this Act, for equipment and installation suitable for the academy for creative media programs, costs associated with handicapped compliance, and common area spaces; and

(5) A written memorandum of understanding of the above conditions shall be executed between the University of Hawaii at Manoa and PBS Hawaii in 2007.

(b) PBS Hawaii shall share the long-term use of the building without cost, apart from the costs under subsection (a)(1), (2), and (3); provided that if PBS Hawaii is no longer a public broadcasting system affiliate in good standing, or is no longer licensed by the Federal Communications Commission as either a community or university licensee, the facility shall be returned to the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

SECTION 4. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $2,870,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007‑2008 and $2,000,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2008-2009 for the equipment and installation suitable for the academy for creative media programs, costs associated with handicapped compliance, and common area spaces of the PBS Hawaii facility and studio.

The appropriation made for the equipment and installation for the academy for creative media programs authorized by this part shall not lapse at the end of the fiscal year for which the appropriation is made; provided that all moneys from the appropriation unencumbered as of June 30, 2009, shall lapse as of that date.

The sum appropriated shall be expended by the University of Hawaii for the purposes of this part.

PART III

SECTION 5. The legislature further finds that Hawaii's music industry is an established segment of Hawaii's creative media industries sector, with a growing popularity reaching far beyond the shores of our island state. Full recognition of the merits of Hawaiian music came in 2005 when the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences announced the creation of a Hawaiian music category in its annual Grammy Awards, the world's most prestigious music awards program.

While Hawaii has an unusually high concentration of raw musical talent and industry professionals, it lacks the technical support infrastructure to assist individuals in the progression of their careers and businesses.

The University of Hawaii, Honolulu community college, has been working to build alliances with national and local members of the entertainment industry for the music and enterprise learning experience program. The music and enterprise learning experience (MELE) program combines short-term professional training workshops, songwriter seminars, an associate degree program in music business and production, and a transfer program that allows students to matriculate in Belmont University's music and entertainment management programs. Belmont University, located in Nashville, Tennessee, is one of the premier music and entertainment educational programs in the nation.

The purpose of this part is to establish a music and enterprise learning experience program at the University of Hawaii-Honolulu community college to develop the technical business skills required by Hawaii's music artists and music industry.

SECTION 6. There is established at the University of Hawaii-Honolulu community college campus the music and enterprise learning experience program to expand the existing industry capacity, and to create new technological, intercultural, and genre-bending forms of music through creativity and professional business expertise. The program will be developed around three primary components:

(1) Artist creativity;

(2) Entertainment business expertise; and

(3) Technical production skills.

The program will collaborate with Belmont University of Nashville, Tennessee, on the joint use of Belmont's curriculum, technical facilities and equipment specifications, training, dual credit course offerings, and will also offer internships in some of the most varied music environments in the world.

The program will be seeded through a title III Developing Institutions grant that has been awarded to Honolulu community college native Hawaiian center, and will provide for some basic program development of course offerings in coordination with Belmont University of Nashville, Tennessee.

SECTION 7. There is appropriated out of the general revenues of the State of Hawaii the sum of $150,000 or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2007-2008 and the same sum or so much thereof as may be necessary for fiscal year 2008-2009 to carry out the purposes of leasing, operating, and maintaining a music and entertainment business training center.

The sums appropriated shall be expended by the University of Hawaii-Honolulu community college for the purposes of this part.

SECTION 8. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2007.

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	1922
TWENTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE, 2007		S.D. 2
STATE OF HAWAII		H.D. 1
		C.D. 1