Photojournalist
Mark Manning
"The Human Approach to Peace and Reconcilation in Iraq"
| Photos |
Mark Manning began his professional life at the age of 17, working as a diver on the oil fields off the shores of Texas and Louisiana, in the Gulf of Mexico. He continued to work as a deep-sea diver for the next 22 years, diving to depths of 400 feet, working on wellheads and marine risers with the ocean as his constant teacher. During this time, he also worked as a commercial fisherman and lived in fish camps, commercial salmon fishing and urchin diving up and down the California coast. Working as a deep-sea diver trained Manning to uncover the root of a problem and to find the best, quickest and simplest way to fix it, even in the most dangerous circumstances. His life on the oil fields and fish camps gave him a strong sense of camaraderie with his fellow man, and a deep sensitivity to the plight of working people around the world.
Manning retired from his diving career in February 2000 and decided to put his sense of social conscience and responsibility into action. He trained as an Emergency Medical Technician and attended law school; ultimately deciding the best way to address social concerns and have the most positive influence on modern society was through the use of media. Expanding on one of his diving specialties, underwater filming, Manning founded ConceptionMedia, an independent film company specializing in public service films for non-profit organizations, and in-depth feature social documentaries.
Through ConceptionMedia, Manning takes the lessons he learned about problem solving as a diver and applies them to social documentary work. He is committed to giving a voice to all sides of an issue in order to discover the real truth that lies within.
Saturday, October 20, 2007 3 pm Vista Del Monte Patio Room
Dinner after the meeting at Ming Dynasty in K-mart shopping center
reserve your space by e-mailing Anne Rojas annehrojas@cox.net