The Center for Women and Information Technology (CWIT) is pleased to announce the release of its NSF-funded video, "You Can Be Anything." The three-and-a-half-minute, high quality video presents diverse images of successful women in science and technology careers and targets girls and young women ages 12 - 20. Already the video has won its first award - the prestigious Gold World Medal for 2004 in the category of Best Original Music/Lyrics by the New York Festivals. The 2004 International Film & Video Awards will be presented in New York on Friday, January 30, 2004. Claudia Morrell, CWIT's director and executive producer for the video, and Michael Bacon, who composed the music, will accept the award. Information on the event can be found here or more specifically here.

The short, fast-paced video uses the techniques of music videos and the power of media to portray a wide variety of women, both past and present, working in diverse careers using technology. The music and images are combined in exciting ways that appeal to young people, engage their emotions, capture their attention, and convey the message that science and technology are cool, exciting fields for women as well as men.

Of course, no short video, no matter how skillfully conceived and executed, is likely by itself to persuade young women to prepare for a high-tech career. CWIT intends the video to be used together with a speaker who will discuss the attractiveness of informal programs, classes, and careers in more detail. What the video will do is capture young people's attention, offer them a presentation of women's involvement with technology that appeals to the emotions and the senses as well as to the intellect, and make them more receptive to the speaker's message.

To access and download the video and learn more about the Speakers Bureau go here.