Moon Township, Pa., June 30, 2008 - In July, a German film professor and four of his students will visit the Center for Documentary Production and Study at Robert Morris University (RMU), where they will produce a documentary about Braddock and its attempts to remake itself.

Professor Joerg Lensing, a well-known professor of sound design, comes to RMU from the University of Applied Sciences in Dortmund, Germany. The trip is part of an exchange program launched between the two universities in 2004. Seven RMU students and two professors have traveled to Dortmund to produce documentaries about that city, which is located in the Ruhr area of Germany.

Counting this upcoming visit, nine German students and three professors have come to Pittsburgh, producing documentaries about drive-in theaters, yard sales, Wholey's Fish Market, summer basketball camps, and concerts at Hartwood Acres. While in Pittsburgh, the Germans receive production support from RMU documentary and media arts faculty and students.

Lensing will be in Pittsburgh from July 7-13, and the students will continue production through July 27. The video gathered for this project will be developed into an experimental documentary or documentary short in an advanced seminar Lensing will teach this fall in Dortmund.

The Center for Documentary Production and Study also has exchange programs with universities in Turkey and Chile. In addition to working on their documentary projects, students and faculty participate in a full intercultural and educational exchange - attending classes, making presentations, visiting museums and enjoying the activities of the regions.

"The exchanges are a wonderful chance for students to develop documentary skills, but even more so to find and tell stories about a region from a different point of view," said Jim Seguin, director of the Center for Documentary Production and Study. "The exchanges are growing and providing students with unique opportunities."

RMU students screen their films at DOCUFEST, a documentary film festival held every April at the university's Moon Township campus. RMU documentaries also can be viewed on the Moon Township Community Access Channel and through YouTube at http://youtube.com/user/rmudoccenter. The latest product of the Dortmund exchange is "Breath of Fussball" by Scott Golmic and Emily Scott.