News

What happens when young people have caring mentors, space to turn up the volume, and music and art to help them work through difficult experiences and create something of their own? That question sits at the heart of HEAVY, a new documentary co-produced by Browning Public Schools’ Heavy Music Symposium, Firekeeper Alliance and MAPS Media…

HARLEM, Mont. – If you’ve driven down Harlem’s Main Street over the past year, you’ve likely noticed the striking buffalo mural on the side of one of the downtown buildings. It’s a fitting introduction to what’s happening inside: a working studio where Fort Belknap youth are learning to tell their own stories through film, music,…

A group of Montana teens who had never picked up a camera a year ago are now national award-winning filmmakers and they did it with a story about what it means to grow up Native in a city where their roots stretch far beyond the skyline. The documentary, “Walking Between Two Worlds: The Urban Indigenous…

HELENA — Advocates expressed concern at the start of July after federal grant funding that supports afterschool and summer educational programs was held up. That funding has now been released, but some of the grant recipients still have concerns about what’s going to come next. Watch the video for more on the delay in funding…

Montana’s Office of Public Instruction confirmed Thursday the Treasure State received previously frozen federal funds, more than $6 million, allocated for afterschool programming.  The dollars were frozen for approximately three weeks while the Department of Education conducted a review. OPI shared a statement from the federal department earlier this month saying it would not release the funds…

Half of MAPS Media Institute’s funding for this upcoming fall’s programming is in limbo after the federal government froze funds allocated for after-school programming across the country. The program has offices in Hamilton, Helena and Harlem, serving kids on the Fort Belknap Indian Reservation, providing free media arts education to middle and high school kids…

BILLINGS AND THE FORT BELKNAP INDIAN COMMUNITY, MONTANA — MAPS Media Institute is excited to announce that two student-produced films have won top honors at the 2025 National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Northwest Chapter (NATAS NW) Student Production Awards. NATAS NW is one of 19 regional chapters that make up the National Academy…

MAPS is a creative powerhouse! Celebrating its 20th year in Montana as a dynamic educational non-profit media institute fostering the vision of Treasure State youth. Established in 2004, MAPS was initially known as the “Media Arts in the Public Schools” program and now offers year-round classes, at studios first in Ravalli County (Hamilton), then in…

HELENA — This week is the sixth annual News Literacy Week. Scripps News, MTN’s parent company, is partnering with the News Literacy Project for the event. Audio and visuals are crucial to accurate reporting, but the KTVH newsroom is not the only place to instill those skills in Lewis and Clark County. Media Arts in…

HAMILTON, MT — In 2004, a retired Hollywood producer started a free, after-school program in Corvallis to teach high school kids filmmaking. Media Arts In The Public Schools, or MAPS, has now grown to include programs across the state. Based in Hamilton, MAPS Media Institute teaches youngsters film production, graphic design, music production, and new technology. For its…