CITVN Documentary Productions
CITVN IS A CREATORS COOP
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Our focus is to publish ideas, art and stories that will help CITVN's 47,000+ subscribers, to include thought leaders at 13,000+ parishes and 20,000+ professors at 196 Catholic universities located in 76 countries, to have hope. CITVN strives to serve as a bridge, in the spirit of Peter Maurin's roundtable discussions for the clarification of thought, where all are welcome at the table. CITVN documentaries are focused through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching.
CITVN is a fraternal community of media producers, editors, readers, writers, researchers, artists, musicians, street photographers, videographers, theologians, business experts, scientists, engineers, professionals, academics and people in the pews. No prior documentary video production experience is required. The only requirement for membership is a desire to share a story. Senior volunteers are most welcome.
Established in 2005, CITVN is a 501(c)3 social cooperative, also known as a solidarity cooperative. It is registered with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to solicit funds. It is a democratic organization owned and controlled by distinct classes of members, to include formerly homeless Catholic Workers labeled mentally ill, creative content producers, and local underwriters. In a media context, this structure allows diverse groups—like writers, filmmakers, musicians, academics, staff, benefactors and the audience—to share governance. The economic benefits accrue to homeless people in need of a MBTA monthly transit pass.
CITVN produces and distributes for free YouTube documentaries and webcast events focused through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching.
CITVN can function as a 501(c)3 fiscal agent for fundraising and grants management. Each producer has their own business account. They make their own creative decisions. It costs nothing to join and fiscal sponsorship is free.
The fiscal sponsorship program is open to independent filmmakers and documentarians, regardless of education, background or previous credits. Whether this is your first film or you've been making documentaries as long as we've been sponsoring them, if you have an idea and a plan to see it through, we can help.
We offer to work with people interested in telling a story that connects to one of the core themes associated with the Catholic Worker Movement and Dorothy Day:
- Human Dignity
- Hospitality
- Community
- Voluntary Poverty
- Personal Responsibility
- Solidarity
- Beauty and Culture for Everyone
- Care for Creation
- Peace and Reconciliation
- The Sacredness of Ordinary Life
The informal tests for selection of coop documentary projects includes: (1) no poverty porn that exploits somebody's suffering to achieve a political or economic goal; (2) find Good News to announce that leads viewers towards hope by centering human dignity in suffering; (3) do not print anything that is intentionally and directly in opposition to the teachings of the Catholic Church (this was a line in the sand that Peter Maurin and Dorothy Day drew); (4) accentuate the thoughts of good Bishops and ignore bad ideas; (5) do not print anything that harms the faith and morals of viewers, i.e., elicits division, despair or provokes violence in a manner that leads people to a place where they can no longer see God or a way towards justice and solidarity; and, (6) look for what's missing in our interests and relationships to elevate the lives of Catholics and all people of good will. Our inspiration are the Gospels of Jesus Christ, the lives of Saints past and present, papal encyclicals and the World Communications Day messages of the popes. CITVN is a member of the Catholic Media Association.
The Catholic Worker Movement does not endorse partisan political factions. The Catholic Worker Movement does not engage in class warfare. The Catholic Worker Movement supports personalism, commutarianism, decentralized society, a green revolution and distributist economic theory. Our means are prayer, nonviolence, the works of mercy, manual labor and voluntary poverty. Our sources are the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures as handed down in the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, with our inspiration coming from the lives of the saints.
Dorothy Day and a few others hawked their newspaper in Union Square NYC for a penny a copy to passersby. The newspaper was founded in 1933 by Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin to make people aware of church teaching on social justice, and was edited by Dorothy Day until her death in 1980. In keeping with the Catholic Worker Movement tradition, CITVN is 21st century media for a culture of peace.
I am a senior skilled in pre-production planning, accounting, grantwriting, marketing, fundraising and distribution. I was trained as an economist, worked as a stockbroker, operate a tax preparation firm, teach poor people how to bootstrap a business startup, and have filmed academic lectures for 20 years. I am not so expert in 4K video production and post-production editing skills. So, I try to surround myself with young and old creatives who are smarter than me. My greatest joy is in helping starving artists to bootstrap their company or film project, to create opportunities for all people of good will to experience communion, community and care.
We invite new members to an intimate gathering of 4-8 people to break bread
on the first Saturday night of each month from 6:00PM - 9:00PM.
Mercantile Wharf
111 Atlantic Avenue
Boston MA 02110
(937) 938-5784
Please join us for fellowship, enjoy beagle art, listen to a musical recital or an expert lecture, discuss documentary projects in progress and make new friends.
CITVN ARTISANAL COTTAGE KITCHEN ON A POOR SENIOR'S BUDGET
July 4, 2026 Menu
Spaghetti with fresh mushrooms and sweet Italian sausage in a Basil Tomato Sause
Cheap Italian Chianti and Sangiovese wines, Iced Tea, Coffee
Italian Sourdough Garlic Bread
Garden Salad with Italian Dressing
Lime Sherbet and Fresh Pineapple for desert
Followed by fireworks at Christopher Columbus Park
Our year-round programming includes conversations with seasoned filmmakers, academic experts and industry leaders, as well as educational seminars for documentarians of all experience levels to grow professionally by enhancing their knowledge of the craft and the business of nonfiction filmmaking and local independent journalism..
We are building on years of experience to create new community in Boston.
Would you like to spend an hour sipping iced tea with CITVN Executive Producer Girl Scout and me? Let us know what day works best for you. Call us at 937-938-5784.
UNDERWRITERS
CITVN is a PayPal Charity Fund Nonprofit
Underwriters receive credit in CITVN documentaries
We pray for our benefactors special intentions every day
CITVN ANTIQUARIAN BOOKSTORE - BOOTSTRAP PRODUCTIONS
Bring Your Books
We are launching an eBay Charity bookstore in Fall 2026 to train disadvantaged entrepreneurs.
Donate hardbound books in good condition, any genre, for sale in our eBay Antiquarian Bookstore
Our eBay bookstore provides opportunities for Bootstrap Productions coop members to learn the business
eBay charges no fees and donates 100% of the sales.
CATHOLIC WORKER MOVEMENT
Roundtable discussions “for the clarification of thought” are a central activity of most 187 Catholic Worker communities. These small, informal discussions point to the values governing the discussion: everyone has a place at the table; everyone has a voice.
The Catholic Worker Movement was co-founded by journalist and activist Dorothy Day and French-born philosopher Peter Maurin in May 1933. It began in New York City with the publication of The Catholic Worker newspaper to promote Catholic social teaching, pacifism, and aid for the poor and marginalized.
The Catholic Worker Movement does not endorse partisan political factions. The Catholic Worker Movement does not engage in class warfare. The Catholic Worker Movement supports personalism, commutarianism, decentralized society, a green revolution and distributist economic theory. Our means are prayer, nonviolence, the works of mercy, manual labor and voluntary poverty. Our sources are the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures as handed down in the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, with our inspiration coming from the lives of the saints.
CITVN DOCUMENTARY
ON LOVE FOR THE POOR
IDEA GENERATORS
Volunteer opportunities for readers, writers, artists, street photographers, videographers, musicians, theologians, business experts, scientists, engineers, professionals and academics
MAKE AMERICA CHARITABLE AGAIN
filmed on the streets of Boston
We are presently engaged in filming on the streets of Boston a dramatic illustrated reading of Pope Leo XIV's primary exhortation "Dilexi Te" ("I Have Loved You"), released in October 2025, focusing on the deep connection between Christ's love and caring for the poor, building on Pope Francis's themes of poverty, social justice, and evangelical joy, and urging Christians to see the poor as evangelizers themselves. This Apostolic Exhortation emphasizes various forms of poverty, condemns rising inequality, and calls for a renewed commitment to charity, integrating faith with action for the marginalized.
ABOUT CITVN
CITVN is an exchange of gifts - CITVN is our gift to you!
501(c)3 nonprofit CITVN Cooperative is owned and operated by a Catholic Worker Movement intentional community of homeless and formerly homeless people labeled mentally ill. CITVN produces and distributes for free feature-length YouTube documentaries and webcast events focused through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching.
CITVN is a member of the Catholic Media Association
OUR MISSION
CITVN Coop is a nonprofit social cooperative corporation operated by the Dayton Catholic Worker Movement, an intentional community organized to provide support to homeless people and nurture cottage industry entrepreneurial business development for disadvantaged people. The coop has bootstrapped over 20 successful startups. 100% of tax preparation and book appraisal PayPal Charitable Giving donations help finance 501(c)3 nonprofit CITVN Coop Documentary Productions and are used to purchase monthly unlimited transit passes given freely to the homeless, removing a significant barrier to acheiving a sustainable life platform with human dignity
Prayer, Daily Mass and community ground our spirituality
"The Church is a home for everyone, especially the sinners,
and we are all sinners." ~ Pope Francis
The Catholic Worker Movement supports personalism, commutarianism, decentralized society, a green revolution and distributist economic theory. Our means are prayer, nonviolence, the works of mercy, manual labor and voluntary poverty. Our sources are the Hebrew and Greek Scriptures as handed down in the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, with our inspiration coming from the lives of the saints.
Audience
47,000+ subscribers, to include leadership in 13,000+ Catholic parishes, 20,000+ professors at 196 Catholic universities, seminaries and religious orders located in 76 countries.
CITVN produced a series of 36 live webcasts
presented by acadmic experts on
Environment and Sustainability
focused through the lens of
Laudato Si by Pope Francis
The Challenge of Jesus
John Dominic Crossan
Professor Emeritus
DePaul University
FOCUS
Our focus is to publish ideas, art and stories that will help CITVN's audience to have hope. This is the gift of community; to help people think they are not alone. CITVN is media for a culture of peace.
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Pope Francis, EVANGELII GAUDIUM - page 175
There also exists a constant tension between ideas and realities. Realities simply are, whereas ideas are worked out. There has to be continuous dialogue between the two, lest ideas become detached from realities. It is dangerous to dwell in the realm of words alone, of images and rhetoric. So a third principle comes into play: realities are greater than ideas. This calls for rejecting the various means of masking reality: angelic forms of purity, dictatorships of relativism, empty rhetoric, objectives more ideal than real, brands of ahistorical fundamentalism, ethical systems bereft of kindness, intellectual discourse bereft of wisdom.
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Perspectives
We interview homeless people
We interview academics and experts
We interview people in the pews
The goal of nonviolence is dialog
CITVN is a crossing of the bridge experience
Girl Scout and I sit every night and pray the rosary for the special intentions of our benefactors on a park bench in the
Rose Kennedy Garden with homeless people sleeping in
Columbus Park North End Long Wharf Boston Massachusetts
Catholic Workers are voluntarily poor - living with less so that others may live.
COOP EDITORIAL GUIDELINES
CITVN Cooperative may assist independent Catholic film producers in grantwriting, project development and distribution
The informal tests for selection of CITVN documentary projects include:
- no poverty porn that exploits somebody's suffering to achieve a political or economic goal;
- find Good News to announce that leads viewers towards hope by centering human dignity in suffering;
- do not publish anything that is intentionally and directly in opposition to the teachings of the Catholic Church (this was a line in the sand that Dorothy Day drew);
- accentuate the good thoughts of Bishops and ignore bad ideas;
- do not publish anything that harms the faith and morals of readers, i.e., elicits division, despair or provokes violence in a manner that leads people to a place where they can no longer see God or a way towards justice and solidarity; and,
- look for what's missing in our interests and relationships to elevate the lives of Catholics and all people of good faith..
CITVN is a member of the Catholic Media Association.
ANOTHER DOCUMENTARY PROJECT
Touring Boston on an Electric Mobility Scooter
with Service Beagle in Tow for Comic Relief
Some travel for discovery. Some travel for recreation. I travel for procrastination. To put off writing a book of spiritual significance, I roam the planet in an elaborate stall. One day it occurred to me that never since the beginning of time had the world been afforded the spectacle of a poor disabled man adventurous enough to undertake a tour of Boston on an electric mobility scooter. After much thought, I decided that I was a person fitted to furnish to mankind this spectacle. So, I determined to do it. I looked about me for the right sort of companion to accompany me in the capacity of agent, and finally selected my beagle Girl Scout for this service. It is my purpose to study Catholic culture, history, jazz, sports, culinary specialties, architecture, flora, animals, and art while touring your city. Girl Scout is in sympathy with me in this. She is as much of an enthusiast in food, culture, sports and the arts as I am, and not less anxious to learn how the idiom "wicked" is used properly. We walk with the poor.
The travelogue series may be of interest to our nation's 18,000,000 mobility-impaired citizens. The demographic includes 1-in-5 elderly persons, 3.6 million college students, 6 million veterans, and their families. There are no free comprehensive travel guides for poor mobility impaired citizens.
Underwriters may include Cities, Regional Transit Authorities, Archdioceses, universities, inner-city parishes, museums, zoos, aquariums, landmark parks, music venues, sporting events, restaurants, hotels, hostels, soup kitchens, homeless shelters and a culturally diverse selection of the more flamboyant local denizens.
Meet Our Executive Producer
Beagles don't care about ideology,
but what they do care about is important
This is Girl Scout. She is a psychiatric service dog. She helps with unseen disabilities, such as anxiety, post traumatic stress disorder, depression, etc. These service animals are trained to sense anxiety attacks, depressive episodes, self harming behavior and help support their owner. These dogs have public access rights and certain travel and housing privileges as well.
Owning a Beagle is great fun, as they are sociable and mischievous, and their natural desire to please makes them easy to train. They do not care if their human is differently abled ... just love me.
Mentally ill people are some of the poorest of people. They encounter discrimination in every market and social organization within society. Not infrequently they lose the support of family and friends. One-in-eight chronically homeless mentally ill people commit suicide each year. Pope Francis said we are, "God's privledged witnesses."
We are differently-abled
We have the capacity to love
We enjoy our mental illness very much
We are grateful for the kindness people.
We are grateful for the love of dogs.
Welcome!
We offer comprehensive tax preparation services via Zoom, available in 36 languages!