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March 03 2012
Angola: Documentary “Death Metal Angola”
New York-based producers of a documentary called “Death Metal Angola”, about the emerging metal scene in Angola and a rock festival in the city of Huambo, are raising money for post-production costs on crowdfunding platform IndieGogo. The film's tagline: “The hardest hardcore is Angolan hardcore.”
March 02 2012
Colombia: Film Festival Award Goes to Indigenous Film
The Cartagena International Film Festival [es] awarded one of its India Catalina awards in the category of New Creators in Short Films to the documentary short Mu Drua (My land) by Mileidy Orozco Domicó of the University of Antioquia [es]. The documentary, in the Embera tongue, follows the struggles of a young woman forced to migrate due to conflict from her land to the city of Medellín in Colombia.
Pakistan: An Oscar in Pakistan
Pakistani-Canadian journalist and documentary filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy, recently won an Oscar award for the best documentary (short) film. In 2010 she won an Emmy for her documentary, Pakistan: Children of the Taliban.
Nearly all Pakistani daily newspapers made it a front page news (The News, Dawn, Jang , Express News). The Prime minister of Pakistan announced the highest civil award for Ms. Chinoy.
This news generated a flood of tweets. Shermeen, a self-made entrepreneur and film director, was congratulated by all:
Jemima_Khan:Told you, told you, told you it's Pakistan's year… Congrats to @sharmeenochinoy for her Oscar win for brilliant doc, Saving Face
suhasinih: Wow Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy wins for best documentary!! Have seen those burns wards…her work needs to be seen by the world.
Natasha_H_Ejaz: #Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy: You bring tears to my eyes! So proud!
@samramuslim: I walk a prouder #Pakistani today coz of you @sharmeenochinoy and your #Oscar win!!
Kamran Javed: CONGRATS! Pakistan won 1st Oscar Award for Saving Faces as Best Documentary
Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy hosting TEDxKarachi 2011. Image courtesy Dr. Awab Alvi.
Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy was awarded the Oscar for an investigative documentary she made on the affects of acid violence on woman. Her documentary focuses on the bad state of woman right in Pakistan. Her film, named ‘Saving Faces‘, shows the how women live after being attacked by acid. The film also shows the work of British Pakistani Surgeon Muhammed Jawad who has tried to save the faces of women who have undergone this trauma. Acid attack is a ‘domestic crime' in Pakistan, and it's a travesty of justice when such culprits escape from the rule of law.
The documentary's website details the mission of the film. The basic aim is to end Acid violence in Pakistan and not just an “exposition of horrendous crime”. The ‘Acid Survivor Pakistan' - a activist group made after the documentary won the Oscar - plans to use social media, awareness, educating the youth, and radio/television campaigns to develop awareness about this horrible crime and completely root it out of the society.
Aaminah Qadir in her blog post, rightly calls Sharmeen a model to get inspiration from. The award will also help in developing the soft image of Pakistan. Sharmeen, herself, dedicated the Oscar to the women of Pakistan. Until Pakistan has women like Shermeen, hope for a change exists in the society.
Lastly, this documentary film will also help in enforcing the Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention Laws promulgated in December 2011. The new amendment will lead the culprit to lifetime imprisonment, and a mandatory compensation of 1 million rupees ( $11,000; rate as of 29th February 2012).
Click on the image to watch video
Sharmeen's message in the Oscar Thank You Cam was:
“To everyone in Pakistan, who fights against terrorism every single day, this, is for you”
February 28 2012
Pakistan: Congratulating Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy
Hina Safdar At Chowrangi celebrates the Oscar award winner, the internationally renowned Pakistani documentary filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy. She won the award for her documentary ‘Saving Face, which is based on the story of acid attack survivors.
Video Highlights: Defending Human Rights
This section aims to showcase interesting and recent posts in Global Voices that show the many ways in which videos are helping people tell stories all around the world. You can follow the activity by regions in our YouTube channel.
Several stories using video this month have focused on human rights violations and the steps being taken to speak out on the abuses and try to protect minorities and disadvantaged communities. Click through to the stories to see more videos and learn more about each case.
The right to life and non-discrimination
Guatemala: Speaking Out on the Genocide of Indigenous Women
Thanks to activists the international courts following the genocide proceedings against Guatemala will be taking into account the violence indigenous women faced for more than 36 years where they were victims because they were women and because they were indigenous.
A documentary and several video testimonials tell their harrowing stories, stories that due to the discrimination the victims faced in their communities and the fear of retribution many kept silent for decades.
Fighting for sexual diversityUganda: The Anti-Gay Bill That Won't Go Away
The same bill that was presented in 2009 is showing up again for voting in Uganda:
Uganda has again re-tabled the controversial anti-gay bill. Ugandan member of parliament, David Bahati, who proposed the bill back in 2009 has again considered tabling the draconian bill but with changes. He claims to have dropped the death penalty and jailing of family members who fail to report homosexuals to the authorities.
However, under further scrutiny it has been noted that no changes have been made in the bill, and it is still exactly the same one presented back in 2009. The following video explains the impact this bill will have on the LGBT community as well as their families and friends:
Hong Kong: Videos Against Homophobic Bullying in Schools
In Hong Kong, students in schools admit that homosexual students are bullied and discriminated, so an organization has spearheaded a campaign to raise awareness on this issue, focusing on producing online videos of interviews with sexually diverse students and experts on the topic.
The right for an education
Spain: Police Violence Against Students in Valencia
and
Spain: Crackdown Against Students Continues in Valencia
In Valencia, school children decided to protest budget cuts that affected their schools, forcing them to carry blankets with them due to lack of heating, in what has been a particularly cold winter in Europe. Police reacted to the protests violently with students injured and detained; many videos have been made showing the abuses against minors, females and the elderly.
Just a few days after the brutal police crackdown at the Luis Vives Institute of Secondary Education in Valencia [es], students have again been the target of beatings, pushing and violence from the police at a pacific protest in which they were, precisely, demonstrating against police violence. This time,the crackdown started on the afternoon with unexpected force.
The right to a home
Brazil: Quilombo Community in Bahia About to Be Evicted
One of the oldest slave descendent communities in Brazil, Quilombo Rio dos Macacos, where around 50 families live, has a date for eviction: March 4, 2012. The claim for the land comes from the Navy of Brazil, that intends to broaden a condo for its officers in that territory, in the border area between Salvador and Simões Filho, state of Bahia…
Descendants of original peoples from Africa who, during colonialism, were taken from their land to become slaves in Brazil, the Quilombolas now see themselves under threat of losing their homes again, despite their right to the land they inhabit enshrined in the constitution.
This short documentary [pt] shows the situation the Quilombolas are facing: afraid to leave their houses, unable to move freely and fearing for their well-being, their families and their homes.
Colombia: Citizen Journalist Threatened Over Viral Video
A video [es] made of the violent response the government had to peaceful protesters standing up against the rerouting of a river in their community for a dam construction has caused the citizen journalist to receive death threats.
Brazil: The Deficient Prison Systems of the Americas
Recent events in Latin American prisons that cost the life of hundreds of inmates have people looking into the living situation and overcrowding faced in many penitentiary centers, and analyzing if they are tragedies waiting to happen. People who are being deprived of their liberty as punishment for their crimes should be guaranteed minimum living conditions, and sometimes these aren't met, as shown in the documentary of life in Brazilian prisons, which also provides possible solutions for this difficult situation.
February 24 2012
Brazil: The Deficient Prison Systems of the Americas
The Latin Americanist sums up the recent events concerning the penitentiary system in Latin America: a fire that killed hundreds in a prison in Honduras, prison riots in Mexico and escaped inmates in Perú. These events may be causing other countries to re-analyze their prison systems, but will this turn into meaningful reforms, or more of the same tragedies?
In their post Chronicle of a Tragedy Foretold they include the following footage from a documentary on the problems within the penitentiary system in Brazil, including overcrowding. The video is in Portuguese with English subtitles.
Under the Brazilian Sun is a documentary directed and produced by Adele Reeves and Leandro Vilaca. It tells the story of the prison system from all possible sides, interviewing current and former prisoners, their families, guards, police officers, heads of prisons, human rights groups and others. From their documentary trailer description:
Not only is this film a must-see to because of its honest and brutal portrayal of the prison system in Brazil, but also because it is an in-depth analysis of why and how this is happening along with a look at what can be done to change these conditions for the future.
The documentary is available through YouTube, following is the first part:
February 23 2012
Greece: Athens, 1st African Film Festival
The first African Film Festival will take place in Athens, Greece, from February 23 to 29, 2012, with the collaboration of various African countries' embassies and consulates. Twenty one films from Angola, South Africa, Morocco, Tunisia, Nigeria, Egypt and Ethiopia will be screened. The event is hosted by the Greek Film Archive [el].
Greece: ‘Catastroika' Documentary on Public Sector Privatization
A new documentary about the catastrophic consequences of the privatization of the public sector in Greece, entitled Catastroika [el], is in progress. The title comes from the combination of the words ‘catastrophe' and ‘Troika' (the tripartite committee led by the European Commission with the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, that organised the financial rescues of Greece, Ireland and Portugal). The same producers have also created Debtocracy [el], a documentary about the reasons for the Greek economic crisis; watch the trailer here.
February 22 2012
One Day on Earth: Global Screening of Pioneer Worldwide Collaborative Film
One Day on Earth
The collaborative film One Day on Earth was filmed all on the same day, October 10, 2010, with more than 3000 hours of footage sent in from all corners of the world, showcasing the amazing diversity, conflict, tragedy, and triumph that occurs in one day. The Global Screening will take place on Earth Day (April 22nd, 2012) in every country of the world, with the assistance of World Heritage Sites and the United Nations.
Search the Archives for footage sent in to One Day on Earth
You can view the footage sent in through the interactive map on theOne Day on Earth archive for videos recorded during October 10th, 2010 and November 11th, 2011 by collaborators worldwide. The Archive is searchable by tags and keywords as well as through browsing on the map to view the different video clusters.
You can participate in the Global Screening by signing up to assist to one nearby, suggesting a location or hosting an event. In some places, assistance will be limited by the size of venue: to guarantee yourself a spot for the screening, you can sign up on the site.
Following, the original motion picture trailer for One Day on Earth.
Guatemala: Speaking Out on the Genocide of Indigenous Women
The 36 year civil war (1960-1996) that ravaged Guatemala left more than 200,000 people dead and at least 100,000 women raped: most of the victims were Mayan. Only recently have women started speaking out about the violence they suffered in hands of the Army and paramilitaries, and finally, the sexual violence perpetrated against Mayan women is being investigated as part of the genocide proceedings taking place in Spanish tribunals.
International Lawyer Almudena Bernabeu with Maria Toj and other survivors of Genocide in Guatemala. CC by Renata Ávila
The documentary The Invisible Genocide of Women, by photojournalists Ofelia de Pablo and Javier Zurita gives us the harsh reality of female survivors who tell disturbing accounts of abuse, torture and violence, and also the efforts to advance with the ongoing forensic and legal investigation in the indictment of former Guatemalan President Efraín Ríos Montt.
The 2008 documentary Women, Violence, Silence by Javier Bauluz brings light to the story of Manuela, a single mother who works in a family integration center in Verapaz, one of the areas most affected by the 36 year civil war that ravaged the country. It is through Manuela's work that the reality of women's situation in Guatemala comes through the light. In a country where there is an average of two women murdered daily women are under constant threat: the massive and organized violations they suffered during the conflicts, chauvinist violence, child abuse and discrimination based on gender and race are only some of the most important issues.
Patricia Simón of Periodismo Humano wrote about the terrible crimes committed against women during the Guatemalan genocide in Women, Violence and Silence in Guatemala featuring the eponymous documentary.
Las violaciones, las mutilaciones, la explotación sexual, las esterilizaciones a fuerza de violarlas y desgarrarlas, de provocarles abortos forzados, de feticidios -rajarles el vientre y sacar los fetos-, fueron torturas cometidas sistemáticamente por el Ejército y por los paramilitares contra estas mujeres. Mientras se lo hacían, como podrán ver en el Especial, les decían, por ser indígenas, “no son gente, son animales”. Muchas de estas mujeres nunca contaron estos crímenes y las que lo hicieron, o se supo en su comunidad, fueron rechazadas, despreciadas, expulsadas.
The reason these crimes are only recently seeing the light and being talked about in the genocide proceedings is, according to former Ad Hoc judge for the Inter-American Court of Human Rights Maria Eugenia Solís, that the UN, while investigating the genocide, failed to ask about these crimes, as if they weren't even possible. The only reason these abuses were documented is because women, when asked about other crimes, mentioned it collaterally when discussing the violence done to their husbands or other men in their families. And mostly, they kept this knowledge to themselves:
Está naturalizada la violencia contra las mujeres. Antes, durante y después del conflicto. Las mujeres han vivido en unos niveles de desigualdad descomunales con respecto al resto de la sociedad. No se reconocen como sujetos. El primer trabajo con ellas es conseguir que piensen que son seres humanos, que no es normal que abusen de ellas. Aunque lo hayan hecho desde pequeñas porque había mucho incesto. Y hay que tener en cuenta las reacciones después de que fueran violadas por los combatientes, que fueron muy diversas pero nunca de solidaridad: eran consideradas traidoras, sucias, como sus hijos si se habían quedado embarazadas de sus agresores… Se supone que ellas deberían haber hecho todo lo posible por morirse antes de ser violada. Por todo ello se sienten culpables. Pero además es que sus violadores siguen siendo sus vecinos. Están rodeadas de puro enemigo. Hay mujeres que a la vuelta de la presentación de un informe que recogía su testimonio, volvieron a ser violadas por los mismos.
Organizations have been fighting this situation by organizing activities, festivals and meetings where survivors of rape during the armed conflict can speak out and receive support, such as the Regional Festival for Remembrance which took place in 2008 and 2011. This festival included activities exploring the topics of healing, empowerment, presentation of testimonies, open discussions, spaces for reflection, a Mayan ceremony as well as artistic and dancing activities to engage the women and help them feel empowered to work through their pain and unite with others to help put a stop to sexual violence.
Getting this story out is one of the steps towards justice for Guatemalan women who even after the civil war have not seen their lot improve. According to Women Today, in 2010 more than 685 women were murdered in Guatemala, placing it in the top spot for femicide in the Americas, above Ciudad Juarez in Mexico. Furthermore, only 1% of the cases gets to trial, and the person in charge of compensation for the victims of the civil war has stated he doesn't believe there were rapes. Lawyer Almudena Bernabeu, who took this case to the Spanish courts, underlines the importance of this process:
A veces la justicia universal es la única oportunidad para las víctimas si les falla su propia justicia
Survivors and Activists from Rabinal, Baja Verapaz Guatemala who declared as witnesses before Spanish Court on the genocide case and declared their testimonies of crimes against women. Image CC By Renata Ávila
February 16 2012
UK: Video Series to Showcase Local Poets
Highest Point is the first video in a series of nine which will showcase the work of poets in the United Kingdom.
Video: Showcasing the Beautiful Landscapes of Chile and Patagonia
A moving short film by Gnarly Bay Productions follows a couple travelling through Chile and Patagonia, showing the beautiful landscapes found in this corner of South America.
February 14 2012
Colombia: Romantic Movie for Men Premieres on Facebook
Lessons for a Kiss, a Colombian film categorized by writer and director Juan Pablo Bustamante as a romantic comedy for men, will premiere on Facebook on Valentine's day (Feb. 14) and will stay online for 3 months. It will be available for rental for $.99 cents.
February 09 2012
Malaysia: Organization Advocates for Human Rights through Video
Freedom Film Fest by KOMAS
Anna Har is the director of Pusat KOMAS (Pusat Komunikasi Masyarakat) Community Communication Centre, and she explains the role video has in their outreach programs where they produce resource materials, facilitate processes, organize communities and give media training on the topics of non-discrimination, citizenship and voter education, as well as grassroots advocacy:
KOMAS is not a video production house nor do we specialise in producing films; rather, we see it as part of the strategic and creative use of media tools for the advocacy of human rights.
Between Love and Race is a short film focusing on racial discrimination, produced by KOMAS on 2006. In it, Angela and Rashid face backlash from friends and family because they've decided to date each other. Angela's parents object because they wanted her to date a Chinese boy, Rashid's mother wishes he dated a nice Malaysian girl, as do Rashid's friends. Angela's friend Yati at least speaks Mandarin since she went to a Chinese school, so even among Yati's friends, Angela is singled out for not speaking her family's language. Angela comes to discover that through labels, stereotypes, discrimination and expectations on race and love, what maters is how she and Rashid feel about each other.
In addition, KOMAS has also been running the human rights documentary festival FreedomFilmFest in Malaysia since 2003. The festival includes a documentary film competition where a first time film maker can pitch a proposal that they'll be able make into a documentary if they win, video workshops and film screenings; and it has become a platform for showcasing human rights documentaries that may not have enough commercial backing or space in mainstream media to get otherwise exposed. The 2012 FFF will be on the subject of Democracy, with the slogan of “Democracy – Who is the boss?”
The 2011 festival trailer gives us a perspective on the types of issues and topics the film festival promotes:
One of the 2011 winners of the documentary competition include Afiq Deen, who directed Huruf J, a short documentary on the hardships and discrimination faced by divorcees in Malaysia. A society that sets them apart for their condition, debt, poverty and a legal system which is unable to enforce fathers' financial obligations with their children are some of the hurdles these women have to face when trying to move on with their lives. The film includes some subtitles and audio in English.
With the online premiere of the documentary, the FreedomFilmFestival is asking you to view and review the documentary so they can add the opinions on their site.
February 06 2012
Video: 6th Annual DoGooder Nonprofit Video Awards
Submissions are being accepted up to February 29th for the 6th Annual DoGooder Nonprofit Video Awards in four different categories: small, medium and large organizations and best storytelling.
January 26 2012
Serbia: The Media War Against Angelina Jolie
Not so long ago Angelina Jolie was “more concerned” about the reception of her director's debut movie, In the Land of Blood and Honey, in Bosnia and Serbia than in the United States. She was eagerly awating the reactions of local audiences, whom she had portrayed in her war drama, and some of her fears turned out to be justified.
While the Bosnian public warmly welcomed this war love story of a Serbian policeman and a Bosnian Muslim woman, the Serbian media launched a war on the U.S. actress, accussing her of spreading hatred toward Serbs.
Serbian daily Kurir initiated a series of articles [sr] that seriously harmed Jolie's good reputation in Serbia:
Angelina claims in the movie that 300,000 Muslims were killed in the Bosnian war and 50,000 Muslim women were raped. The actress intends to seek the abolition of Republika Srpska as a genocidal creation. All of this was commissioned by the extreme Islamic policies, presenting Serbs as criminals, killers, murderers and rapists, and Muslims as the only victims.
Explaining the reason for Jolie's alleged pro-Muslim bias, the newspaper claimed [sr] that the movie was financially supported by Saudi direct investments of $10 million:
It is generally known that Jolie is very close to politicians in Washington. Maybe she would like the public to think it is an art film, but it is actually pure anti-Serbian propaganda. The director sends a message to the audience that Serbs are crazy wild beasts, while Muslims are innocent victims.
Momir Stojanovic, former Director of the Serbian Military Intelligence Agency, also supported Kurir's claim that Muslim extremists had funded Angelina's project, saying “it is very close to the truth.”
The Serbian newspaper triggered thousands of negative, pro-Serbian votes on imdb.com, one of the most reputable film rating sites, causing the film's score to drop drastically to 3.3 from an average of 5.4.
A screenshot of Jolie's film page on imdb.com.
Very quickly the page of Jolie's film at imdb.com turned into a virtual battlefield between Serbs and Muslims. (In the past few days, however, 11 pages of comments have somehow been reduced to five).
Sanja_Cancar says:
Angelina needs to stick to the topics she knows about, ei: ruining marriages, stealing husbands, adopting children from around the world, wearing blood. Instead, she chose the ironic path of a “peace-ambassador” that gets involved in politics she knows nothing about and creates movies that will only create more hatred… […]
Vitezbg observes:
Movie is full of political manipulations, lies, false informations etc.[…] Also 50.000 raped Muslim women is very disputed. It is famous case when ‘raped Sarajevo woman', gave birth of African child. Actually the father in this case was member of UN personal. […]
Johnny NT concludes:
Well done Angie, Goebbels and Hitler would be proud of you and your fascinating work on this movie. […]
rudeedee2 asks:
How could these people dare think to make a movie (”entertainment”) of such a horribly devastating situation ??? Seems only money is important. […] Would Angelina Jolie want to think her family has gone through hell and lost every semblance of normalcy, experienced fear, heartbreak, death and devastation only to find a so-called movie producer sees it as an artistic capital?
psysd3 reminds Angelina of the crimes of her own people:
[…] From the very beginning, by coming to America's soil on which it is estimated that, in 1500s, there were about 12 000 000 Native Americans whose number is reduced to nearly 237 000 by 1900s […]
Alex_Michael writes:
I guess I expected too much of Angelina. She might have black hair, but the movie sure look like put together by a blonde. Serbian Nazis who don't have problem killing anything from pets to babies on one side, and good Muslims on the other side… Example is Srebrenica where Serbs committed crimes by taking revenge after number of Serbian villages around Srebrenica were completely wiped out, and their inhabitants killed by Muslims from Srebrenica. This was well described in Norwegian documentary “Srebrenica a Town Betrayed”.
The Bosnian Muslim online community opposes the Serbian comments and supports Jolie's movie.
f_s is grateful to Angelina:
[…] Thank you Ms. Jolie for being the voice of the women depraved, humiliated and tortured. I recommend to everyone to see the movie especially women around the globe, to hear the unspoken, to witness the hidden. […]
Sibaak adds:
[…] We, the Bosnians do not hate. We are the most peaceful nation in the world, and thats why the facts of that war are so brutal! Because we didn't believe it could happen. We didn't believe that our friends would turn against us, rape us, kill our children, take over our houses. But they did. We that lived to tell, still, just like me, believe there are good Serbs. But what really hurts is to see how many people, just like on here, people that do not have even slightest idea of the truth, are so blind, and so hateful, because it tells me that they would do it all over again. In a way I feel its good that they are showing their real faces. Showing how ignorant they are. […]
Mela Fatkic expresses gratitude to Jolie on the movie's Facebook page. She writes:
Angelina thank you for this film, but we can not forget what it was. Thank you for the truth which not many people to reconcile, and nobody believes until they see…
Dino Gligic shares this opinion:
Angelina, thank you so much for telling the torld the truth about what Serbs did. It was worse than in that movie…
Nat Taschetti Garcia Angie admits ignorance and asks :
I just graduate on high school and i never learned about Bosnian war as i never learned about refugee camps. Do you feel like something has to be done in education, as a mom and as an activist?
Frustrated by the Serbian furious reaction, Jolie responded on Twitter:
Is it possible that the entire nation believes a concocted story from trash @KurirVesti magazine based on fake email from imaginary person?”
However, a few days later this tweet was deleted, and a new one appeared:
Don't express your love for own nation, race, religion, etc… by hating others.
On other side, Kurir pulled off the article of threatining tone: “Serbs declared war on the actress: you do not know what awaits for you Angelina” from the newspaper official site published as respond on Jolie's offensive tweet.
Jolie also tweeted this appeal:
Don't believe everything you read… “They kill good trees to put out bad newspapers.”
In an interview with Slobodna Evropa, Jolie expressed her affection for Bosnia, saying that “it is easy to be in love with Bosnia”:
I would not have created this film if Bosnikas hadn't agreed with the screenplay. I would have burned it…
Zeljko Mitrovic, the owner of Pink TV, is one of the most influental Serbs who had initially condemned Jolie because of her anti-Serbian prejudices and had even withdrawn from the movie project. Now, however, he has changed his mind:
It is wrong to attack Angelina now when the movie is finished. We could have changed something before they started making the film. Now it is pointless to generate hostility. That thing cannot be changed by additional antagonisms. She should be invited to Belgrade because people like her can help us in the future to improve the image of ourselves in the world. I invite Angelina to come to Serbia and to be a guest of TV Pink.
Sierra Leone: Say Grace Before Drowning
Black Looks writes about “Say Grace Before Drowning”, a film by Sierra Leonean/American Nikyatu Jusu: “The film tells the story about a woman’s struggle to overcome the insanity of war as she tries to adjust to a life in exile.”
January 23 2012
Video: One Year, One World and 52 Different Stories
Video journalist Maggie Padlewska will travel alone for one year, visiting a country each week for a total of 52 countries. During her journey she'll be recording, editing and producing videos of her interactions with communities, organizations and people under-represented by mass media and uploading them to the web, so that the stories of these people in lesser known communities come out into the world. This is the One Year One World.
One year One World is an initiative to raise awareness of people and communities living in some of the world's most fascinating but under-reported regions through an independent multimedia production. The mission is to provide lesser-known communitites with an opportunity to share their stories wth the world, to educate and inspire youth and adults to think about the global community, to help bridge the “communications gap” in media coverage and to promote peace and understanding around the world.
The idea to do this project came to Padlewska when she was filming a medical mission to a remote indigenous community in Panama. As she explains on this next video, during her trip, she realized that she didn't want to just report what the medical community was doing, she wanted to go beyond that.
Her pilot project took place with the Embera communities in Panama. The Embera are one of the few traditional pre- Columbian tribes remaining in Central America, and recently, their ancestral lands, mostly forests and jungles were declared a National Park. This meant that they weren't able to hunt anymore, which meant they had lost that food security and needed to buy food from outside their community. They turned to cultural tourism as a way to earn income, and this intrigued Padlewska:
Were the Embera peoples forced to embrace tourism as a means of survival after being prohibited from hunting? What implications has this had on the tribe's traditional lifestyle and cultural survival? Is the tribe being exploited? These are some of the questions that I asked the Embera Drua and Embera Quera, two indigenous communities currently living on government land.
This journey's video shows us how these communities are dealing with this new way to interact with outsiders, and what impact it is having on their traditional ways:
Padlewska plans to travel to Africa, Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, Asia and South and Central America as soon as she finishes her fundraising to back her year of travel.
January 21 2012
Colombia: Hip hop and rap artists unite for peace
The Conspiracy for Peace is the new video the local rap and hip hop artists have made with the support of the local TV network Telemedellin. The song was written collectively by the artists of Medellin and the surrounding cities for the Peace One Day and is a message of peace, unity, coexistence, respect and positive energy.
January 17 2012
Costa Rica: I'm Happy In That Water
This wordless short film follows Doña Norma, a 78 year old woman who goes to swim every day at a local swimming pool outside of the capital city of San José.
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