The latest I just finished for Peacemaker Ministries. For a short bio on this film, click here; to watch in 720HD, click here (via Exposure Room). This premiers at the 2010 Peacemaker Conference in Dallas, TX.
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Tags: India, manila, video

I haven’t posted much because well, I haven’t had the time, too busy actually working than posting about the work. I will have some more clips and footage coming.

In any case, here’s a short raw clip I put together for the staff at Peacemaker Ministries to introduce them to one of the people that I spent a few days with on camera:

Preview Peacemaking in India: Pervez Sethna from J.R. Friesen on Vimeo.

Tags: documentary, India, Production, travel, video

So I’m sitting in the lobby of the Hotel Kanha Shyam in Allahabad. I think there’s only one flight in and out of here from Delhi so I was able to visit and old friend from Moody while staying overnight in Delhi who’s doing some Master’s degree work out here.

This place is a complete stretch of my cultural experience. The cows that freely wander the streets like stray dogs are the most striking and comical oddity to me. Being a mountain boy who’s spent some time on the farm, cows are stupid. The concept of them being holy is really hard for me to swallow.

Evidently, the most striking thing to the people here is a white guy. I get stared at. Add that to the fact I’m carrying around a not-small camera and it’s positively bewildering to them I think. It’s not the kind of casual stare, it’s the boring into you stare. The type of stare that, if experienced on an American city street at night, would precipitate a mugging. I fully don’t believe that’s their intention whatsoever, it’s just my reaction to their communication.

And that’s probably the most personal I’ve yet to be on this blog.

As far as communication goes, it’s going. This section of the trip (like Manila) as I predicted is difficult. I have only a limited amount of days and because I’m not staying in the vicinity of my primary subject as originally planned, I’m having to adjust pace as I go. Naturally the unscripted format lends to this sort of conundrum. I’m still getting what I need, but the breadth of material is not as wide as I’d hoped. Either way, I supremely productive trip so far.

A shot of the studio at the hotel…

…and on location

Tags: documentary, India, Production, travel, video