September 17, SATURDAY
The workshop started off on September 17th morning with all participants
from Europe and India.
After the initial formalities, the highlight was sharing video material
produced by the participants. Certainly a great start for bonding
and exchanging thoughts on technique and narratives.
Dr. S.Y. Quaraishi, Director - General, National Aids Control Organisation
set the workshop rolling with the first intervention. He focussed
on the role media can play in communicating HIV/AIDS issues and highlighted
the Government of India strategy for AIDS control in the coming years.
September 18, SUNDAY
A survey was specifically conducted as a foundation of the workshop.
Between August 1 and August 31, 2005, over ten television channels
in India were tracked for news stories, features and PSAs concerning
HIV / AIDS. The participants had a chance to discuss a couple of clips
from this survey. (All the clips and the analysis will be available
to them as part of their reference base before they go into post-production
work in Berlin later this year.)
The intervention of Dr. Pradeep Seth, Virologist and Biotechnologist,
was received with great attention and led to many possibilities for
story ideas.
Later, with penis models and condoms scattered around the room, the
participants went through the seemingly fun-driven, but basic issues
of sex and sexuality. The European participants had a brief glimpse
of the Indian tradition of Kamasutra, when Ashok Babu said why not
have different sexual poses with one partner instead of the same pose
with one partner.
In contrast, the session with Sanjay Kaul put communication
of HIV / AIDS messages into a clinical framework of marketing principles.
He emphasised the need to analyse the attributes of the 'product'
and break it into small parts that can / should be addressed for targeted
groups through holistic (read: across-the- board supportive) communication
strategies
September 19, MONDAY
For many of the participants, the day they met members of the Delhi
Network of Positive Persons will remain etched in their memory.
Loon Gangte, Naveen Kumar and Shweta brought the world of People
Living With HIV / AIDS right at the core of the workshop dynamics.
Later in the day, the Advisor, Social Marketing at National Aids Control
Organisation (NACO), Kapil Kaul, conducted a critical informative
session. He brought two of the NACO HIV / AIDS campaigns presently
in the stage of idea-development with advertising agencies and threw
it open for comments.
September 20, TUESDAY
From here on, the participants began moving from the intense and specific
world of HIV /AIDS to production issues. They had a chance to view
the first of a series of three UNESCO films entitled Video Training
Basics - Sound.
(These films were made by formedia for PSBT / UNESCO in 2003-4. The
participants were very happy to receive the set of three films on
Camera, Sound and Editing as a gift from the project.)
The participants spent the day on practical and theoretical sessions
with the tutor, P. D. Valson.
Later in the day, participants had the opportunity to see the HIV
/ AIDS scenario of India in a global perspective.
Noble Thalari, Communications Officer, UNAIDS, India, highlighted
the status of Eastern Europe that is not still fully understood, especially
in India.
Laurent le Danois, Health and Communications Expert at the
European Commission Delegation in New Delhi, gave an overview of the
EU projects in India that concerned linkages between communication
and HIV / AIDS.
(Subsequently, Laurent le Danois has been in constant touch with valuable
inputs for the participants.)
September 21, WEDNESDAY
Participants viewed the Camera film. The screening was followed by
a hands-on session, where they were given training tasks for shooting
in different parts of New Delhi. The footage was later screened before
the group and followed by a very pro-active and interactive discussion.
The visit of Andrew Whitehead, BBC World Service Trust was
an important input for the participants. He shared information alongwith
the screening of HIV / AIDS social messaging on a series presently
being aired on the Indian national broadcaster, Prasar Bharati (erstwhile
Doordarshan).
The interactive session with Andrew Whitehead was especially fruitful,
since he has also worked as a correspondent for BBC World in India.
He pointed out some important aspects of newsworthiness in context
of the commonly quoted 'AIDS fatigue' syndrome and the need to 'manufacture'
(read: creatively construct) stories that evoke interest.
September 22, THURSDAY
Participants received their last formal inputs about the project on
this day.
A pre-recorded interview with Savyasaachi Jain of
Thomson Foundation highlighted the issues of language and interpretation
while reporting on HIV / AIDS. A pre-print xerox copy of the Thomson
foundation handbook for journalists was handed over to the participants.
Kirsten Lindberg, Project Manager at the EC Delegation in Delhi, gave
the participants an overview of the EuropeAid funded EU-India Economic
Cross-Cultural Programme and the various initiatives under the Media
dimension, including those related to HIV / AIDS. This helped the
participants to position themselves within the broader aims and goals
of interculturalism at the global level.
September 22, THURSDAY to October 3, MONDAY
Apart from this, the participants moved onto the phase of action that
lasted until the end of the workshop.
They had a warm-up shooting session that took them
to the older, crowded parts of Delhi. The whole exercise of being
amidst a crowd, managing to shoot while people were watching and pouring
over them, was a bit overwhelming.
The participants then formed out into teams of two each, one European
and one Indian. The teams had two days to think and prepare
their ideas for pitching to the tutors. The process of idea
development was continuously supported by the tutors. Members of the
Delhi Network of Positive People were also available for inputs and
the nuances of interpretation on various issues.
The technical health expert, Dr. Jaya Shreedhar,
gave the participants a special session on what role the media
is expected to play in advocacy, with pointers on what issues
they should be focusing on and why. Through the finalization of ideas,
she was in constant interaction with the different teams to help evolve
an approach to the themes.
To help evolve the ideas around people that speak for themselves,
the participants received an additional opportunity to meet
with spokespersons from the Delhi Network of Positive People
with the help of Naveen Kumar, who later co-ordinated all arrangements
for shooting. The participants were able to meet Kumar, Mike,
Anil John, Madan, Niyang and Hatneu. Most stories for news
features and ideas for Public Service Announcements got their thrust
and form after this interaction.
The pitching day was the most serious day of the
workshop. All participants were present on the dot, dressed for the
occasion, ready to pitch to the tutors. External mentors, Sikander
Bhasin, S. Dhanapal and Sunita Bhasin, joined the participants
from this day. With the additional technical support of Surendra
Rawat and Sandeep Bhatt, they were part
of the entire production process with the participants.
Each team had a chance to present two ideas. Unfortunately,
some teams presented two individual ideas instead of team-ideas.
(This was probably the only disappointing aspect of the workshop,
which was aimed at being a conceptual cross-cultural effort. Nonetheless,
even these teams ultimately worked together as a team on the productions.)
The tutors found it difficult to make the final shortlist. In fact,
inspite of their best intention, one good idea and one individual
idea could not be accommodated wihin the framework of the workshop.
The air was tense when the final decisions were announced:
1.
Team: Carita Pettersson and Ratna Shukla –
News Feature
Theme: Treatment, Patent and Access to HIV / AIDS
care in context of India
2.
Team: Neville Powis and Noopur Tiwari – News
Feature
Theme: Status of the Communication Strategies for
HIV / AIDS in India
3.
Team: Stefano Lanini and Jose Jude Mathew –
News Feature
Theme: Workplace, employment and People Living
with HIV / AIDS
4.
Team: Carola Hesse and Prem Kumar Aman –
PSA
Theme: Children in the world of HIV / AIDS
5.
Team: Emily McDowell and Mukesh Anand – PSA
Theme: Sharing the world with People Living with
HIV / AIDS
6.
Team: Silke Kettelhake and Maria Thanglura –
PSA
Theme: Condom Use
The recee trips, shooting plans and shooting stretched
out over the rest of the days, with teams leaving at six in the
morning, returning to base late at night, shooting at airports in
the middle of the night, returning in the wee hours of the morning.
Hectic, busy and exciting as production schedules are.
All six teams had their own camera units, technical support,
vehicles and moved independently.
As shooting progressed, all tapes were uploaded and downloaded
on CDs. The teams could not wait to begin previewing
and reviewing their material. Some decided to shoot more,
some were satisfied, some were undecided. All quite normal and very
much in form.
The participants carried their CDs back with them in preparation
for the edit scheduled for the second workshop at
Deutsche Welle Akademie in Berlin, Germany.
The rest was all goodbyes and feedback forms that were immensely
gratifying to the organizers of the project.
2.30pm to 5.30pm Post-Preview Discussion
Option: Extra Shooting
October 2, SUNDAY
9.30AM to 5.30PM Discussion for narrative style
and sequencing
Option: Extra Shooting
|
