Visita Cine – Conversando con sus directores: “Paraíso” (de Héctor Gálvez)

Classes today for the student ambassadors of Future Voices International were different as we have arranged a visit to MALI, Museo de Arte de Lima to view the Peruvian film ‘Paraiso’ shot on the outskirts of Lima in a very similar community as Pachacutec. Not only did the students get the opportunity to watch this great piece of cinema but also the opportunity to have a Q&A session with the director ‘Hector Galvez’ himself.

All the students of Future Voices International were extremely excited by this opportunity and made the most of the experience by asking many question and for tips in order to help them with their own short social films they are in the process of creating. For many of the students this was there first time visiting a gallery or cinema, Pachacutec is located on the outskirts of Lima over 2hrs away from centre, and many of the participant’s families don’t have the financial ability or time to afford similar visits.

Future Voices Intl is extremely happy with the impact this excursion has had on the individuals, both creatively and socially. The trip has bought all the participants closer together and has focused their creative thinking which will hopefully help the participants create stunning works of cinema.

If you would like to read more about the project excursion please follow this link to a project blog created by one of our students. (Currently only in Spanish)

We would like to thank Susy Sano Auditorio Curator from MALI for putting this fantastic season of Cine Peruano together & for capturing the above image. www.mali.pe

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Future Voices Starts in A3 community in Pachacutec, Lima!

Future Voices International’s programme has began in the sector A3 community in Pachacutec, enabling young people living in segregated communities the chance to share their stories with the world.

We ran the registration and application process last week to select appropriate participants for the Future Voices International ambassador programme. We received an unprecedented number of applications from young people wanting to take part in the programme of workshops. After much hard work and advice from local youth workers we selected the 20 student ambassadors of the programme.

Our students vary in experience with communication media and have a wide age range from 10 yrs to 20 yrs old. We choose half the participants from the partner youth centre were working with and the other half from the wider community to help improve social cohesion and allow the participants to form new friendships.

The initial few days of workshops we ran involved many interaction exercises allowing the participants to get to know each other, and learn about each other’s strengths and weaknesses. All the participants are very excited by this opportunity to be able to express themselves without creative limitations.

We have many exciting activities planned for the next few weeks and we will be updating the site accordingly. We are introducing the participants to online blogging and online journalism and soon these updates will be coming directly from the participants themselves.

12 Days| Voices of Rural Farm Folk: Pacora, Lambeyeque, Chiclayo

When Future Voices International was first invited to run a new media and digital communication workshop in a rural village deep in a Peruvian farming community, I knew it was going to be a tough challenge. Little did I know how remote this village was and the near to no existence of accessible technology here in the community.

Picture: Joana Rosemary, Diego Relaiza, Sujey Montalean, Sadiq Miah (Programme Director), Jhon Silves, Jemman Alexis & Roysen Agrido

I knew from the beginning that the project will need to be re-worked and adapted to suit such a situation where the sustainability of the project will be affected due to the lack of internet and access to computers. The main part of the project is young people with stories they wish to share with the world, something this village defiantly had by the bucket load. Future Voices Internationals mission is to share these with the world and get the stories of this community heard by as many people as possible.

The main focus the young participants of the project wanted to explore during out workshop sessions was on how farming life differs from any other. The majority of the kids know what city life is like as they spend the academic part of the year in cities across Peru but always return back here in the vacation periods to help family on the fields. After many discussion and planning session the young participants came up with the title: Mi Vida en Chacra (My life on the farm)

We decided to use 12 year old Jhon Silves Anderson as the main leading role, and through his character the film took place. The project took place at various times through the 12 days to represent all parts of the day to get an accurate representation of the life for a young person living on a Peruvian farm. project was created by six young individuals living in the local farming community, pictured in the first image of this post.

Another ultra short film called ‘Ardilla’ was shot by 13 year old Jemman Alexis Montalean Diaz, the short film was shot during a hunting squirrels session with the family. The film defiantly push’s boundary’s and clearly highlights the differences between life in here in the country and the city.

The project was successful and a press release has been sent to the local Lambeyeque newspapers to help spread the hard work the young people have invested into their masterpieces. The training provided was tailored to the age group of participants and the access to communication media. The finished project work will be featured during the first ever film festival taking place in Pachacutec on Friday 18^th February 2011. If unfortunately you are unable to attend in person, then you can still take part in this film festival as all films will be available to view in our online catalogue.

News: Project Dates/Locations/Pachacutec Project Delayed

The project start date in Pachacutec has been delayed slightly due to the Ashaninka tribe research trip, which will lead to the project taking place in the community 1hr north of Satipo a jungle town in the heart of the Peruvian Selva region.

In addition to this the project has been invited to the north of the country to work with rural young people who have had no access to communication media in the past. The village the project has been invited to is called Pacora, Lambeyeque near the coastal Peruvian town Chiclayo 13hr away from Lima, that 800km!

The chance to give these young people the opportunity to express themselves through creative media has taken priory for the next few weeks of Future Voices International’s agenda. It has meant that the start date for the Pachacutec project has had to be pushed back a little, but by no means will this affect the quality of the programme or jeopardise any part of the project in anyway.

Dates to keep an eye out for:

Pacora Rural Village Project – 5/01/11 till 16/01/11

Pachacutec Urban Shantytown Project – 20/01/11 till 20/02/11

Ashaninka Tribe Satipo Project – 21/02/11 till 26/02/11

Rincon del Valle Colombia Project – March (exact dates TBC)

More information on these project dates will be made available in due course.

Arrival in Project Area

Future Voices International is currently in the project area of Pachacutec, Lima, Peru. Getting prepared for the grand launch of the project in the first week of January 2011 with all the project partners and supporters.

It’s currently a very exciting time here with the buzz about the project spreading throughout the community. There has been an unprecedented amount of interest in the project from the community that a new system of participant selection has had to be enforced. Originally the plan was to work with the participants of the local youth centre Casa Juvenile Pachacutec, but as the wider community has expressed an interest in the project I will open the project to 50% CJP attendees and 50% local residents.

Ashaninka Tribal Community – Project Trip

Future Voices International has recently completed a preliminary research trip deep into the Peruvian jungle to see the viability of launching a short course version of the programme with the Ashaninka tribal community.

After 15hrs of travelling across winding roads and high altitudes of the Peruvian Andes we made ourselves into the central jungle area of Junin. We headed to a small town called Satipo which was the only connection to the outside world as it was only here you could get mobile signal and access to modern amenities. After a short pit stop we headed south via three wheeled mototaxi’s across the bumpy spine shaking dirt paths to a small Ashaninka community located 45 minutes away.

I am in a fortunate position to be able to gain such access to the Ashaninka community, as the community is part of a study a partner is doing to see if they can help the community in getting a fairer deal for their coffee they produce. Without this relationship already in place gaining the trust and support of the community would have be a very difficult and long process. Being in the fortunate position I was able to interact freely with the community and intern was actually invited to run a version of my project here with the young people in the community by the elders of the community.

I ran a few pilot workshops in the community to sense the viability of the project with the community and can confirm I was pleased with the results and the possibility for this partnership with the Ashaninka community is looking very promising.

Future Voices International currently needs to complete the project in the intended area of the urban settlement around Lima, before committing to running the project here in this community, but is planning a to run the project in the Ashaninka community at some point during February 2011.

So watch this space!

The birth of Future Voices International

The birth of Future Voices International came about with the amalgamation of incredible experiences I’ve been lucky enough to have over the last year. Leaning and working in the social and voluntary sector has been truly eye opening and has taught me a many life lessons.

One year ago to date is when this incredible journey began with me leaving my professional background in the materialistic world of Industrial Design to volunteer in a developing country.

My life was put into perspective, as I witnessed the inequalities faced by young people living in a shantytown in Peru, growing up in a society where they feel segregated and cut off from the world. The experience was truly life changing, since returning from my volunteering trip I made the decision that I wanted to work in the field of development. The way I perceive life has change, success isn’t measured my wealth but by happiness.

I wanted to live my life with the guidance of Ghandi’s quote:

“Be the change you wish to see in the world”

I have changed my life back in the UK, early this year I took the opportunity working on a pilot ‘Digital Village’ project with Trident social housing association, which caters for vulnerable residents such as teenage single mothers, those with learning difficulties/mental disorders and victims recovering from drug abuse. At the Trident Digital Village I have been using social media to increase social cohesion and participation.

This work is very rewarding however I feel I am not fully utilising my professional skill set. Its time I developed and progressed in creating international change.

The birth of ‘Future Voices International’ has become the next step in my life!