The first One World Media Festival launches this year and will take place on 8 & 9 November in association with Open City Docs at University College London (UCL). The festival builds on from the success of the annual One World Media Week and will host a two-day event with a diverse range of events for all those interested in media and its relation to human rights, development and international affairs. All events will take place at University College London and are free, however tickets are limited and must be booked in advance online.
With two full days of keynote presentations, industry panels, film screenings and networking opportunities, the festival provides a forum for conversations about the media’s portrayal of the Global South and how this impacts on international journalism and filmmaking today.
Guest speakers include: Binyavanga Wainaina, award-winning Kenyan journalist and author of satirical essay How to Write About Africa, Peter Barron, Google’s Director of Communications and Public Affairs; Mark Kaigwa, cutting-edge digital media consultant from Nairobi; Ben Sutherland, journalist, producer and blogger for the BBC’s World Have Your Say, among other filmmakers, journalists, digital gurus, and writers covering global stories.
Alongside the sessions, the festival will also present a selection of films from around the world. On Friday, the film programme will explore approaches to representations of the Global South by both locals and western filmmakers. Highlights include Wadjda (dir. Haifa al-Mansour, 2012), the first-ever feature by a Saudi Arabian woman, and the country’s official nomination for the 2014 Oscars, and TV Slum (dir. Angelo Loy, 2003), a participative project made with street kids in Nairobi.
The second day will take a more in-depth look at asylum seekers, refugees and migrants and how the media represents the issue in Europe. Films include: Closed Sea (Mare Chiuso, dir. Andrea Segre, Stefano Liberti, 2012), a film about Libyan refugees trying to get to Italy, some filmed by the travellers on their mobile phones from the boat. In light of the recent tragedy off the coast of Italy where hundreds of Africans died while trying to reach Europe, this programme will throw much-needed light on some of the biggest issues facing the world today – the right of movement of people and the implications of European foreign policy. Also showing will be Leave to Remain (dir. Bruce Goodison, 2013), made with asylum seekers in East London.
The One World Media Festival’s exclusive closing event will feature a remarkable one-woman show “BONO & GELDOF ARE C**TS”, a lighthearted look at foreign aid and who it really helps, from the acclaimed comedienne, comedy writer and author Jane Bussmann whose credits include: South Park, the Emmy-winning Smack The Pony, The Fast Show and Brass Eye.
Check out the programme here
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