Back home.

After 7 weeks of helping to set up the Haiti Reporters film school and giving classes
to the students it was time for me to go back home.
So here I am in my beloved Amsterdam.

Finishing edit class.

After an intensive 1 1/2 weeks of giving editing lessons I am pretty sure that the students
are capable of editing their own material once they start filming their own reportages.
There are some great video editing talents in the class.
Thanks Craig and Jean Joseph for assisting me during the classes!

Jacob Kushner.

American freelance journalist Jacob Kushner gave a lecture on freelancing and pitching
stories. Jacob spents a lot of time in Haiti and the Dominican Republic and works on a
regular basis for AP and several newspapers and magazines in the US.
The question of the day was: can you find an original angle for your story so that the editor
accepts it?

Video editing class.

Today I started a five day video editing course. It was great fun. First I told the students
about my experiences as an independent filmmaker and as a video editor. And about the
important role the editor plays in realising the essence of a documentary. There were loads
of questions.
Then my good friend Craig, media mercenary from the US, working here for PURE
Water, and Jean Joseph, a Haitian camera man and video editor, joined in to teach
the basics of Final Cut Pro. The course involves a lot of practice and the students love it!

Interview techniques and camera classes.

Interview techniques and video camera classes today!

Andre Lambertson & Kwame Dawes.

World Press Photo Award winner, photographer Andre Lambertson and Emmy Award
winner, writer Kwame Dawes, came to the school to give a lecture. They have worked
together on several projects such as "Ashes", on juvenile violence in American big city ghetto's.
The students were full of questions. Andre Lambertson commented: "It was such a pleasure
to see the enthousiasm on these kids faces. They are the future of Haiti's photography and
videography."
Andre and Kwame are currently working on a project on AIDS in Haiti and the
Dominican Republic. Thanks guys! It was fantastic!

The road situation improves.

Nine students yesterday as the situation on the streets improved. Some of the barricades
have been removed and a few taptaps were running.
Johnny, one of our students who studied sociology, gave a lecture on the political situation.