Our film day concluded on Wednesday evening with a beautiful sunset over a 3-hectare farm an hour from where we are staying. The euphoria of that moment and the kindness of Mr. Dumisane Shabangu I will never forget but I want to reflect on important takeaways from the planning and now editing process.
The 24 hours prior to our filming constituted a lot of uncertainties. While our group had spent numerous hours in meetings and planning documents, we were met with new information during the week of our shoot. After meeting amongst ourselves and then our professors, we were ready to adapt and resolved to keep an open mind. The issue of nutrition in South Africa had grown close to our hearts over the past couple of weeks and we wanted to remain committed to telling this story.
Our visit to Mr. Shabangu’s farm however, dispelled much of our fears. Upon introduction, he was warm and welcoming. Dumisane means “give praise” in Zulu and we found after learning his story that he is a man that lives up to his name. Mr. Shabangu is the founder of Save Nature and a hardworking farmer committed to providing food at reasonable prices for his community and teaching others how to grow their own food.
The morning of filming, our group met to revise the questions Yusuf would ask. We realized that knowing Mr. Shabangu’s story, which at that point we knew well, was only the first step in our interviewing process. The more difficult task was crafting questions that allow him to recall important details and authentically express his passion. I realized the power of interviewing when hearing the difference between Mr. Shabangu’s account during the pre-interview and actual interview fine tuned and direct questions.
We headed off to the farm feeling confident and eager. At that point, nothing—not even a stop sign or Google Maps navigation—could hold us back. The farm was a B-roll hotspot, it seemed like everywhere you looked was a necessary scene to capture for the film.
In the final lecture of the course, Jonathan taught of the importance of giving a genuine acknowledgement to the lived experience of individuals in the field of global health. He gave the example of how while we as film and global health students are equipped with the technical knowledge of recording and editing his story, the final product is a result of a partnership. As a long journey of editing awaits us, I hope that my group and I can carry our weight in telling this inspiring, emotional and personal story.
Elon, it gives me so much peace to know that somebody as thoughtful as you is going to be a doctor someday.