LIDF

Debate, Voice, Advocacy and New Media

Introduction

The project will address the following questions: What is the role of documentary filmmakers in an era of ubiquitous, pervasive and multi-platform communications? How can they place the citizen at the heart of everything they do? How can they use film as an agent of social change and democratisation?

Social change and sustainable development demands that people participate in the debates and decisions that affect their lives. Citizens need not only to be able to receive information, they need also to interpret it and make their voices heard.

National and international civil society organisations need to put communication at the centre of all development thinking. The people most affected by development are often poorly informed about the issues central to their lives, and are unable to articulate their concerns and perspectives, or actively engage in debate. We aim to counter this through our media development activities. The project will encourage filmmakers and broadcasters to work together to produce public-interest content across multi-platforms.

Issues and objectives:

• How does documentary film production engage with, or reflect, possibilities for social change and democratisation?
• To provide hands-on training workshops and produce short documentary films that tell the stories of Mexican citizens – how they live and work, the challenges they face, and their aspirations for the future.
• To explore the growing opportunity that citizens, empowered by a new generation of low cost tools, on-line and mobile media, have to become active participants in Mexico’s media landscape.
• Establish sustainable networks for enhanced capacity building and visibility on local and national media in order to strengthen dialogue and debate in the public sphere.
• Provide an international platform (via the London International Documentary Festival) for Mexican documentary filmmakers to present the social, cultural and political concerns of ordinary Mexican citizens.
• Create on-going opportunities for cross-cultural exchange.

Themes of Enquiry

Emphasis will be placed on the broad issues of governance, conflict and, social exclusion (irrespective of the representations of the dominant media),

• Governance in Mexico, including security and rule of law;

• Political and social exclusion of ordinary citizens, including minorities and women;

• Political discourse amongst the major parties and with the local citizenry

• Regional and provincial conflict (including socio-political issues like sharing resources, access to, and funding of, illegal arms; gender based violence; drug-car tel related violence, central american migrants, borders, etc.)

Practical Outline and Outcomes

Part 1. Filmmaking for Social Change – Film Training Workshops and Film Production

Part 2. Channels of Change – Alternative Media, Capacity Building, National and International Distribution

Background:  

The Mexican media has traditionally been a preserve of the establishment; political discourse has consisted of a small number of political commentators holding forth on the issues of the day. There is very little opportunity for ordinary citizens to make their voices heard.

Mexico’s media were traditionally dominated by the Televisa group, which had firm links with the long-governing Institutional Revolutionary Party, or PRI. But the loosening of the PRI’s hold led to greater editorial independence and the emergence of competitors.

Televisa once had a virtual monopoly in Mexican TV and it is still a major global supplier of programmes in Spanish. New players – such as the Azteca group and foreign satellite and cable operators – have mounted an assault on Televisa’s dominance.

However, the media landscape is changing and there is an increase in private TV & radio broadcasters. Nevertheless, there remains a strong need to empower citizens in their desire for change by giving them the professional skills to create their own content, as well as training young filmmakers in production and social analysis.

Mexico is one of Latin America’s biggest internet markets. There were 51 million internet users by mid-2015 – a 41% penetration rate (InternetLiveStats.com). Facebook is the most popular social network.

Current conditions of poor governance (lapse of rule or law and security); conflict (ethnic, sexist, provincial, linguistic, share in resources etc.); and violent extremism etc. This project is designed to attract the attention of the civil society as well as the government and political stakeholders.