The Audiovisual Cooperation department of the French Consulate in Jerusalem
the French Institute – Ramallah Center
ARTE TV Channel
in cooperation with Goethe Institute Ramallah
announce:
"The Ramallah Pitching Commission for documentary Projects 2012, RamallahDoc"
see the link below:
17 Belgian students and two lecturers from the Belgian school of communication, IHECS (Institut des Hautes Etudes des Communications Sociales) visited the Media Development Center to hear about journalism in Palestine.
The visitors were touring Palestine and meeting with local human rights organizations throughout the West Bank and Jerusalem to get a broad picture of the situation for Palestinians. At the MDC the Belgian students met with Palestinian journalism students from the BA-degree at the Media Department. This gave both the Belgian and Palestinian students a chance to ask each other about the media coverage of Palestine.
The Belgian image of Palestine
The Palestinian students asked their Belgian peers about how Palestine is portrayed in Belgian media.
“We don’t learn about it in school and in the media we don’t see what we see here. In TV we just see stones being thrown, but here we understand that it’s a response to tear gas,” said Clarisse Van Der Straten.
“The pictures from Gaza often overshadow the pictures of the Westbank. The daily situation in the media is one of violence. They don’t show the complexity in daily lives and how you suffer every day,” added Tarik Janoulle.
In response the Belgian visitors wanted to hear what motivated their Palestinian peers to become journalists.
“I chose media to change the message. The media is weak here, but I want to change it. I’m Palestinian and I want to send a message that is deep,” said Riham and explained that Palestine has many stories to show both relating to culture and social life which is often overlooked by stories of clashes. “But I also like the technical side of it which we learn here at Birzeit University, so maybe I’ll contribute to change the world,” she said.
‘I’ll talk about the absurdity’
The Belgian students arrived to Palestine on December 6 and at the time of their visit to the MDC, they were half-way through an intense 12-day program during which they also had to carry out interviews and gather research for media productions on different topics related to Palestine. At the MDC the Belgian students therefore eagerly conducted interviews among students and staff.
Many admitted that their stories had already changed directions from their original angle as they learned about the situation on the ground in different areas of Palestine.
“When I’ll write articles and discuss this with my friends, I think I’ll focus more on the absurdity, the destruction of land, the wall, the level of difficulty for you to live your own lives,” said Tarik Janoulle.
Guest speakers addressed the issue of social media related to the Israeli occupation at the event “Social Media and the Occupation” hosted by the Media Development Center (MDC) and Palestinian and American Research Center (PARC) on November 3rd.
Watch excepts from two of the day’s talks.
Ramsey George - using technology for change
Ramsey George, an American-Palestinian, is currently based in Jordan, where he is the cofounder of the website 7iber.com, which grants Arab youth a forum for an open debate. Ramsey works with communities around the Middle East where he conducts training and supports projects to help empower rights advocates in using technology effectively for change. Ramsey’s particular interest is in using new media as an outlet of expression, a space for critical conversations, and organizing collective actions.
"Facebook is cool because there is people behind it, not because it's a cool technology," Ramsey George
VIDEO:Social Media and the Occupation - Ramsey George
Nejla Kayed - Palestinian blogger and 'tweep'
Nejla Kayed is an architecture student at Birziet University at the moment finishing her 3rd year. She has been a blogger for 4 year and ‘tweep’ for 2. In contrary to many Palestinian bloggers and ‘tweeps’ she writes mainly in Arabic.
“We talked online, we did events online, we were active online – it was important to get to know other activists to also shape your own opinion and get a take on how to use your voice and reach more people,” Nejla Kayed
The course ‘Photography and lighting’ taught by trainer Peter Chapell ended successfully on November 19, 2011 after a week (30 hours).
17 trainees from various regions of the West and from several different media organizations including Palestine TV took part of the course.
Throughout the course the participants learned the theoretical and practical foundations of photography and lighting and were taught about the importance of lighting in the TV production and filming.
"This course has enriched my knowledge in the basics of professional photography and lighting, thus encouraging me to learn more to be the of best in my field in the future," said one of the trainees,Jena Nabut.
It was the third course taught by British photographer and film maker Peter Chapell this year.
Page 14 of 16
