World Humanitarian Day 2014

World Humanitarian Day is a time to recognize those who face danger and adversity to help others. As numbers of refugees increase, forcibly displaced people are in need of urgent humanitarian aid. Today, the number of refugees, asylum-seekers and internally displaced people has exceeded 50 million people.

In recognizing World Humanitarian Day, FilmAid wish to honor our Outreach Facilitators who work tirelessly to ensure FilmAid’s media content and information reaches as many individuals as possible. Performing challenging work in circumstances and in environments that many are unable or unwilling to enter, they are undoubtedly our Humanitarian Heroes.  

Bithou, who was featured in our film 'Take The Time', is 27 and originally from South Sudan. He currently lives in Kakuma refugee camp, Kenya. He has been a refugee for 12 years, since leaving behind the conflict in his hometown of Juba, South Sudan's capital. Bithou has been a FilmAid Outreach Facilitator since 2010. He plays a crucial role in assuring that everyone has equal access to important information through our film screenings and workshops. 

Our Facilitators use media and film to support new arrivals in the registration process at the camp, they help them to understand their rights as refugees, and inform them how to access key services throughout their stay.

"My goal for the future is that I should play a key role or do something makes a difference in other people's lives" Bithou tells us. Bithou, and all of FilmAid's Outreach Facilitators, are incredible examples of Humanitarian Heroes. Our Outreach Facilitators are usually refugees themselves. They have escaped conflict and experienced substantial personal tragedy, but are committed to helping others. They refuse to be seen as victims. Instead, they make it their mission to support, assist and help those who are in need.

No humanitarian effort can succeed without the commitment of those individuals who work in the field every day. It is for this reason that we are celebrating our Outreach Facilitators as Humanitarian Heroes today. Please join us by sharing your appreciation for FilmAid's #HumanitarianHeroes onTwitter and Facebook. 

Stay tuned for more from Bithou. We'll be sharing a film dedicated to him and his story in the next couple of weeks.

Tread Carefully: Mine Awareness in Southeast Asia

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Tread Carefully filming in action

FilmAid’s work on the Thai-Myanmar Border, reaches thousands of refugees with its on-going screenings.  Audience figures stand at well over 500,000 viewings.

In 2013, FilmAid was more than willing to partner with Handicap International - now called Humanity & Inclusion - to provide a vital public service and information dissemination.

Our mission, to inform those who live in the 9 Shelter Camps how to avoid life threatening contact with land mines and ERWs (explosive remnants of war) and what to do if you encounter them.  More than 3,000 people have been killed or injured along the Thai-Myanmar border as a result of these in recent years. In fact, across the entirety of this 2,000 kilometre-long border, it is estimated 70 per cent of the ground has been sown with mines.

In order to pass on this information, FilmAid produced Tread Carefully. This 50-minute film tells the story of two young brothers and the care they must take to arrive safely at their grandfather’s village on the other side of the mountain.

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After two months of script development, casting, location scouting and rehearsals, refugee filmmakers jumped into filming. Conditions were difficult - 100-degree heat, a time consuming relocation after the set burnt down, and a production that hobbled along when the main actor sprained his ankle. But refugee filmmakers learned that it’s all part of the process.FilmAid’s mine risk education film Tread Carefully has now been screening in all 9 camps along the border as part of a campaign to prevent land mine accidents. Reports say it will take over 50 years to clear the land mines along the border, but the impact of our film and outreach efforts alongside Handicap International will undoubtedly have a lasting positive impact.  Tread Carefully has received over 106,590 viewings in all nine camps.

In 2018, the FilmAid team will be working on a new short film with the MRE team.

In order to find out more about our ongoing programs in Thailand, follow us onTwitter and Facebook. 

Farida's Story: From Facilitator to Filmmaker in Kakuma Camp

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“When people talk about film, they say it’s for men, especially in African culture. They think a woman can never hold a camera. People think film is only acting, but there are so many roles in filmmaking, and a woman can do anything if she has the opportunity to learn” Farida Naimana tells FilmAid in Kakuma refugee camp, Kenya. 

Farida, 23, who is originally from Burundi, was one FilmAid’s first students in Kakuma. A camp which is receiving record numbers of refugees for the second consecutive year. The camp was originally established in 1992 to serve Sudanese refugees, but has since expanded to serve people from Somalia, Ethiopia, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Eritrea, Uganda, and Rwanda. Kakuma’s population is close to 125,000 but growing rapidly every year. 

Farida’s experience as a FilmAid student led her to taking on the role of Outreach Facilitator within the camp. FilmAid’s Outreach Facilitators are integral and unique, they work tirelessly to bring about community engagement and participation through various media and workshops.  Farida's day would involve meeting with diverse people across the camp and delivering programs or workshops in the midst of the dust storms and harsh desert environment of the camp. 

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For Farida, the skills she gained as a Facilitator, meant she was eager to challenge herself further and enter the field of film production. She quickly joined our Filmmaker Training Program. Farida tells us, “I had to start from scratch when I moved to production. I did not know how to operate simple equipment like the camera and big computers. Now I am learning how to handle a camera, shoot, edit the videos and actually produce content”.

Farida’s story reveals how passion and creativity can be ignited through exposure to new opportunities like our Filmmaker Training Program. Many people living in refugee camps don't have the chance to learn new skills, and opportunities for expressing creativity are lacking. Farida not only rejects any stereotype suggesting that women cannot be involved in film, but she proves that talents can flourish in the most challenging places.

Want to know about how women benefit from our Filmmaker Training Program in Dadaab refugee camp? Click here.