Young Film Makers

In 2002, Pixel Foundry set up a scheme to facilitate young film-makers from the area to produce their own films, where we felt there was a compelling story to be told and there was some commercial potential for the material. From the start, we knew that this kind of collaboration warranted some kind of profit-share structure and we ensure that after costs, 50% of any profits on sales of the material is distributed to the film-maker.

Baghdad Diary

It started when we read of local man, Mehdi El Radhi and his intention to reunite with family in Baghdad that he hadn’t seen for 22 years. Mehdi also made a symbolic gesture by breaking UN sanctions when he travelled to Iraq by taking medical information and colouring pencils, and returning to the UK with a bag of dates! There was little time to act. We would need to purchase appropriate equipment for him to take with him, and he was flying the next day! After Pete made initial contact with Mehdi, Richard found a supplier close enough to Heathrow and placed an order over the phone, asking for the batteries to be fully charged and ready to go. After a long drive to the supplier and a mad dash to the airport, Richard found Mehdi just in time, in the departures queue. Mehdi spent some time in Syria and Jordan first and had time to practice with the camera and to send some tapes back for Pete to comment on by email. This way, through our own brand of distance teaching, Mehdi was able to hone his skills! On his return to Wales, Pixel Foundry supported Mehdi in producing his own 30min film which was then seen at MIP TV in Cannes 2003, as well as being used in Mehdi's peace talks around the UK. pixel foundry provided Mehdi with the training and equipment necessary to record his journey and to cut a 30 minute film at our edit facility. Mehdi was invited to talk at many gatherings across the UK where his film was greeted with great interest.

Kirsti Davies in the Western Sahara         

Kirsti Davies from Machynlleth approached us for assistance to document her visit to Western Sahara, where she was to visit a 10,000+ refugee camp. To raise the money she needed for her travelling Kirsti worked at a local Café. Whilst most young women her age (20) were planning trips to Ibiza or Lanzarotte, Kirsti was planning to travel to one of the world's most forbidding landscapes to live among people who have been ignored by the world.

25 years ago the Saharawi's of Western Sahara were expelled from their lands by their neighbours the Moroccans. Hungry for the rich fishing grounds off the coast  and the mineral wealth of Western Sahara the Moroccan government created a militarised zone and built a wall to keep the Saharawi's from returning. This is a forgotten conflict and the Saharawi's have been forced to live on refugee camps in the desert for a quarter of a century.

Kirsti visited the refugee camps of the Saharawi people in the Algerian desert. Here she filmed interviews with people and heard the harrowing tales of relentless pursuit as the Moroccan army chased them from their land.

One woman told Kirsti how she would dig a hole for herself during the day and use it to hide from Moroccan aircraft until nightfall before continuing her long journey. Heating what little food she and other women shared with small fires they were in constant fear of the flames giving away their location.

With ambitions of one day returning to their homeland the Saharawi's have an army - the Polisario Front. Kirsti visited their front line and looked at the Moroccan Wall through binoculars. Read Kirsti's diary.