Crosses In The Dust — Transcript

Full transcript

1. 0:03thank you
2. 0:07welcome to the Global Peace Film
3. 0:10Festival Live's online conversation
4. 0:122023 Festival Edition please join me
5. 0:16Kelly Devine the artistic director and
6. 0:19Nina strike the founder and Festival
7. 0:21director in conversation with the
8. 0:24filmmakers Christine Kane and Irene pons
9. 0:27who are here to talk to us about the
10. 0:30film crosses in the dust which you can
11. 0:34see as a part of the upcoming 2023
12. 0:37programming you can find all the
13. 0:39information about our programming for
14. 0:41this year by visiting
15. 0:44peacefilmfest.org and now let's welcome
16. 0:46Christine and Irene to the conversation
17. 0:49it's so great to have you with us and to
18. 0:51have you back with another film
19. 0:54thank you it's great to be back thank
20. 0:56you for having us thank you
21. 0:58hi Christine and Irene and yes we had
22. 1:01the first film in this uh and this is
23. 1:03actually a follow-up film to the first
24. 1:04one that we had a couple of years ago so
25. 1:08um can you tell us about a little bit
26. 1:10about the film and also describe your
27. 1:12each of your roles uh in the making of
28. 1:14the film
29. 1:16sure uh so
30. 1:18uh I'm the director of the film and a
31. 1:21producer and in this film we travel with
32. 1:25Dr pons with some of her students uh to
33. 1:30work with humanitarian Aid organizations
34. 1:33in the operate into in and around Tucson
35. 1:36Arizona and whereas the previous film we
36. 1:40were interested in
37. 1:42um you know what's happening on the
38. 1:45other side of the border of migrants who
39. 1:46are waiting and being denied entry this
40. 1:49is more
41. 1:50this is looking at migrants who are
42. 1:54faced with a really impossible choice of
43. 1:56having to cross the Sonoran Desert which
44. 1:59the US government
45. 2:01um
46. 2:02has included in a policy of prevention
47. 2:04through deterrence thinking that no one
48. 2:06in their right mind would you know ever
49. 2:08cross this desert so deadly but
50. 2:12um since 1998 over 8 000 migrants have
51. 2:16died crossing the Sonoran Desert and um
52. 2:20I mean it's just it's
53. 2:23it's really tragic and heartbreaking and
54. 2:25in this film we look at
55. 2:27uh the many humanitarian Aid
56. 2:30organizations who give migrants a
57. 2:33Fighting Chance basically
58. 2:37and Irene do you want to speak a little
59. 2:39bit about uh you know your involvement
60. 2:42with this particular film
61. 2:44sure so this idea came about because I
62. 2:47had a my idea has always been to kind of
63. 2:49cover every single state that borders us
64. 2:52and Mexico and so it's been like a
65. 2:55series and we you know we've tried to go
66. 2:57to every single one we've been to
67. 2:59California Arizona and
68. 3:00so going to Arizona was just a natural
69. 3:04thing that I wanted to kind of introduce
70. 3:06into the next film because it's a place
71. 3:09we hadn't discovered with my students
72. 3:11hadn't been able to explore and so those
73. 3:14relationships were really important to
74. 3:15figure out you know when you think of
75. 3:18the borders some people don't know the
76. 3:19difference or the distinctions and they
77. 3:21think of the Border as just everything's
78. 3:23the same and it really isn't when you go
79. 3:25to these different towns across the
80. 3:28border and the cities and the migrants
81. 3:30and the helping organizations the
82. 3:32nonprofits they're all different we have
83. 3:34the same collaborative Mission but the
84. 3:36way they service is completely different
85. 3:39and um you know as we mentioned at the
86. 3:43the top of this interview this is the
87. 3:45second film that you have made as a team
88. 3:48about this particular issue
89. 3:51um so could you speak um you know in
90. 3:54terms of your your differing roles what
91. 3:56was it that first Drew you to make a
92. 3:59film the first film and you know what
93. 4:02did you discover in that process that
94. 4:04made you want to uh you know as you said
95. 4:07add on and keep the cameras rolling and
96. 4:11sharing what you're learning along the
97. 4:12way
98. 4:16sure so from my perspective um the first
99. 4:19film happened as an accident it was a
100. 4:21complete accident that we were making
101. 4:23the film because the goal wasn't to
102. 4:25actually create a documentary it was
103. 4:27just to bring back some footage and we
104. 4:29couldn't the person who was supposed to
105. 4:30go with us on the trip couldn't go and
106. 4:33So Christine was nominated
107. 4:35um and they told her she pretty much had
108. 4:36to come with me because she was the only
109. 4:38other female and I wasn't going to share
110. 4:39a room with a man and that's how the duo
111. 4:41kind of came about and when we came back
112. 4:43we never expected to have as much
113. 4:45success with that documentary that we
114. 4:48figured that this was an important topic
115. 4:50that people were taking notice and so I
116. 4:52said let's let's keep this alive let me
117. 4:54see what else we can come up with
118. 4:55because the students tremendously
119. 4:58enjoyed the process enjoyed what they
120. 5:00learned and really evolved and changed
121. 5:03to go on to Career paths that they would
122. 5:05have never endeavored to do had they not
123. 5:07seen this film
124. 5:09yeah it I mean it started as you know
125. 5:12what how she can only Dr ponds can only
126. 5:15take four students on this trip how do
127. 5:16we make this accessible for
128. 5:20um you know the the hundreds of students
129. 5:23other students that are in her online
130. 5:24course and so finding out being on the
131. 5:28ground there finding out what um an
132. 5:30important story this was and what we
133. 5:32were discovering and filming
134. 5:34um
135. 5:35at that point we thought maybe this
136. 5:37needs a wider audience than just her
137. 5:39online course
138. 5:41and Irene
139. 5:43um both you and Christine have talked
140. 5:44about the importance of of covering this
141. 5:48particular topic and you know
142. 5:51um not just with immigration but with
143. 5:53unfortunately too many complicated
144. 5:55issues
145. 5:57um the public often if they don't have
146. 5:59direct experience
147. 6:01um are given a rather simplistic way to
148. 6:05look at any of these policy issues and
149. 6:07so Irene could you you know could you
150. 6:09talk a little bit about especially with
151. 6:12given your background
152. 6:13um you know
153. 6:15um how important it is for people to
154. 6:17understand the complexity and the Nuance
155. 6:19of these issues
156. 6:22for me it's a personal story and that's
157. 6:25what I've been able to Garner to create
158. 6:27that emotional aspect that's lacking
159. 6:29from the media and from seeing something
160. 6:31that's so black and white and cut and
161. 6:33dry and adding human element you know
162. 6:36nobody
163. 6:38in my in my opinion right should should
164. 6:40turn their eye to a mother of whose
165. 6:42child died while they were crossing or
166. 6:45whose husband was decapitated in front
167. 6:46of their eyes so once you can hear those
168. 6:49stories I hope that it brings people to
169. 6:51empathy and to understanding so that
170. 6:54everyone should have a voice and
171. 6:56migration is completely legal so why are
172. 7:00people being punished why are these
173. 7:01tactics being used and then to
174. 7:03understand the policy behind it because
175. 7:05there's good and bad in everything that
176. 7:06we do
177. 7:09and Christine how have you approached
178. 7:11you know
179. 7:12um
180. 7:13this very complex issue you know in the
181. 7:16way that as a producer and a filmmaker
182. 7:18that you have
183. 7:20um you know from film to film
184. 7:22right so um I think what has changed
185. 7:26between our what we call our phase one
186. 7:29film which screened with you and and
187. 7:31phase two is us really realizing that um
188. 7:35you know originally we were centered on
189. 7:37the students and what they're learning
190. 7:39what their experience is because you
191. 7:42know we're trying to bring this back for
192. 7:44for the rest of their classmates but
193. 7:46with phase two we really tried to
194. 7:48instead Center the eight organizations
195. 7:51on the grounds and the stories of the
196. 7:53migrants themselves
197. 7:54and kind of take us out of the picture
198. 7:56so I think
199. 7:58that is kind of go you know going
200. 8:00forward that's what we our focus is
201. 8:03will centering the eight organizations
202. 8:05uh is a great segue to you know
203. 8:09connecting why we were so
204. 8:12um you know eager to program your first
205. 8:14film a breakthrough impact and why we
206. 8:16are so
207. 8:18um uh glad that we can share this film
208. 8:21crosses in the desert right at the
209. 8:24central mission of our Festival is
210. 8:27um not just simply to give people
211. 8:28information about uh big weighty Topics
212. 8:31in the world but to give them Frameworks
213. 8:34uh that they can take back into their
214. 8:36own lives and into their own communities
215. 8:38to make the world a better place and and
216. 8:41certainly this shift to focusing on the
217. 8:44aid groups not that not that helping was
218. 8:47not a part of the first one but this
219. 8:49shift um you know can you can you speak
220. 8:52about you know what that means to you in
221. 8:56the larger perspective beyond the film
222. 8:58itself
223. 9:00sure so I think you know while it's
224. 9:03important to it's I think it has always
225. 9:05been important for these students to
226. 9:07experience these things like Dr pun said
227. 9:10um it has changed some students entire
228. 9:12career path but what I see is what has
229. 9:16really affected me and really made an
230. 9:18impact on me personally is is seeing how
231. 9:21many people are giving up their time and
232. 9:24money and just doing everything they can
233. 9:27putting everything they can into these
234. 9:30uh these Aid organizations and
235. 9:33they're they are you know they're the
236. 9:36wheels that are that are turning the
237. 9:38these organizations they are um
238. 9:41they're the reason they're able to do
239. 9:43what they're able to do and I think
240. 9:45just getting that word out so that
241. 9:48people know
242. 9:49you know you can you can donate to help
243. 9:51them you can donate with your time a lot
244. 9:54of these organizations will they'll let
245. 9:56you come in and spend time with them
246. 9:58volunteering and hearing from them
247. 10:01you know one of the uh what one of the
248. 10:03things that we've seen which has been
249. 10:06really interesting to me is
250. 10:08so many of these volunteers are retirees
251. 10:13and they're spending their retirement
252. 10:16just all in
253. 10:17with these organizations and one of the
254. 10:20um in this film one of the people we
255. 10:22were working with was a little younger
256. 10:23and he mentioned you know he looks
257. 10:25around and there's no one
258. 10:27no one his age to take over
259. 10:30um you know to keep it going and
260. 10:32and how upsetting that is really
261. 10:37and Irene
262. 10:39I mean the goal is to kind of create
263. 10:41that next generation and to instill you
264. 10:44know people have the drive and they they
265. 10:46have the want and so if we can provide
266. 10:49the knowledge and information for them
267. 10:51to go out and see how they can help and
268. 10:53make that impact I know many times in
269. 10:55situations like this when we're facing
270. 10:58um disasters and immigration migration
271. 11:00policy just everything that's involved
272. 11:03with it you feel helpless you feel like
273. 11:05maybe your voice isn't heard your vote
274. 11:07doesn't count but by showing the impact
275. 11:10that just one person can make and this
276. 11:12is the film that's focused on Alvaro and
277. 11:14ceso this amazing art installation that
278. 11:17he's doing that's in the secular nature
279. 11:19it's the biggest art installation in the
280. 11:20world and how he just does this one
281. 11:23cross at a time by honoring the lives of
282. 11:26those who have died and placing those
283. 11:27crosses and GPS coordinates that's what
284. 11:30he does and what we can do is support
285. 11:32him by going out and telling others
286. 11:34about what he's doing and the work that
287. 11:37he's accomplished supporting him
288. 11:38financially with our our time and
289. 11:40honoring those who've passed
290. 11:43that's really that's really lovely and
291. 11:46and so important and what an important
292. 11:49message that every little bit that one
293. 11:52of us can do that that each one of us
294. 11:54can do makes that kind of difference uh
295. 11:57and that's something that we like to
296. 11:59tell uh tell our audiences with all the
297. 12:02films that we program so uh so how can
298. 12:06people watching this or listening to
299. 12:08this interview how can they support the
300. 12:11work that you're doing and uh and also
301. 12:15and the work of these organizations and
302. 12:18also
303. 12:19um what's next for you is there a third
304. 12:22third film in this series coming
305. 12:26yeah so uh we have a link on our website
306. 12:29for phase two so that's Arizona and in
307. 12:32that we describe the work that we are
308. 12:35that we did and um each there's a link
309. 12:38to each of the uh the aid organizations
310. 12:40and I would say if you want to learn
311. 12:42more about the work they're doing if
312. 12:45there's you know one of them kind of
313. 12:47spoke to you and you'd like to donate
314. 12:48you can go to that that site and it'll
315. 12:51link to their page
316. 12:53um
317. 12:54so and then for as far as what's next
318. 12:57like Dr pun said we're we're trying to
319. 13:00get
320. 13:01um
321. 13:02a snippet of what life is like in each
322. 13:05of the states that that border the uh
323. 13:08Mexico so uh phase three we are
324. 13:12in post-production on and that was uh in
325. 13:15California specifically in Tijuana and
326. 13:18so that was more in-depth it was a more
327. 13:21in-depth look at who's at different
328. 13:24shelters who's in these shelters what
329. 13:27are what are the uh
330. 13:29what's what are the problems they're
331. 13:31they're facing Crossing and we um we
332. 13:34looked at
333. 13:36um
334. 13:36you know three different shelters in
335. 13:38particular one being lgbtq specific
336. 13:41shelter one being for Haitian migrants
337. 13:43and just
338. 13:45it's it is that was probably the most
339. 13:47eye-opening out of all of these
340. 13:49um seeing what
341. 13:51what they're having to go through and
342. 13:53what the politics are on the Mexican
343. 13:55side of the Border as well just in
344. 13:57response to the U.S government's
345. 13:59policies
346. 14:03and Irene do you have anything to add
347. 14:08um I don't know what's next we just keep
348. 14:10going so wherever God takes us I tell
349. 14:12Christine I'm like you know sometimes I
350. 14:14feel like the project is done I feel
351. 14:16like we've completed our mission you
352. 14:18know we just returned from El Paso for
353. 14:19phase four and
354. 14:21um we've been invited to go back we'll
355. 14:23be showing um our film there as well and
356. 14:25I don't know but I'm just going to keep
357. 14:27doing the work because I know that's
358. 14:28what I'm called to do and I know that
359. 14:30it's important to shed lights on these
360. 14:32topics so whatever it is that I'm doing
361. 14:33if I can give people a glimmer of hope
362. 14:36and a way to help then that's what I'll
363. 14:38keep doing
364. 14:40well that's a wonderful message uh to
365. 14:43end on uh and thank you both for your
366. 14:46work it is uh much needed and much
367. 14:48appreciated so thank you very much
368. 14:51thank you so much thank you and thank
369. 14:55you to everyone who watched today's glow
370. 14:57with Christine Kane and Irene pons for
371. 15:02the film crosses in the in the dust
372. 15:05which is playing as a part of the
373. 15:07upcoming 2023 Global Peace Film Festival
374. 15:11all the information about screening for
375. 15:14this film and for all of our other
376. 15:16programming can be found at
377. 15:20peacefilmfest.org our in-person
378. 15:22programming begins September 19 and runs
379. 15:26through September 23rd our virtual
380. 15:28programming begins September 25th and
381. 15:32ends October the 1st and as uh Christine
382. 15:35and Irene mentioned if you want to learn
383. 15:38more uh if you want to support the aid
384. 15:41organizations the website that you see
385. 15:44up a break or peace I'm sorry a break
386. 15:47for impact.com slash the project slash
387. 15:51phase hyphen 2 can lead you to all those
388. 15:55resources to support the aid
389. 15:57organizations that you will learn about
390. 15:59in watching the film and at a break for
391. 16:04impact.com if you want to support the
392. 16:07work of Christine and Irene as you've
393. 16:09learned they have future projects in the
394. 16:12works please go to that main website and
395. 16:16you can find a way to donate and support
396. 16:18them thank you so much for listening
397. 16:21today and we'll see you at the next glow