Media
Video Boot Camp
Two Young Islanders Take A Crash Course In Video Production
Talking to Siana Burgess and James (Simi) Gurr about their experiences last summer on Maui is like hearing survivors’ tales about grueling long-distance expeditions or getting through Marine Corps boot camp.
It was a camp of sorts as 19 young Islanders spent five weeks of 10- and 12-hour days learning video and film production from Hollywood pros. Several organizations were involved in the project, including the University of Southern California Film School, the Digital Media Initiative, the Ford Foundation and Pacific Islanders in Communications (www.piccom.org), a Honolulu-based NGO dedicated to the production of media by and about Islanders. PIIC was able to choose several participants, including American Samoans Gurr and Burgess, Andrew Murphy of Guam and Christina Murphy from Hawaii. During the video camp, each PIIC student had to produce and edit a public service announcement video. Burgess did her PSA on the Honolulu-based Samoan Service Providers Association. Gurr did his on pollution and cultural issues in the Samoas.
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Gurr is finishing a botany degree at the University of Hawaii and hopes to return home to do environmental and conservation work. “I really liked talking to the older people at home,” Gurr says, and he likes combining their cultural knowledge with contemporary media. “I really learned how to compose shots and about lighting and camera angles,” he says. And he very much liked learning the latest in video editing software and hopes to continue producing videos about the Pacific.
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Burgess came to video work by way of a wrenching personal loss. “My younger brother Saimasina, who was just 16, was dying of cancer and I was spending a lot of time with him and his friends. During that time, I took a lot of photos of them and after he died, his friends and I still talked as we looked at the pictures. They told me all kinds of things about themselves.” His death left such a void in Burgess’ life that she knew she had to do something.
“When I saw the power of those photos, I decided to enroll in a photography class at Windward Community College, after that, I went to ‘Olelo [the public access television service in Hawaii] and I learned how to use television production equipment. When I saw this opportunity with Pacific Islanders in Communications, I applied and was chosen. It’s very empowering for us as Pacific Islanders to have the tools and skills to produce our own media”
During the summer camp, each student had to produce four short pieces. “The USC people gave us such good feedback and constructive criticism,” Burgess says. “They went through each individuals’ projects very thoroughly. After I finished the first video, I thought ooh, I like this!”
