Students funded in 2012

Each year One World Media offers funding to students based in the UK to help them cover a story in a developing country. This fund is part of One World Media's Student Programme. The Student Fund in 2012 was generously supported by:
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Harold Hyam Wingate Foundation

Masumi Higashi, Royal Holloway, University of London

Motorbike Midwife (TV)
fu2012-HMasumi.jpgMotorbike Midwife reveals the herculean efforts of a fearless nurse as she rides a motorbike across the upper east region of Ghana to save mothers’ and babies’ lives.

Melanie Brown, University of Sussex

Fighting for Peace (Multimedia)
fu2012-MBrown.jpgSadaf Rahimi is a female boxer. She has gained a wild card place in the London Olympics. Not so unusual, except she is an Afghan girl from Kabul. This photo-film explores what it is like to push the boundaries in a country where women’s participation in sports is rare.

Anca Dimofte, Royal Holloway, University of London

Madam Kazmi and the Taxi Drivers (TV)
fu2012-ADimofte.jpgMadam Kazmi is the first and only female taxi driver in Pakistan. This is the story of an extraordinary character who is challenging Pakistan's attitude towards women just by sitting behind the wheel of her cab.

Lottie Gross, Bournemouth University

The Women of Umoja / Dating in the Desert (TV/online)
fu2012-CGross.jpgThese two short films look at a village in Kenya that is only for women, and how marital relationships develop among people living in rural areas in Northern Kenya. Click here to follow Lottie's blog.

Phil Clarke-Hill, University of Westminster

Retomada (Photojournalism)
fu2012-PClarke-Hill.jpgBrazil is the world’s largest producer of sugarcane, but the industry has come under fire from campaigners who report instances of bonded labour and plantations causing deforestation. This photo essay documents the Brazilian sugar industry.

Joshua Hughes, London College of Communication

Stadium Hotel (TV)
fu2012-JHughes.jpgThis is a short documentary on the Nigerian music scene that emerged in the 60s and 70s in Lagos, showing the amazing environment in which many of these musicians continue to work and produce music. This film was supported by See Africa Differently

Dan Holmes, University College Falmouth

The Puttalam Principle (TV)
fu2012-DHolmes.jpgThree years on from Sri Lanka's brutal civil war, this documentary tells the story of Raja, a Tamil man who is the headmaster of a Sinhalese school.

Chuck Sturtevant, Granada Centre for Visual Anthropology, University of Manchester

Being Black in a Country Without Blackness (TV)
fu2012-Chuck.jpgBolivia is generally understood as a country where indigenous rights and cultures stand in opposition to western values. But recently, Afro-Bolivian dance groups have begun to express their 'impossible' identities through their dance. This documentary tells their story. 

Erminia Colucci, Granada Centre for Visual Anthropology, University of Manchester

Free from Pasung (TV)
fu2012-Erminia.jpgThe practice of using shackles and chains (known in Indonesia as pasung) to physically restrain persons with mental illness is widespread in Indonesia. This documentary looks at how people in the country are working to eradicate it.

Vincent Hai Du, Goldsmiths

Almost Famous (TV)

fu2012-Vincent.jpgThis film looks at the largest and most successful rock music education centre in China. Through following three children who are learning to be rock stars, it explores the dreams and aspirations of China's next generation. 

Vaida Blazyte, University of Ulster

Dancing the Revolution (TV)
fu2012-VBlazyte.jpgThis is a glance into the lives of 'colourless' African artists – members of the Albino Revolution Cultural Troupe in Tanzania, fighting against stigmatization and killings of people with albinism through performing arts. This film was supported by See Africa Differently

Emma Fry, University College Falmouth

Female Bomb Disposal Teams Of Cambodia (TV/online)
fu2012-EFry.jpgIn the predominately male-dominated job of landmine clearance, women are often overlooked. This film will follow an all-female landmine clearance team in Cambodia. Click here to see the film and read Emma's blog. 

Owen Evans, Bournemouth University

The Old Man And The Country That Wasn’t There (TV)
fu2012-OEvans.jpgHaji Abdi Warabe is the oldest man in his country. People come from afar to listen to him. Somaliland is unrecognised by the UN - it doesn’t exist to the rest of the world. This film addresses the hopes, fears, and dreams of a nation in waiting.

Phillip Wood, Leeds Trinity University College

Suffragette City (TV)
fu2012-PWood.jpgWomen's rights is a major issue across the autonomous Iraqi-Kurdistan region. As the Kurdish government rebuilds after years of conflict, this documentary looks at the advances of equal rights there.

Jasleen Sethi, National Film and Television School

Bombay Fight Night (TV)
fu2012-JSethi.jpgInside a Bollywood movie studio, two men are preparing to fight in front of a large crowd. But this isn’t a scene from a Bollywood film. This is the start of an ultimate fighting event, now popular with Mumbai's fashionable middle class. 

Juan Fernandez, Royal Holloway, University of London

Chana's Choice (TV Documentary)
fu2012-JFernandez.jpgSabino is a humble peasant from Manto Parpay, a small community isolated in the Peruvian Andean mountains. He works hard to support his daughter Roxana, who lives in a shelter, so she can go to school. While Sabino is working Roxana is studying. Roxana has a chance her father didn't; both have a dream.

Miguel Rato, London College of Communication

Stage Name (TV)
fu2012-MRato.jpgHow does a 16th Century European play about the dramas and betrayals of emperors end up being transformed into Tchiloli - a popular theatre genre in São Tomé and Princípe? This documentary looks at this practice and the people involved in it. 

Raul Caldeira, London College of Communication

Niña Madre (TV)
fu2012-Raul.jpgYoung pregnancy is a growing issue in Latin America, with Venezuela having the highest rates, particularly among the working class. 'Niña Madre' shares the fears and hopes of some of the young mothers that live in Antímano, one of the largest slum districts in the country.

Andrada Popan-Dorca, University of Salford

Building Heaven (TV)
fu2012-Andrada.jpgIn Vietnam, some middle-class citizens are paying thousands of US dollars for a grave for their loved one, and are then using an online worshipping service to venerate their dead. This film explores this phenomenon.


One World Media would like to thank the professional judges who gave their time and expertise in selecting the bursary winners in 2012:

  • Jenny Kleeman, journalist, writer and documentary-maker 
  • Jill McGivering, South Asia Editor, BBC World Service 
  • Julie Noon, documentary filmmaker
  • Deborah Davies, international journalist
  • Kate O'Driscoll, documentary filmmaker
  • Amy Richardson, WorldView Programme Coordinator, Commonwealth Broadcasting Association

These bursaries are awarded as part of the One World Media Student Programme, funded by UKaid from the Department for International Development. 

"I cannot express how important this experience has been for me. I learned to film and think creatively in difficult situations and most importantly to bond, share experiences and work collaboratively with people, cross-culturally and past the limitations of the camera. Without One World Media, none of it would have been possible."

Emma Greaves, Goldsmiths (2010 Bursary Winner)