TV in the Falklands: The best way to learn is hands on
We asked videojournalist Federica De Caria to keep us posted about her new job with Falkland Islands Television. Previously, she described how she got hired, flew south and met her new colleagues. In her second report, she meets a dead whale, plays cards with a farmer and presents her own news show.
By the time you read this I will have been in the Falklands for a month. It flew past. I’m in Stanley, running around like I used to in London, except that instead of jumping on the tube I’m jumping in a massive car covered in “camp experience” (aka mud).
We are a team of three plus our station manager, putting together a weekly news programme. Both my colleagues, Traighana and James, studied TV production. Having different backgrounds and experience makes us the best teachers for each other.
We have to be fast and flexible while reporting what’s going on in an entertaining and appealing way. Nobody tells us what to do or exactly how to do it, but we know if we didn’t bring home good footage or do a great editing job.
On our side, there is the excitement of taking responsibility. Against us? Well, definitely a bit of inexperience. Plus the first enemy of any filmmaker — and best mate of the Falklands — the wind.
What happened last weekend is a good example of our quick learning process. We had been sent to film some wildlife stories. Traighana and I headed to Cape Dolphin via Elephant Beach with a team of marine biologists to shoot the autopsy of a whale. James went to Saunders Island to investigate reports of the death of rockhopper penguins in one of the most famous spots on West Falkland.
The only advice Traighana and I received was to wear our boiler suits because “you wouldn’t want your jacket to smell of whale intestine in case it explodes.” I had to search on YouTube to understand what the boss meant — and I wish I hadn’t.
I should probably explain that none of the land outside of Stanley is public land. The penguin and sea lion colonies that you see in the photos are all private. The farmers own the land and have little cottages ready to host visitors for a night or more. And they open their houses with great hospitality too.
We soon found ourselves sitting round the table of Ben, the owner of Elephant Beach Farm, and it was one of the tastiest experiences I’ve ever had. Tasty food and tasty chat: finding yourself around the table after dinner, playing cards and having a laugh is not so common any more. As Ben explained, TV is banned when there are guests in the house.
Being sent out as a young journalist is not so common either. Wildlife is one of the most important topics in the Falklands and the deaths of the whale and in the penguin colony were our top stories.
Whatever you have come for, when you are in the field a multitude of possible stories present themselves. Ben drove us through a ‘minefield’ of bogs from his farm to Cape Dolphin, where the whale was. The journey took in a visit to the rockhopper colony on a nearby beach, to check on them after the news of the penguin deaths on Saunders. And since we were already there, why not having a look to the sea lion colony as well?
Filming in the car was seriously challenging. It was like a free day pass on an off road roller coaster. And then there was the challenge of positioning a tripod less than three metres from a large group of sea lions.
On Saturday, we drove back to be ready to film a charity event in the early hours of the following morning. In the evening, we nipped into the office to transfer our footage and put the batteries on charge, and in the morning we were filming again.
Monday was an editing day. Among other jobs, I had to present and edit 60 Second News, our weekly update, filmed against the green screen. Presenting is a novelty for me. But my confidence should grow pretty quickly as I’ll be doing it every single week from now on.
I’m learning by doing: how to present, how to film indoors and out with different lighting conditions, how to become a friend of the wind — and to steer clear of whale intestine.
Originally published at www.bbc.co.uk on May 26, 2016.
