Telling a story through a lens
Talia McWright, a videographer for ‘Border of Dreams,’ depicts the emotion of immigration through her footage.
By Adam Groven and Samantha Wurm
Talia McWright stood behind the camera she borrowed from Bethel University, filming Abel and his family who immigrated to Kansas in 1996 from Mexico City. McWright has always had a hobby for photography, but filming the Border of Dreams documentary was a project that the executive producer, Scott Winter, trusted her to do.
Knowing how immigrating to the United States has affected Abel and his family, McWright believed their story meant to be told with not just words, but also with a camera lens.
“I think we’re very visual as human beings and sometimes seeing [stories] helps put it in perspective,” McWright said. “Like you read quotes, they can impact you and can hit you hard, but when you actually see the person saying them, it impacts you in a different way.”
So while in Kansas, McWright made sure to capture footage of tender moments between Abel and his family, whether that be tears or an embrace between two family members.
And McWright did just that.
While editing the raw footage, Mild Du, the sound editor for Border of Dreams, felt the emotion of McWright’s film. Du’s family are first generation immigrants from Thailand, so the videos of Abel hit close to home.
“Watching the [footage], I almost cried… I could cry right now.” Du said.
The issue of immigration holds importance for McWright. She believes that most Americans view immigration from an unfair standpoint — colonizers stole this land, so for people to have the belief that some individuals aren’t welcome due to their color of skin or ethnicity is “crazy.”
“I’m very disgusted because especially as people of faith, you know, land is something that really should not be owned.” McWright said.
“That’s blood on our hands. We’re allowing people to die and acting like that’s better than having them live on our land in our spaces.” — Talia McWright, videographer
McWright recognizes the hardships immigrants must go through to get to the U.S. and how Americans have continued to make it harder for them to enter the country.
“That’s blood on our hands,” McWright said. “We’re allowing people to die and acting like that’s better than having them live on our land in our spaces.”
Mardoqueo, a father and husband now living in Guatemala, was caught in New Mexico while attempting to cross the border in hopes of pulling his family out of poverty. He’s now in more debt than he was before due to the nonrefundable costs of crossing the border, but without a stable job in the U.S. with no way to pay back this debt, still, he hopes to try again. He knows the risks, he’s experienced them, but to him the dangers are worth it.
“I am happy here because I have hope [of making the journey to the U.S.],” Mardoqueo said.
Abel begs to differ.
Though he’s been in the United States for about 27 years, he wishes to someday return back to Mexico City once he has the funds. His children constantly live in fear. Every stop by the police or trip to the hospital poses a threat of deportation for their family. Zaira, Abel’s daughter, explained through tears how everyday, she’d come home from school, not knowing if she’d ever see her father and mother again.
McWright, now a senior months away from graduation, hopes to continue her pursuit to uplift the voices of those who’ve been silenced. Her goal: to use the privileges she’s born into — living in the United States and having middle class parents — to advocate for those who aren’t allowed to while trying to better the lives of themselves and their families.
