Let the hunger games begin

Okay I might have added some spices in that headline, what I mean to say is ‘Let the in-depth games begin’.

Today was our first real introduction to our in-depth projects. A month dedicated to writing and producing in-depth features on a certain topic.

This year’s topic is China–Johannesburg – a look at the Chinese diaspora in this city.  A topic that didn’t come as a surprise to most of us because there was a leak (journalists, can’t tell them anything).

We were all divided into groups, each getting a sub-topic and a mentor. My group got given the topic ‘history and the future’ – a topic I begin to appreciate more and more as the day went on. Our mentor is the one and only, Kenichi Serino (yays).

Basically what we have to do over the next four weeks is immerse ourselves fully in this community in order to produce a long form feature with multimedia components (ranging from video, photography, audio and and and).

Our prep consisted of a number of guest speakers to give us some background and advice on our topic. It was a long day but a very informative one. Ideas were coming in and out of my mainframe all day. Especially because a bulk of what the speakers had to say touched heavily on my group’s topic.

Hearing the stories about the realities of being a migrant and of life in China made it abundantly clear that the next month would be an enlightening one. In a real and genuine way, in a way that would bring me closer and deeper than any documentary or article could.

My favourite quote from the day came from Emma Chen, owner of restaurant Red Chamber in Rosebank, she said: “Nobody dislikes the Chinese government as much as the Chinese themselves”. A loaded statement, that left me with much to think about (and investigate).

Tomorrow we have a field trip planned, I can barely contain my excitement. Let the adventure begin J