Shooting Argentina: Students Create a Photo-Documentary on Culture, Life and Politics

Six students majorng in Visual Journalism at Brooks Institute of Photography travel to Argentina as part of the school's renowned documentary class.

Buenos Aires, Argentina (PRWEB) August 15, 2005 -- It was May in Buenos Aires. Six American students -- one woman and five men -- gathered in an apartment building to talk about what they would be doing for the next five weeks. It was the last time that they reviewed their plans as a group. From that day on, each went his or her own way to photograph individually chosen stories of culture, politics and life in Argentina, a country known for its natural beauty and European sophistication, as well as for its formerly unstable political atmosphere and depressed economy.

The students came from Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, California, where they are enrolled in the schools renowned documentary class as part of the Visual Journalism program. The class, which is staged in a different international locale for each session that it is held, is limited to the strongest applicants: those who demonstrate solid understanding of photographic story-telling, the ability to work independently, and who reflect sensitivity to their roles as both story-tellers and ambassadors.

In June, 2005, after five weeks in Argentina, the students -- all of whom are pursuing Bachelors degrees in either Visual Journalism or Professional Photography -- returned to California to create individual and class multimedia presentations on their selected social and political issues. Each student shot two or three different 'stories...and all of the students have been mightily impacted by their experiences on this photographic journey.

Nick Mantzel, from a small town called Bedford located between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas, explains, I wanted to travel to broaden my perspective on the world. I wanted to see a different way of life than what I grew up with." He clearly achieved that objective while working on one of his two stories, the documentation of one of the poorest neighborhoods in Buenos Aires, an area called Suarez, where poverty, unemployment, drugs and poor housing conditions are prevalent.

In spite of the poor conditions for living, I found there were many rich lives there," says Mantzel. There was a sense of family." Regretfully, the people who live in the community have grown indifferent to-- possibly accepting of -- their difficult situation. Mantzel notes that There isnt a strong enough fight for social rights, and the countrys government continues to turn its back on this community instead of trying to help it."

Al Cuizon, whose goal to be a photojournalist was inspired by his work as a photography lab tech for the Sun newspaper in San Bernardino, California, also worked in Suarez and expresses some of the same feelings as Mantzel.

The Suarez story I worked on was really difficult. The town is very different from Buenos Aires," he says. The children play soccer in dirt fields lined with trash. A trash fire burns by a stream to make room for more trash...but the people seem happy and content in their makeshift homes and trash-filled landscape."

Cuizon continues, The trip made me realize how fortunate I am in life. Now I would like to work on more international documentaries and hopefully make a difference for someone".

Jacqueline (Jack) Mata, the only woman on the trip, is going into her second year at Brooks. As far back as she can remember, she wanted to be a photographer and the opportunity to travel and at the same time learn more about her craft was irresistible. One of the stories she covered was 'The Tango," a dance that is part of the Argentina social fabric. She also left the group to spend a few days with a band of 40-45 people who live in a religious community known as the 12 Tribes of Israel."

Theyre a very simple people...I felt like I was stuck in 'Little House on the Prairie," she says. That feeling changed, though, with her story covering the countrys piquetaros (picketers). These are protesters, many of whom are unemployed workers, who routinely stage marches or rallies against the government to draw attention to social conditions that are overwhelming the people. One of the protests that Mata attended attracted more than 28,000 piquetaros.

It was pretty scary at first...I was apprehensive," says Mata. Soon, though, individuals in the crowd were asking her why she was taking photographs and they more or less took her under their collective wing, telling her about their concerns and hopes for the future. Mata hopes to return to Argentina in 2006 to do follow-up photography on the piquetaros. Originally interested in doing photography work for movie posters, she now thinks that her calling might be more oriented to photojournalism and visual story-telling. Id like to go and take pictures that are impactful...thought provoking," she states.

David Sowers, from Houston, Texas, is a second year student at Brooks Institute. He reflects that he knew the trip would make or break my desire to be a journalist". In fact, he notes that the documentary trip is one of the primary reasons he selected Brooks as a place to pursue his education.

Sowers elected to pursue a photo-documentary on the Pentecostal denomination in Argentina, the fastest growing movement in that country. He remarks that what really stood out for him was the passion that the Argentine people have for everything...especially their religion. They gave every ounce of energy they had to God. They humbled themselves, lying on concrete floors, and buried their faces."

Sowers feels strongly impacted by the documentary trip, and says, I was able to get my head clear and focus on what it is that I care about. Ill continue to photograph religion. Thats what I want to do."

Brandon Nightingale and Antonio Franco, both Visual Journalism majors, rounded out the small band of intrepid Brooks students who photographed their way through Argentina. Franco tackled the subject of 'carteneros (cart people), Argentines who cannot get work and scour the street, scavenging recycled items and trash where they can. Nightingale documented the Buenos Aires subway system, and he also visited soup kitchens and an orphanage for one of his projects.

The students, who for the most part worked independently, were supervised by Brooks instructor Joe Gosen. Gosen notes that he was extremely impressed with the students and how quickly they nurtured the trust and openness of the Argentine people.

Working with these students outside of the classroom was a whole different level of teaching for me. Id look at their work once a week, and offer guidance. Shooting every day is exhausting, and I would try to keep them motivated on their stories," he explains.

And storytelling is definitely the focus of this program, which was started in 1991 by Brooks instructor Paul Liebhardt. That year, Liebhardt escorted a group of 19 students to Yansho in the south of China, followed by a 1994 trip to India, 1996 to West Africa and 1998 to Mekong in Cambodia. The documentary class became extremely popular with students, and garnered numerous accolades and awards as one of the most innovative education photography programs in the world. Recent trips have included Cuba, the Czech Republic and Australia.

According to Jim McNay, program director for Visual Journalism at Brooks Institute, We have a conversation a year in advance to determine where we could and should go. We review the places we have not gone, and where it is safe to go, today." He notes that a decision has not yet been made about where the next documentary class will go.

Several months before the trip, once the location is decided, students are asked to apply for the program by submitting an application, a portfolio of their work, their grades and references from faculty members. Once selected, students attend a number of informational meetings prior to the journey to discuss the country theyll be visiting, the logistics of travel, the stories they will cover, and how they will raise funds to support the post-production show that is staged after every Documentary Trip. The show is a chance to exhibit the final photo-stories that have been edited by an audio-visual team of Brooks students -- a team that filters through hundreds of images to choose those that best tell the photographers intended story.

This year, the Argentina documentary group opening will be held on Oct. 1, at the Lobero Theater in Santa Barbara. A reception for the event will take place at the Lobero Building, across the street from the theater. In addition to the show, the documentary class students will produce a book and CD of their Argentina images. The fact that each student who participated in the class will walk away with a completed multi-media project is very important to the class, and to the individual student photographers, says David Sowers.

There arent any other colleges that I know of that offer an organized documentary class where you produce a book and an audiovisual show. Its just a really great experience," he says.

For more information about the Visual Journalism and/or Documentary Trip programs at Brooks Institute, call 805-585-8037.

About the Brooks Institute:

Brooks Institute of Photography was founded in 1945 and celebrates its 60th anniversary in 2005. Part of the Career Education Corporation (CEC) network of schools, Brooks Institute offers a Master of Science degree program in photography; Bachelor of Arts degree programs in Professional Photography, Film & Video Production, Visual Communication, Visual Journalism; an Associate of Arts degree program in Visual Journalism, and diploma programs in Professional Photography and Film & Video Production.

The Brooks Institute campus is based in Santa Barbara, California, with nearby satellite facilities in Santa Barbara and Ventura. Today, Brooks has more than 2000 students enrolled, from more than 20 nations. Graduates from Brooks have gone on to work for distinguished organizations including National Geographic, Smithsonian, the Los Angeles Times and other national media outlets, Hallmark Publishing, Cousteau Society, HBO, Kodak and literally scores of other leaders in visual media fields. For more information about Brooks Institute of Photography, go to www.brooks.edu or call the school at 888-304-3456.

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