Torres Strait media makers
The crew at Torres Strait Islander Media Association (TSIMA) 4MW Radio have been broadcasting their music, culture and stories for 35 years. Last year they took the leap into video production.
RIBS Trainees Video - This video grew out of a phone camera workshop. The Remote Indigenous Broadcaster (RIBS) trainees from across the Torres Strait came to Thursday Island for a week of learning with TSIMA staff. They interviewed and recorded each other talking about the importance of having a local voice in the region.
Throughout last year I delivered a series of workshops on video making to TSIMA staff, on Waiben (Thursday) Island. This is the traditional country of the Kuarareg people. The Broadcasters and Producers at TSIMA are a seasoned group of local storytellers and their collection of programs is vast, from long form documentary, to contemporary and traditional music, to culture and history. So I got to learn a lot about the region (and practice some of my very basic Torres Strait Creole), while I shared skills on everything video, like lighting, camera, sound and editing.
There are so many important stories in the Torres Strait and so much beautiful country. I’m looking forward to seeing it captured and shared through TSIMA’s visual storytelling program. In the meantime, if you want to know about how people are faring at the top of the top end, you can follow TSIMA 4MW on Soundcloud, Facebook, or download the Radio 4MW App.
Luke Mosby and Anthony Gea Gea (TSIMA 4MW Broadcasters) - setting up for vox pop recording.
Nixon Mye - RIBS trainee from Erub Island, workshopping composition on the phone camera.
Me and Jen Enosa (Senior Producer and Special Projects) - editing.
Rising Tides: This documentary by Jen Enosa is a particularly moving and fascinating look at the effects of climate change on the people of the Torres Strait.
Each workshop took me over some of the most beautiful saltwater country I have ever seen and I was always greeted with the warmest hospitality at the other end, including invitations to beach swims and slabs of delicious homemade cassava cake. Big eso everyone!
Commuting - Thursday Island
Travelling around the islands is tricky without a dinghy, so a big thank you to Community Media Training Organisation (CMTO) who helped support these workshops. We couldn’t have done this without them!