Support The Production of Waste Pickers Documentary

My name is Fairouz, I'm a passionate documentary filmmaker and a recent Filmmaking MA graduate from the University of the West of Scotland under the Chevening scholarship. Having been a resident in Glasgow where I built a rich network in the creative sector, has inspired me to create and identify interesting and relevant opportunities.

I recently traveled back to Tunisia to put into practice my world-class UK academic expertise and combine my passion for documentaries and my managerial skills in creating my own opportunities.

In July 2019, before embarking on my Chevening journey, I took part in a documentary production workshop in Tunis organized by the American Film Showcase and the US Embassy in Tunisia. As part of the workshop, I have directed a short observational documentary entitled ‘Diggers’ translated to ‘Barbecha’ in the Tunisian language, meaning waste pickers. The short documentary is a close observation of the journey of Zouhaeir, a waste picker, in reclaiming plastic waste for the recycling industry.

You can watch the documentary on this private link and copy-paste the attached password to access it.

https://vimeo.com/350095069?fbclid=IwAR3J0-7VM3ZOYPW5hkwUELuQZCjjHrnfDJozcu2UZXaPVbGFPkuxtgfPCGI

Password: AMERICANFILMSHOWCASEJULY2019

My goal is to create a feature documentary film (40 minutes long) that expands beyond being visually interesting and has the power to ignite environmental change and reach a broader audience.

Upon the completion of the production of Diggers, my main plan is to showcase my work in Glasgow throughout the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) that is going to be held in November 2021, which provides a great grounding to reach climate experts, campaigners, policymakers and world leaders and enhance international recognition of the value created by waste pickers in contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions. I plan to achieve this by making use of the great deal of professional network that I have built while residing in Glasgow, the University of the West of Scotland Media Academy community, and the Chevening community in Glasgow, to get my message heard by hosting free invite-based screening events of the feature documentary Diggers in Glasgow and surrounding areas.

My mission is to anchor Diggers in a social context through talks in a reflective and profound manner, empower viewers to think critically, and become wiser and kinder stewards of our biosphere and communities.

My genuine interest in climate actions and my intrinsic passion for making documentary films drive me to fulfill my desire to make Diggers receive ample coverage to appeal to influential people with the power to do something significant about the issue. I’m happy to have come a long way in the preproduction phase for the making of the feature documentary Diggers, finding compelling documentary characters, getting support from local production companies with discounted facilities and free edit suite, cooperating with talented local filmmakers who are inspired by the documentary objectives… Every accomplishment I have achieved so far will make my talent shine further and I’m confident that I would reach greater heights of achievement with your support. It would be an honor to raise the needed funds to help me hit the ground running and kickstart my production journey to turn my idea into a series of actionable steps. Your donations will go toward some of the production and postproduction costs of the documentary and funds will mainly be used for promotion and related costs to screening the documentary in Glasgow. Your support will help me explore the potential of my own artistic ideas as a powerful medium to elevate our humanity, and more importantly, persuade community leaders throughout COP26 to ensure safe and healthy working conditions to waste pickers.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and thank you in advance for donating and sharing this with anyone you’re connected to who might be interested in what I’m up to.