ACTION!

You are a 12 year old girl, born and raised in a remote rural community 30 minutes by car outside the nearest city. Your community has no cars, just cows, water buffalo, goats and dogs.

You are the youngest, the only girl amongst 2 older brothers. both are married and live in the family home with their wives and children. Your family owns 4 cows, 2 goats and 5 chickens. Your father is a driver and is known to consume too much alcohol, he is away a lot. The daily chores are left up to your mother, your sister in laws and you.

Every morning you wake up at sunrise, help complete the daily chores  and start the 45 minute walk through the foothills to school. You have never shopped in a mall, the simple food you eat on a daily basis is purchased in a local rural market. You likely will not complete high school, you may be married by the time you reach 18, destined to be a mother, housekeeper and daughter in law.

But this week  is a week like no other, you are meeting a group of white people who are coming with cameras. To capture a snapshoot of YOUR daily life to share with kids your age across the oceans in North America.

Imagine it….

Can you?

This is the story of a 12 year old girl who was featured in Disney’s filming this week. There were many times throughout the week that I forced myself to empathize, to put myself in her shoes and try to understand how surreal this week must have been.

On Tuesday the crew- 10 strong – was welcomed into the community with the cameras off. They took the next two days to interact with the community, get a grasp on Free the Children’s projects, the unique challenges of rural Rajasthan and see development first hand. They were such a humble group, coming from LA they were experiencing everything for the first time- the cows in the road, the simple, slow lifestyle, the heat, the poverty. And as I always do with new guests- I was seeing it all again for the first time through their eyes.

When the camera’s rolled, that is when things got interesting. It was a production, 2 directors, 1 producer, 2 camera men, 1 sound guy, 2 Disney representatives, 1 talent/star, 1 manager and a number of production hands. PLUS our Free the Children and Me to We team who were in full swing- hosting, organizing, mobilizing and handling logistics.

They spent 3 days shooting, gaining hours of content that will be cut down to two- 2 minute “commercials” to air on the Disney Channel/ Family Channel highlighting the partnership between Disney’s Friends for Change and Free the Children, telling the story through a 12 year old girl named Amba who lives in the community of Lai. 

I learnt a lot this week, serving as an ambassador for the community I was forced to balance the privacy of the community members and the needs of the production. It was not easy, but it was overall a huge success.

And I may or may not make a special appearance- speaking to the development structure in our communities. (Stay Tuned- it will air around the end of June)

But the week was so much more than the shooting, the crew was a blast- they wanted to soak up as much of an authentic experience as possible- we shopped, we shared drinks and many laughs and I was super bummed that I had to see them off today.

Just another unique experience to add to the list, a lot of incredible photos were taken this week but I was without my camera so I am at the mercy of my fellow post-ers. As soon as I get my hands on some I will be sure to share.

Now Nairobi for two weeks of crash course preparation for the summer of trips ahead of us!

 

Stay Tuned!