The Daily O’Collegian

When journalists tell stories, their perspectives filter reality.

Their experiences and beliefs hide behind the words or pictures they show to the audience.

Reporters, filmmakers and other media experts worldwide have decided to stop telling stories themselves and lend their communication tools to people whose perspectives are usually ignored.

Since 1998, the Chiapas Media Project has provided autonomous indigenous communities, especially Zapatista resistance members in Chiapas, Mexico, training on camera operation, film production and editing to produce their own documentaries.

CMP has distributed more than 6,000 videos that show social, economic and political struggles from the strugglers’ point of view. It has also distributed 28 documentaries in the U.S., France, Italy and Germany.

The project is celebrating its 10th anniversary. According to its Web site, this decade translates to more than 250 youths, men and women trained in video production. Most of them have become video trainers as well.

“CMP videos accomplish their goal of telling the story from the perspective of the indigenous by implementing the concept of autonomy in their approach to video production,” said Glen David Kuecker, Latin American history assistant professor from DePauw University.

“These documentaries are an irreplaceable guide for understanding the autonomous movement and why it is a workable alternative to corporate controlled globalization,” he said.

The documentaries have not only changed the perspective of the audience, but also of the community itself.

In the documentary “We are equal,” Zapatista women speak about how they have overcome sex discrimination in the Zapatista Army of National Liberation. CMP reported some male EZLN members changed their perspectives on women participation in group decisions after watching the film.

Through their documentary, Zapatista women made a revolution within a revolution.

CMP have shown videos by Zapatista members, in Chiapas and Guerrero communities and in more than 50 universities in the U.S. including Harvard, Stanford and Yale.

“Not only are their videos wonderful teaching resources, but their presentations inspire students and faculty alike to rethink old ideas about indigenous cultures, and forge new ties of solidarity,” said Maria Elena Garcia, Assistant Professor of Anthropology from Sarah Lawrence College.

Alexandra Halkin, CMP founder, said in an interview for Indymedia Peru that Zapatista videos have had a great impact in U.S. college students.

“For many of them, it’s the first time they watch videos done by indigenous people,” she said. “They change their perspective greatly on the implications of a marginalized person having access to technology.”

Halkin said students realize that while people usually use video cameras to record their family events, indigenous people use them as a form of empowerment.

Because of its beliefs in autonomy and freedom, CMP remains an independent medium and attempts self-sustainability.

Its earnings come form video sales and donations, which it invests on equipment, training and film distribution.

CMP offers internships for students from the U.S. They must speak fluent Spanish and have experience in video production and software. For more information on the internships, students can go to http://www.chiapasmediaproject.org.