Latest news with #IDADocumentaryAwards
Daily Maverick
22-04-2025
- General
- Daily Maverick
This Coal Life: A family's understanding of the Just Energy Transition in the mining town of Kriel
The Skhosanas live a modest yet comfortable life in Kriel, South Africa, and they owe it all to coal. But now, South Africa is moving away from coal in favour of greener, cleaner energy in what the government has called the 'Just Energy Transition'. The transition promises more accessible energy, better jobs, and lower carbon emissions. But what does that mean for those who have built their lives on coal? The world is watching to see how Kriel — and families like the Skhosanas — are going to do it. This Coal Life, a podcast episode by Radio Workshop, takes us to Kriel, a small mining town in Mpumalanga that is set to close all its coal mines by 2030. With support from the local community radio station eMalahleni FM, Siya Mokoena, a youth reporter at the station, worked alongside senior producer Dhashen Moodley for six months to report this story. After its release, it won Best Standalone Documentary at the IDA Documentary Awards and Best Podcast & Radio at the One World Media Awards. Dhashen and Siya spent hours with the Skhosanas. From going to church to lunch and the family farm, Dhashen and Siya explored the ins and outs of the Skhosanas' lives, ultimately trying to understand how they will be affected by the Just Transition. One thing is for sure: the lives of coal families across the country are going to change drastically in the coming years. The need for a transition away from fossil fuels is undeniable. What This Coal Life does is pull back the curtain on the uncomfortable challenges of the Just Transition. What does a transition to cleaner energy mean for a father who has only ever worked in the mining industry? Or for his daughter, who has her sights set on leaving Kriel before it becomes a ghost town? For the first time, the future of the so-called 'children of coal' is unclear. Following the release of This Coal Life, youth reporters at eMalahleni FM launched the podcast on their radio show. During the show, more than 700 community listeners sent feedback. After hearing the episode, one community member said: 'I am hoping that people will find out about the Just Transition from this podcast. A lot of people don't know about it. It would be so good if this podcast made it out to people and they knew more about this.' In their feedback, listeners emphasised how the narrative-driven nature of the podcast captured their attention and made them feel like they could relate to the trials and tribulations of the characters. They also noted the need for more support to further unpack what is at stake for their community. Given this feedback, Radio Workshop facilitated a listening session where the podcast was used as a conversation starter. Fifty community members gathered around youth reporters and an energy expert to share their opinions, worries, and ideas. After the session, one of them reflected: 'I feel like this podcast is perfect for awareness and dialogue. Because when we listened as a group, we had a lot of questions in mind that we'd like to answer with each other, and it gave us an easier view of how this Just Transition will work.' DM
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
International Documentary Association Adds Inti Cordera, Nathalie Seaver, Joel Simon And Luis González Zaffaroni To Board Of Directors
The International Documentary Association is adding a quartet of distinguished members of the nonfiction film community to its board of directors. Joining the board are More from Deadline 'No Other Land' Wins Best Feature Documentary & Best Director At 40th IDA Documentary Awards: Complete Winners List 'Sugarcane,' 'Soundtrack To A Coup D'Etat,' 'Queendom,' 'Black Box Diaries' & More Earn Multiple Nominations For IDA Documentary Awards 'No Other Land,' 'Queendom,' 'Black Box Diaries,' 'Sugarcane' & More Make IDA's Shortlist Of Year's Top Documentaries Inti Cordera, a documentary film director, producer, and founder of La Maroma Productions Nathalie Seaver, executive vice president at Foothill Productions Joel Simon, author and founding director of the Journalism Protection Initiative at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at the City University of New York Luis González Zaffaroni, executive director of DOCSP, an organization focused on the development of the documentary field in São Paulo, Brazil 'We are excited to welcome Inti, Nathalie, Joel, and Luis to the IDA Board of Directors,' IDA Executive Director Dominic Asmall Willsdon said in a statement. 'Our board is growing steadily with the inclusion of international leaders in the documentary field who will be invaluable resources in IDA's efforts in advocacy for documentary filmmakers across the globe.' The newly added board members join Ina Fichman (co-president), Michael Turner (co-president), Chris Albert (secretary), Maria Agui-Carter (treasurer), Bob Berney, Paula Ossandón Cabrera, Toni Kamau, Grace Lee, Orwa Nyrabia, Chris Pérez, Al Perry, and Amir Shahkhalili. The IDA announced that Marcia Smith, co-founder of Firelight Media, will be stepping down from the board after serving two terms. The org also noted that Keisha N. Knight, head of the IDA Funds department since 2022, is leaving to establish a new initiative to support systems-impacted filmmakers, The Solidarity Media Network. The IDA sees its mission as supporting documentary makers and championing 'a thriving and inclusive documentary culture… Through our work, we connect audiences with the best of the form, provide resources, create community, and defend the rights and freedoms of documentary artists, activists, and journalists around the globe.' Below is more background on each of the new board members joining the IDA. Inti Cordera is a documentary film director, producer, and founder of La Maroma Productions and the DocsMX festival & organization in Mexico City. In his more than 30 years as a director and producer, he has carried out numerous projects for documentary films, series, and TV programs. His work was selected and awarded at renowned festivals in Mexico, Latin America, North America, and Europe. He has also participated as a jury member in festivals and project evaluation committees, as well as in workshops, analysis forums, and work groups in more than 15 countries. Nathalie Seaver has a long history in film and has held creative development and production executive positions for scripted film and television at Universal Pictures, MGM, Warner Brothers, and Showtime. This narrative background informs her approach to elevated storytelling in her current role, nurturing and supporting documentaries at all stages of production as Executive Vice President at Foothill Productions. Their films have premiered at Sundance, Telluride, TIFF, Tribeca, Hot Docs, and the Venice Biennale and include several Oscar and Emmy Nominees. Recently released titles include Carville: Winning is Everything, Stupid, Art Spiegelman, Disaster is My Muse, Food and Country, Desperate Souls, Dark City -The Legend of Midnight Cowboy, and The Martha Mitchell Effect. Joel Simon is the founding director of the Journalism Protection Initiative at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism, part of the City University of New York. He is the author of four books, including The New Censorship: Inside the Global Battle for Media and Media Freedom and most recently The Infodemic: How Censorship and Lies Made the World Sicker and Less Free, co-authored with Robert Mahoney. He writes regularly on press freedom issues for The New Yorker and produces a column for Columbia Journalism Review. From 2006 until 2021, Simon served as executive director of the Committee to Protect Journalists. His work defending press freedom was featured in the HBO documentary Endangered, which was nominated for an Emmy. Luis González Zaffaroni is the executive director of DOCSP, an organization focused on the development of the documentary field in São Paulo, Brazil, since 2015. He was the founding director of DocMontevideo (Uruguay, 2009-2023), with a key role in the Latin American documentary community and its international promotion. Always connected with training and networking programs, he has been a consultant and adviser in more than ten countries for cinema agencies, funds, markets, and festivals. He is a member of the advisory board of TAL, the Latin American cultural and public broadcasters network, and the BMW Foundation Responsible Leaders Network. Best of Deadline 2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery Everything We Know About Paramount's 'Regretting You' Adaptation So Far List Of Hollywood & Media Layoffs From Paramount To Warner Bros Discovery To CNN & More
