"What the eyes have seen, the heart can’t forget."

illuminAid got to sit down with Golden Mhura, one of the local video trainers in Malawi, and pick his brain about video technology and illuminAid.

Video Creation & Editing 

What is your background in video editing and creation? How did you get started? 

I remember my first impression in video creation was when my parents brought a television home for the first time! When watching the news programs on TV, I was curious about how images were being cut from one action to another and how they’re mixed. 

No one ever taught me how to shoot and edit videos. I taught myself. I never went to film-making school, but my passion for videos made me learn more on my own. I went a different route in University, as I have a Bachelor’s degree in Business Studies. 

What do you love most about shooting and editing video? 

You know, video production is all about telling a story through motion pictures, so when editing I love putting emotion into an interesting action. I think video is a powerful tool that helps people to go back to moments in time. People can forget or can only imagine what happened some 10 or 15 years ago, but with video they easily go back to those moments. 

Impact of Video on the Curriculum 

How do you think video can be a useful tool in your country? 

Here in Malawi, in recent years video has become an effective tool for learning. It’s not just for entertainment, but it’s also being used to promote positive behaviors on television, as well as on social media. Urban areas are mostly the ones that have access to this media. There’s still more work to be done in order to reach those living in rural communities. 

 Generally speaking, people in Malawi believe in seeing rather than merely hearing messages being conveyed. So I think communicating messages using video has an impact and is a powerful tool for teaching. 

How do you think it will help NGOs in your country? 

Most NGOs in Malawi work with rural communities. The ones I know have field offices situated in those communities with field workers, most of whom deal with educating rural households on a variety of topics aimed at sensitizing them to the benefits of good life standards and improve their lifestyles. These field workers use various traditional methods of teaching such as books, flip-charts, and group discussions. Therefore, I think video can help these NGOs adopt a new way of reaching the hearts of their target groups and help them easily grasp the information. 

Why do you think video is so effective? 

Since video is usually a combination of sound and motion, it’s a very engaging form of education; viewers would hardly take a nap or get distracted while teaching is in session.

Another advantage of video is that it paints indelible memories in the viewer’s mind. There’s this interesting saying in Malawi, “What the eyes have seen, the heart can’t forget.” So, if you want your messages to be remembered for a long time, use video! 

Experience working with illuminAid 

Can you tell us what it was like to work with illuminAid? 

 In October 2018, I had the privilege of working with illuminAid as a Local Video Trainer on a four-day video education workshop. It was an amazing experience and I truly enjoyed working with illuminAid’s staff, along with other fellow video trainers.

I particularly was amazed to see illuminAid using video technology as simple yet effective tools. For example, the battery-powered projectors and video editing software that we used during training the NGO staff was really a good approach. Electricity is a big problem here in Malawi and we have scheduled and unscheduled power cuts every day so having solar-battery powered projectors in the communities that mostly don’t have electricity was a very effective solution! 

I remember we had about 20 participants at the workshop and because of its simple user interface they didn’t have problems with using the editing software, although most of them have never edited a video before. 

illuminAid encouraged the trainees to produce the videos in the vernacular language which made it easier for the target groups to put themselves in scenes and understand the intended message being conveyed in the video. The videos were no longer than 5 minutes which made it more captivating. 

illuminAid showed genuine interest in people and one of their representatives put on a traditional wrapper to fit in with the locals during one of the visits to a village. That’s what people love. Putting yourselves in their shoes! 

How do you see illuminAid helping organizations in your country? 

We have a lot of NGOs here in Malawi that focus on education. I see illuminAid bringing new innovations in these organizations and equipping them with video tools to build their capacity to train more and more people using this effective teaching method. 

I think through the video education workshops, illuminAid will help organizations significantly minimize the cost of hiring/outsourcing expensive video production companies, instead, after the workshop, their staff will not only be equipped with the projectors and cameras but also the knowledge and skills necessary in video production. 

Screening 

What kind of responses did you see after people watched the video on a mobile projector? 

A crowd gathered and some were calling their friends to come and join them. People did not want to stop watching the video. They said it was their first time CARE used video when teaching, and they liked the new intervention because the information presented in the video was easier to remember than books. 

The fact that the characters shown in the videos were locals and from their own village, they were very convinced and responded positively. After watching a video on infant nutrition, one of them said he’ll make changes at home and encourage his family to do the same. 

Do you think video will help empower people in rural areas? 

Yes, I think so. Rural areas are usually neglected in terms of development. Most of them here have no electricity so they do not fully benefit from the power of video or television. Video on a mobile projector will help them have access to nearly the same information that others get on television or on the internet.

Were people excited to see video? 

At all the three screening sessions that I attended, everyone was so excited to see video that they asked for more of these sessions in the future.