DAISY IFAMA

Extended cooking sample video for Buzzfeed’s Proper Tasty page, combining two classic desert treats to create a mixed dish; a common practice in the home of the diaspora. 

gal-dem.com interlude series: episode 3 [part 2] living in limbo

Interlude episode 3 (part 2) follows on from its previous episode, continuing to discuss our experiences as part of the millennial diaspora, exploring the power of language to both unite and separate, defining home by location and the inherent fluidity in the foundation of our stories.

“It was so exhausting and draining to be constantly told what I am, rather than what I was telling other people what I felt I was.” – Juliette

A strong factor within this episode is a clear articulation of unique experiences. This highlighted that although we, as people of colour, share underlying connections and a sense of empathy with each other, our stories cannot be homogenised into a single one-dimensional story representing the entire diaspora.

Some of us can speak our mother tongue, some of us speak multiple languages fluently, some of us get by with a few words here and there, some of us feel isolated by not being able to speak the words of a nation we associate ourselves with and for some it isn’t a vital part of embracing our culture. It’s these differences within our stories that are important for us to articulate ourselves, through our own language and on our own terms.

“I can’t speak my mother tongue, so I can’t speak Punjabi; but I can understand it [so] not being able to speak it makes me feel like I am missing out on a large part of my culture.” – Simran

“Speaking Ngala is really great cause means I can connect to all my family everywhere and it’s also this thing that’s really easy for me to plug into watching Congolese films or Congolese TV….and I feel like if I didn’t have the language it would be a lot more difficult for me than people from Nigeria or Ghana as they can still speak in English. I would have no way of speaking to my family at all.” – Liza

The call to constantly define our identities through procedures that fail to acknowledge multifaceted experiences can be an exhausting and isolating process. Interlude episode 3 draws familiar underlying connections between the members of the diaspora while the women share varying experiences of what it means to live in limbo.

Edit Assistant creating front and end cards for this piece and three others in the commercial series, adding language dubs and subtitles to pieces.

I’ve recently created an online series ‘interlude’ with gal-dem.com. Working as the camera, sound and editor has been challenging but so rewarding because I love making videos with messages i feel strongly about. This is interlude, a moment to consider subjects you may have disregarded or never even noticed. It’s us digging up buried conversations, working our way through dialogue from the often silenced perspective of people of colour. We’re examining the norm, breaking apart patterns and asking questions - uncomfortable ones. 

Graduate documentary film

Directing this film allowed me to fully grasp the concept of run-and-gun filmmaking. After gaining access to the (at the time) premier league football club Queens Park Rangers we did not have the luxury of selective filming as the unpredictable nature of sport, especially when dealing with minors, meant that our planning had to often be spontaneous. I attempted to create an informative piece on the academy industry, whilst reminding audiences that the players are still very much just children. 

Co-Directed by Daisy Samuel  Sound Recording by Daisy Samuel Edited by Daisy Samuel

Director and Editor for graduate documentary film

The first promotional video for my graduate film Over the Fence, an innovative insight into the world of academy football detailing the journey of a sixteen year old North London school boy AJ Folkes as he plays for Queens Park Rangers academy club. This promo titled ‘AJ’s journey’ provides a snapshot of his journey to QPR’s training grounds from school. 

Promotional video: Young Fathers

Last year Mercury Prize winning band Young Fathers provided SmithsTV with footage to produce a promotional video for the band’s upcoming album ‘Dead’. I worked on the edit splitting the interview with music videos to create the promo piece that was both informative for the university audience and creatively inline with the band’s character.

Goldsmiths the great

In November I was given the opportunity to directed and produce a set of interviews during the Stuart Hall International Conference as well as interviewing, arguably one of the most publicised female political activists, Angela Davis.